Secret Santa in Norway: How Nissevenn Works at the Office

Nissevenn is the Norwegian office Secret Santa. Everyone draws a colleague's name, buys them a small anonymous gift, usually for NOK 100 to 200, and the giver is revealed at the julebord or the last coffee before Christmas. The best nissevenn gifts are seasonal and edible or drinkable: good coffee, chocolate, julebrus and gingerbread, a Christmas plant. Stick to the budget; that is the one rule people actually notice.

How nissevenn works

The mechanics are familiar if you have done Secret Santa anywhere else. Someone, often a volunteer from the social committee (the sosialkomité or festkomité), collects the names of everyone who wants to join, draws pairs, and tells each person in private who they are buying for. There are free online name-draw tools in Norwegian too, which saves the organiser from accidentally drawing themselves.

Then Norway adds its own variations. Some workplaces do one gift at the end. Others run nissevenn through December, with a small anonymous treat left on the colleague's desk each week, and a slightly bigger gift at the reveal. If your office does the weekly version, the budget covers the whole month, not each gift. Ask the organiser rather than guessing.

The reveal usually happens at the julebord, the company Christmas party, or at a last Christmas breakfast or julekaffe before people go on holiday. Some teams make everyone guess their nissevenn before revealing. Expect laughter, mild teasing and at least one person who has known all along because their nissevenn was caught at the printer.

Nissevenn vs pakkelek

If you get invited to a pakkelek, it is not the same thing. In pakkelek everyone brings one wrapped gift at an agreed price, usually NOK 100 to 200, and puts it in a pile. Players take turns rolling a dice; a six (or whatever number the group decides) lets you take a gift from the pile, and in later rounds you can steal from other players, often against a timer. It is chaotic and competitive, and Norwegians who appear reserved at the desk become ruthless at the dice.

The practical difference: a nissevenn gift is for one known person, a pakkelek gift is for anyone. Pakkelek gifts should therefore be broad and a bit funny. Our guide to funny gifts and Norwegian humour has more on which jokes travel.

The unwritten rules

• Hit the budget. Spending NOK 400 when the limit is 150 is not generous. It shows up everyone else. In a culture shaped by Janteloven, this is the fastest way to get talked about.
• Keep it anonymous. Wrap it, label it with their name only, and leave it when nobody is around. Handwriting on the tag gives you away, so print it or ask someone to write it.
• Make it about them, lightly. A gift that shows you noticed something (their oat-milk habit, the plant dying on their windowsill) wins. A gift that comments on their body, age or relationship status does not.
• Nothing you would be embarrassed to see opened in front of the manager. Many reveals happen in front of the whole office.
• Saying no is fine. Tell the organiser before names are drawn. Dropping out after the draw leaves someone giftless.

9 nissevenn gifts that work

1. Julekaffe or a bag of good coffee

Most Norwegian roasters release a Christmas coffee. A bag from Kaffebrenneriet, Jacu or Kjeldsberg usually fits inside a NOK 150 to 200 budget. Check whether they grind at home before you buy beans.

2. The Norwegian Christmas snack kit

A bottle of julebrus, a tin of pepperkaker (gingerbread) and a bar of Freia chocolate, all from the nearest grocery store. Under NOK 100, entirely seasonal, and if you are not Norwegian, choosing red or brown julebrus is a conversation starter on its own.

3. Jam, saft or something for the breakfast table

Lerum makes jams and saft (cordial) found in every Norwegian fridge, including Christmas flavours. Pair a jar with good crispbread and it looks like a proper gift for well under NOK 150.

4. A Christmas plant

A julestjerne (poinsettia), amaryllis or a pot of hyacinths is what Norwegians put on windowsills in December. Plantasjen and Mester Grønn have them from NOK 100. Hard to keep anonymous at a desk, but nice to receive.

5. A mug or a small kitchen thing

A good mug, a cheese slicer or a set of Christmas napkins from Kremmerhuset, Ting or Nille. Nille is where Norwegians go for cheap and cheerful; the others are a step up. Ideal for pakkelek.

6. A paperback

If you know your nissevenn reads crime, a Norwegian crime novel in translation or in the original is a solid choice. Norwegians save crime fiction for Easter (påskekrim), but December is still peak book season. Norli and Tronsmo are good places to browse.

7. Wool socks or a hat

Practical warmth is a respectable Norwegian gift, especially for someone who cycles or walks to work in the dark. Keep it plain; nobody needs a novelty sweater from their nissevenn.

8. A NAV Christmas ornament, for the right colleague

For a colleague who has survived the Norwegian welfare bureaucracy, or who works in HR or the public sector, there is the Byvoks Feliz NAV-idad ornament, a parody NAV Christmas decoration for NOK 229 that promises no forms, no attachments and no BankID. It is not made, approved or sponsored by NAV. Two honest caveats: it is slightly above a NOK 200 budget, and the joke depends on the person. Don't give it to someone currently on benefits or between jobs unless you know they will laugh. Full disclosure: Working with Norwegians and Byvoks are run by the same person, Sean Percival.

9. A small gift card

If you drew someone you really don't know, a NOK 150 to 200 card for a café near the office or a Norli gift card is safe. Less fun to open, but nobody is disappointed by coffee they choose themselves.

What not to give

• Alcohol, unless the group agreed. Many Norwegians don't drink, and wine stronger than 4.7% can only be bought at Vinmonopolet anyway. A bottle in a pakkelek can end up with the one colleague who doesn't drink.
• Diet, weight or age jokes. Funny in your head, awkward at the reveal.
• Anything religious or political. Norway is secular-minded and many workplaces are very mixed.
• Re-gifted corporate swag. Your nissevenn will recognise the supplier logo.
• Strong scents. Perfume and heavily scented products are personal, and some colleagues are sensitive.

If you are organising it

• Set one clear budget and repeat it in every message.
• Ask about allergies and "please no alcohol" when people sign up, and pass it on with the name.
• Use a name-draw tool so the organiser can join too.
• Plan the reveal for a day when most people are in, not the Friday before Christmas when half the office has left for the hytte.
• Remember people working remotely. Either post their gift or let them join a separate group.

More gift guides

Nissevenn is between colleagues. If you are the employer, read Christmas gifts for employees in Norway for the NOK 5,000 tax-free rule. For gifts between colleagues the rest of the year, see gifts for Norwegian colleagues and colleague birthdays. And for the season as a whole, read Christmas in Norway.

For every other occasion, start with our overview ofgift-giving in Norway.