A national surveillance program on paratuberculosis in cattle was started with a preliminary serological survey on imported herds in Norway in 1997. So far, only herds with recently imported cattle, herds with both cattle and goats and herds with a certain number of animals above 7 years of age have been included. The survey was based on the enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay (ELISA). Several of the seropositive animals were slaughtered and pathological and bacteriological examinations of the intestine were carried out. Animals from seropositive herds were in addition examined by faecal culture. A few seropositive animals were detected among recently imported cattle. The positive serological results were later confirmed by pathological and/or bacteriological findings in 7 cattle from 4 herds. These animals could be traced back to two different imports in 1992 and 1994, respectively. In Norway, bovine paratuberculosis has not diagnosed between 1979 and 1992. In goats, however, the disease has been a consistent problem for several years, the disease has been controlled by a vaccination program. The mycobacterial isolates from goats have been considered non-pathogenic for cattle (Saxegaard 1990). However, several seropositive cattle were demonstrated in herds with no history of imported animals. These animals had no clinical signs of paratuberculosis, but most of them came from herds with close contact between cattle and goats. Some of the seropositive animals were examined by pathology and bacteriology. The results of these investigations will be presented.