Norway has a list of dog breeds that are banned from entering or being in Norway, and you are not allowed to bring these breeds to Norway in any form, even as part of a mixed dog breed.
The current banned dog breeds in Norway are:
- Pitbull (American pit bull terrier).
- Amstaff (American Staffordshire terrier).
- Brazilian mastiff (Fila brasileiro).
- Dogo Argentino.
- Tosa inu / Japanese mastiff.
- Czechoslovakian Wolfdog.
The top 5 dogs on the list is banned because they are believed to be aggressive towards humans and children in particular, while the last entry is because it is considered a dog-wolf hybrid.
Ironically the dog breed Saarloos Wolfdog is completely legal, even though it is believed to have a higher percentage of wolf genetics than the Czechoslovakian Wolfdog.
The banned breeds are pretty controversial, and there are many people that want (particularly the pitbull) to become legal. However, there are no political indications that the list of banned dog breeds will change anytime soon.
How strictly are the rules for banned dog breeds enforced?
The rules that ban all these dog breeds are strictly enforced. If you are to bring a dog to Norway, you are required to have papers for it to prove that it is not on this list. If there’s an uncertainty, you might have to pay for a genetic test to get documentation that your dog in fact what its paper says it is.
Do you own one of the banned breeds and want to bring it to Norway? Forget it. You will not be able to bring them into the country without illegally smuggling them in.
If you are caught with an illegal dog breed, expect to get a big fine and for the dog to be put down. So by smuggling an illegal dog breed into Norway, you are putting its life on the line every time you take it for a walk.
Some dog breeds have a breeding ban
A recent ruling by the Norwegian court has ruled it to be illegal to breed the following dog breeds:
- Bulldog / English bulldog.
- Cavalier King Charles Spaniel
The ruling is very new, so people are still a bit baffled at how exactly this works. It seems like it is legal to own these breeds or even import them to Norway, but somehow illegal to breed them in Norway. You will at least not get into any problem by owning or importing these breeds as of 2022, so you can bring these to Norway if you want to.
However, you will need to import these breeds from any other country if you want a puppy of either of these breeds. No one really knows if you will get fined or punished for trying to breed these dogs, but I suppose we will find out in the future.
The reason for this ruling is because these dogs have found to have such a high chance of genetic disease that it goes against the laws of animal welfare. The Norwegian Kennel Club (NKK) has appealed the ban, so there will be more trails in the coming years, so we have yet to know exactly how this breeding ban will end up.
Nicklas is the owner and editor of The Norway Guide, and is responsible for most of the content on the website.
He lives in Skien, Norway with his wife and two children. Nicklas is specialized in Norwegian ecology (including Norway’s geology, wildlife and flora) from his degree in Ecology And Nature Management at University of South-Eastern Norway, but has a particular interest in tourism and content creation.
His biggest hobbies are fishkeeping, going on hikes with his dog, and rooting for the local football team.