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Apply for a work permit

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Persons who are nationals of countries outside the EEA and EFTA generally need a permit to work in Iceland. The EEA is the European Economic Area and EFTA is the European Free Trade Association.

General information on work permits

  • Work permits are always temporary. Their validity period depends on the type of work permit and residence permit.

  • An employee may not start working until a work permit is granted.

  • If the individual does not have a residence permit, it is the employer's responsibility to apply for a work permit.

  • If an individual has a residence permit, it is the joint responsibility of the employee and the employer to apply for a work permit. This also applies to the extension of a work permit.

  • A work permit is issued to both the individual and the employer.

  • The individual can only work for the employer to whom the work permit is granted. The work permit is also limited to the individual for whom an application is made.

  • Duration of the employment contract can be valid for a longer or shorter time.

Required data

To apply for all types of temporary work permits, you must submit:

  1. Original application form. Application forms for each type of temporary work permit can be found in each category, in the list below.

  2. Employment contract. You can use this employment contract template.

  3. In many cases, the application must also include the opinion of the relevant trade union. Trade unions review the employment contract, among other things. When the union is Efling, the Directorate of Labour provides the opinion.

The contract and application form must be signed by the person to be employed and the employer.

Checklists for application

Types of temporary work permits

Each type of temporary work permit has special conditions that must be fulfilled.

Application process

  1. Employers submit an application for a work permit, together with an application for a residence permit, to the Directorate of Immigration.

  2. From there, an application for a work permit is sent to the Directorate of Labour and is processed there.

  3. The work permit is issued to the employer and to an individual.

  4. An employee may start working.

Status and processing time

Applications received by the agency in the month specified in the table below are being processed. Not all applications are processed in the month in which they are processed.

Work permit applications in progress – updated March 20th, 2025

General applications
January 27, 2025

Student applications
January 27, 2025

Applications in expedited processing
January 28, 2025

When an application has been processed, it means that it has been sent to a specialist, who checks whether the application meets the requirements for a work permit. If the application is incomplete or if documents are missing, the agency contacts the applicant or his or her representative. In some cases, the Directorate of Labour obtains additional documents to those submitted by the applicant, for example from the tax authorities. For this reason, it may take some time from the time an application is processed until the Directorate of Labour contacts the applicant.

If your application is waiting to be processed, no further information regarding the application will be available by phone or email.

More on work permits

Other situations where a work permit is required

If the spouse or cohabiting partner of a citizen of the EEA country leaves, they may need to apply for a work permit.

Individuals who have grown up in Iceland may still need to apply for a work permit when they turn 18. This applies if the parents are nationals of other countries...

Guides and other employees in the tourism industry who are nationals of non-EEA countries must apply for a temporary work permit in Iceland because of their work in Iceland.

This also applies to other employees in the tourism industry who are not exempt from the requirement for a work permit and do work that is generally considered to be within the Icelandic collective agreements and the Icelandic labour market.

Who does not need a work permit?

Reasons why a person does not need a temporary work permit in Iceland may be the country of origin, the circumstances or the type of work to be performed.

Self-employed individuals

Individuals who are citizens of non-EEA countries may not work in Iceland as self-employed individual.

Laws and regulations

Contact

E-mail to the following address: atvinnuleyfi@vmst.is

Phone hours for work permits: Tuesdays & Thursdays from 9 to 11.

Information about immigration and visa