Residence Citizenship

As a rule, foreign nationals need residence permits to stay in Iceland for over three months. For short-term stays, see the chapter on visas under Travel & Leisure. Work permits must be obtained before arriving in Iceland. Foreign nationals must usually have been domiciled in Iceland for seven years before they can apply for citizenship.
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• Information for Foreign Citizens Ministry for Foreign Affairs
• Act on Foreigners, No. 96/2002 Ministry of Justice

Residence Permits

Residence permits are issued to foreign nationals residing in Iceland for longer stays or in case of employment. For short-term stays, see the chapter on visas under Travel & Leisure. As a rule foreign nationals need residence permits to stay in Iceland for over three month. However this does not apply to nationals of the Nordic countries or foreign nationals who are married to Icelandic nationals and have resided in Iceland for two years.

A foreign national coming to Iceland should hold a fully valid passport and be in possession of a visa, if required. Residence permits are issued by the Immigration Service. Application forms are available there.

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Other Requirements

Foreign residents in Iceland must notify the Statistical Bureau of their residence status by filling out a "Change of Address" form. The forms are available at the Statistical Bureau and at local police stations. The Statistical Bureau issues them a personal identity number, the same type of number as for Icelandic nationals. The local tax authority issues foreign nationals a tax card. The Directorate of Labour issues them a work permit, if applicable (see below).

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Foreign nationals in Iceland must have work permits before they accept employment or operate a business. The work permits must be obtained before arriving in Iceland. Such permits may not be granted unless a residence permit has been obtained.

Nationals of member countries of the European Economic Area (EEA) are exempted from the work permit requirement (the same applies to non-nationals who had Icelandic nationality at birth and to private staff of diplomatic personnel). Also, the following foreign nationals are exempted from the work permit requirement for employment in Iceland up to four weeks:
(a) Scientists and lecturers, provided their work is connected with teaching or of a similar nature;
(b) Artists, with the exception of musicians employed by restaurants;
(c) Athletics coaches;
(d) Representatives arriving on business on behalf of companies that do not have branches in Iceland;
(e) Drivers of buses registered in a foreign country, provided the vehicles are carrying foreign tourists to Iceland;
(f ) Journalists and reporters of foreign news media, employed by companies that are not established in Iceland;
(g) Specialized employees, consultants and instructors working at the construction, installation, supervision or repair of equipment.

Work permits granted to an employer. An employer in Iceland may apply for three kinds of permits:
(a) A temporary work permit to engage a foreign national for a specific job for a specified period of time;
(b) A provisional work permit to engage one or more foreign nationals, provided certain conditions have been met.
(c) A work permit for au-pair placement of an individual, 17-30 years of age, in an Icelandic home.
Work permits must be issued before employees arrive in Iceland.

Work permit granted to a foreign national. A foreign national may himself apply for the following permits:
(a) A permanent work permit. This grants a foreign national unlimited permission to be employed in the Icelandic labour market. The main condition for obtaining such permit is the previous acquisition of a temporary work permit by the employer and of a permanent residence permit. In principle, foreign nationals can obtain such permit after three years' residence in Iceland;
(b) A permit to operate a business. Such permits also constitute permission to be self-employed.
(c) A special work permit for students. This is available to foreign students studying at an Icelandic educational institution.
Professional activities in the legal and medical profession are in principle limited to Icelandic nationals and nationals of the EEA-countries.

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Laws on Employment

In Iceland there are general laws on the rights and duties of employers and employees. Furthermore, short-term agreements, including special provisions, are made between trade unions and employers. These stipulate, among other things, the minimum wage rates which must be adhered to by employers. Information on wage rates and other contractual rights may be obtained from the trade union in question. According to Icelandic law, everyone is obliged to pay into a pension fund, which will subsequently pay old age or disability pension. The right to such pensions depends on how long the individual concerned has paid into the pension fund. Employers are responsible for such payments and are obliged to deduct a certain proportion of them from the wages of their employees. All wage earners have the right to a paid vacation. If a wage earner has been employed by the same employer for one year or more, he has the right to approximately one month's summer holiday; alternatively, a certain percentage shall be added to his wages. Membership of a trade union is a prerequisite for obtaining unemployment benefits. It is advisable to keep pay slips in order to compare them with statements of pension fund contributions and holiday periods.

