Vipps

What is Vipps?

Vipps MobilePay is Norway’s dominant mobile payment app — think of it as Norway’s equivalent of Venmo, PayPal or Swish. It is used for person-to-person transfers, paying in shops, online shopping, wish lists and group payments. If you are a parent in Norway, your child will almost certainly use Vipps. It is how pocket money, peer payments and everyday transactions work here.

Age limit: Children from age 7 can get Vipps with parental controls. At age 15, parental oversight ends automatically and the teen gets full access.

Why do kids like it?

• Everyone uses it. Vipps is a social norm in Norway. Not having it means being left out.
• Easy money transfers — sending and receiving money takes seconds. Splitting the bill for pizza, paying for snacks or sending money to a friend is effortless.
• Online shopping — children can buy things online without cash or a bank card.
• Wish lists — they can create and share wish lists with family and friends.
• Independence — having their own payment app gives a feeling of being grown up and self-reliant.

What are the real risks?

• “Vipps robberies” (Vipps-ran) are a real and documented phenomenon in Norway. Young people are physically threatened or coerced into showing their Vipps balance and then forced to transfer money. NRK (Norway’s public broadcaster) has reported on how this works — “How much money do you have?” Data from Politidirektoratet (the Norwegian Police Directorate) shows 896 youth robberies in 2024, up over 50% from 2023. Victims as young as 11 have been affected. Riksrevisjonen (the Office of the Auditor General) has criticised the government’s prevention efforts as insufficient.
• Overspending and impulse purchases — digital money does not feel “real” the way cash does. It is easy to spend more than planned.
• Chat function — Vipps has a built-in chat that can be used for contact beyond payments.
• Wish lists visible to contacts — others can see what your child wants, giving insight into their interests and spending patterns.
• At age 15, all parental controls drop automatically — the teenager suddenly has full financial autonomy with no transition period.
• Scams targeting young users — fake sales, phishing messages and social engineering affect young users.

Settings to check

1. Download Vipps Foreldrekontroll (Parental Control) — this is a separate, free app that gives you oversight of your child’s usage. Install it on your own phone.
2. View transactions, chats and contacts — the Parental Control app shows all activity on your child’s Vipps account.
3. Enable or disable features — you can toggle: balance visibility, sending money, contactless payments (tap), Vipps number payments and wish lists.
4. Block specific contacts — if someone should not have contact via Vipps, you can block them directly.
5. Both parents must approve certain changes — this provides an extra layer of security.
6. Limit the amount kept in the Vipps account — do not let your child have large sums available. Transfer small amounts regularly instead.
7. Prepare for the age-15 transition — discuss finances and responsibility well before parental controls end automatically.

How to talk about it

“How much money do you keep in Vipps? Have you thought about how much you spend in a week?”

“Has anyone ever asked you to show your Vipps balance, or have you felt pressured to send money? You can always say no and tell me or another adult.”

“Digital money is real money, even if it doesn’t feel that way. Let’s look at what you’ve spent this past month together.”

“You’re turning 15 soon, and then you’ll manage Vipps entirely on your own. Let’s talk about how you want to handle your money.”

Last reviewed: March 2026