Assisted voluntary return

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A foreigner who has received a refusal of an application for international protection or has withdrawn an application for protection may request assistance with voluntary return.

The Directorate of Immigration provides assistance for voluntary return in cooperation with the International Organization for Migration (IOM) and the European Border and Coast Guard Agency (Frontex). The return option offered to applicants is assessed on a case-by-case basis.

Applicants wishing to return voluntarily can send an e-mail to return@utl.is. The applicants full name and date of birth must be included in the mail.

The assistance available varies according to the applicant's needs. The assistance may include:

Pre-departure counselling.
Support with travel document acquisition.
Help with registering children born in Iceland.
Travel arrangements to the final destination in the country of origin.
Assistance during transit and arrival.
Escort services (medical or operational) when needed.
Special arrangements for vulnerable individuals.
In-cash assistance and reintegration support in accordance with the regulation on reintegration support and in-cash assistance for applicants for international protection

Conditions for voluntary return and reintegration assistance

To receive assistance with voluntary return, an applicant for international protection must leave the country voluntarily. This means that an individual who has not received a decision on his application for protection must withdraw his application in order to receive assistance with voluntary return. An individual who has a case pending at the Appeals Board will not receive assistance with voluntary return unless he withdraws the appeal.

An application for voluntary return assistance should be submitted before the expiry of the deadline for voluntary return, specified in the authorities decision. Applications received after that deadline are considered on a case-by-case basis.

Applicants for international protection from safe countries of origin are generally not entitled to voluntary return assistance but may as the case may be return to their home countries at their own expense. Vulnerable applicants may be exempted from that rule.

Applicants for international protection who are subject to the Dublin Regulation Procedure are not entitled to voluntary return assistance except when they withdraw their application for protection before the decision of the Directorate of Immigration is published. Vulnerable applicants may be exempted from that rule.