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Citizenship
As a general rule foreign nationals must have been domiciled in Iceland for seven years before they can apply for citizenship. Nationals of the Nordic countries, however, may apply after 5 years of domicile. A foreign national who marries an Icelandic national may apply for citizenship after having been resident in Iceland for three years after the marriage. A foreign national, who is cohabiting with an Icelandic citizen, both being unmarried, may apply for Icelandic citizenship if the cohabitation has lasted for more than five years. Application forms for Icelandic citizenship are available from the Ministry of Justice.

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The main principle under Icelandic law is that Icelandic nationals have only Icelandic citizenship. There are several exceptions to this rule:

Rule 1: Children born abroad of Icelandic parents
Children born abroad of:
a) married Icelandic couples; or
b) single Icelandic mothers
acquire Icelandic citizenship and in many cases also the nationality of their country of birth (such as children born in the USA).

Exception to Rule 1:
Children who are born abroad and never reside in Iceland lose their Icelandic nationality at the age of 22. However, they can apply to retain their Icelandic citizenship before they reach that age. They can maintain dual citizenship is such case.

Rule 2: Children born of parents of mixed nationality. Children born of parents of Icelandic and foreign nationality acquire Icelandic and, in most cases, also the foreign nationality if:
a) the parents are married;
b) the mother is Icelandic and single; or
c) the father is Icelandic and single and subsequently weds the mother. This applies to unmarried children under 18 years of age.

Exception A to Rule 2:
The above rule does not apply to children born before July 1st 1982 if the mother is Icelandic and she was married to a non-Icelandic national. Such children did not acquire Icelandic nationality at birth.

Exception B to Rule 2:
Same as the exception to Rule 1.

Rule 3: Naturalized citizens
Foreign nationals, who are naturalized in Iceland by law, are not required to renounce their foreign nationality and can thus have dual citizenship.


Amendments to the Icelandic Citizenship Act

The Ministry of Justice and Ecclesiastical Affairs draws attention to the fact that Parliament has passed an Act amending the Icelandic Citizenship Act, No. 100/1952, enabling Icelandic citizens to retain their Icelandic citizenship even if they apply for citizenship of a foreign state.

The amendments entered into effect 1 July 2003.

In main, the amendments are the following:

A. An Icelandic citizen will retain his citizenship when becoming a citizen of another state, provided that state allows double citizenship. This also applies to any children below the age of 18 years in that person's custody. The conditions set in Article 8 of the Icelandic Citizenship Act as regards residence or stay in Iceland prior to the age of 22 years must be fulfilled.

B. In order to acquire citizenship of a state not allowing double citizenship, an Icelandic citizen must apply for release from Icelandic citizenship before the new citizenship can be confirmed. An application for release from Icelandic citizenship shall be lodged with the Ministry of Justice. The application must be accompanied by a confirmation that the new citizenship will become effective when release is obtained from the Icelandic citizenship.

C. An Icelandic citizen who has accepted citizenship of another state and therefore has lost his Icelandic citizenship without the other state having made such a requirement, can apply for renewal of the Icelandic citizenship to the Ministry of Justice. The applicant must be a resident of Iceland or fulfil the requirements of Article 8 of the Act relating to stay in Iceland. Renewal can only be granted if confirmation is available to the effect that the applicant can accept Icelandic citizenship without loss of the present citizenship.
Such applications must be lodged prior to 1 July 2007.

D. The provision of Article 8 of the Citizenship Act, to the effect that an Icelandic citizen who was born abroad and has never been domiciled in Iceland or resided in Iceland for any purpose indicating a desire to be an Icelandic citizen, shall lose his citizenship on reaching the age of 22 years, remains unchanged. Loss of Icelandic citizenship will however not occur if the person in question is not a citizen of any other state, and would therefore become stateless. Thus, double citizenship is not allowed for these citizens.