The OAG’s tasks are

• to audit the central government accounts (financial auditing)
• to audit the accounts for the various ministries and government agencies (financial auditing)
• to perform a systematic investigation of economy, efficiency and effectiveness (performance auditing)
• to monitor the management of the state’s proprietary interests in companies etc. (corporate control)
• to provide guidance for the government administration on issues concerning accounts and economy, including promoting the prevention of future defects and deficiencies
• to report the results of the auditing and monitoring to the Storting and the government administration

Through its audits, the OAG shall contribute to the prevention and detection of irregularities and errors.

On special agreement the OAG can take on international auditing, monitoring or capacity building assignments.

The Storting can instruct the OAG to initiate specific investigations.

The OAG's tasks are laid out in Section 75k of the Norwegian Constitution, the Auditor General Act of 7 May 2004 and its accompanying regulations.

The Office of the Auditor General as a monitoring agency in Norwegian society

Norway has a parliamentary form of government, in which the Government is dependent on the confidence of the Storting. The Storting holds the legislative and appropriating powers while the Government holds the executive power. If the Storting passes a vote of no confidence against a cabinet minister or the whole government, the cabinet minister or the Government must resign.

The OAG is subordinate to the Storting, and monitors the Government’s compliance with the Storting’s decisions. The OAG is the Storting’s most important external monitoring body.

The Storting appoints an external auditor to audit the OAG.

Scope of the OAG’s auditing and monitoring

The figure illustrates the OAG’s tasks (Auditor General Act, section 9): At the core is the main task of monitoring the central government accounts. The colour fades with the distance from the centre. This illustrates how within the core area the financial regulations of the central government are followed fully and to the letter. When moving away from the centre, the application of the government regulations diminishes. The three types of audits both supplement each other and overlap.