Published by Global Banking & Finance Review®
Posted on June 6, 2025
1 min readLast updated: January 23, 2026
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Norway has criminalized sex without consent, joining other Nordic countries in strengthening rape laws. This change aligns with Sweden, Denmark, and others.
By Vera Dvorakova and Elviira Luoma
OSLO (Reuters) -Norway strengthened its rape laws on Friday by criminalising sex without explicit consent, joining a growing list of countries to widen the definition of sexual attacks.
Up to now, prosecutors have had to show that an attacker used violence or threatening behaviour, or had sexual intercourse with someone who was unable to resist, to secure a conviction for rape.
Under the new law passed by parliament, anyone who has sex with someone who has not consented to it by word or deed could be convicted of rape, even without violence.
Sweden, Denmark, Finland and Iceland have all introduced consent-based rape laws in recent years.
Sweden changed the legal definition of rape in 2018 to sex without consent - a change that officials said resulted in a 75% rise in rape convictions.
Denmark followed in 2020 by passing a law that widened the circumstances that could constitute rape.
(Reporting by Vera Dvorakova and Elviira Luoma; Editing by Andrew Heavens)
Norway strengthened its rape laws by criminalizing sex without explicit consent, allowing for convictions even without violence.
Previously, prosecutors needed to demonstrate that an attacker used violence or threatening behavior, or had sex with someone unable to resist to secure a rape conviction.
Countries such as Sweden, Denmark, Finland, and Iceland have also introduced consent-based rape laws in recent years.
After Sweden changed its legal definition of rape in 2018 to include sex without consent, officials reported a 75% rise in rape convictions.
Denmark passed its law widening the circumstances that could constitute rape in 2020.
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