Licence to take child into foster care

On January 1, 2022, the issue of foster permits was transferred from the Child Protection Agency to the Quality and Supervisory Authority of Welfare, according to the Act on GEV no. 88/2021.

Foster parents who:

• Have been issued a foster permit by the Child Protection Agency and

• Have a baby/children in foster care in 2020 - 2021

You must apply for a renewal of the foster permit to GEV before 31 December 2024. Other foster permits issued by the Child Protection Agency have already expired.

There has also been a change in the fact that foster permits are generally not valid for special foster children and have a maximum validity of five years. This is a change from the previous implementation of the Child Protection Agency where permits were issued for each foster child for an indefinite period.

GEV will make every effort to process applications quickly, but it is crucial that applications are submitted in a timely manner and that sufficient documents are submitted alongside the application. It is estimated that processing of applications can take up to 3 - 4 months.

An electronic application for renewal of a permit is made by filling in the application form “Fóstur- Ný umsókn/endurnýjun” (see link above).

The following data must be submitted in parallel with the application:

• Consent for obtaining a criminal record (tengill á samþykki)

• Medical certificate from a GP confirming the mental and physical health of the foster parent

• Last two-years tax returns (þjónustuvef Skattsins)

It is very important that the application specifies the names and ID numbers of the foster children who are in care as well as information about which child protection services are housing the children with the applicant. This information is necessary for the procedure and is used to call for information from the appropriate child protection services.

More about the changes:

According to the interim provision I of the Act on GEV no. 88/2021, holders of permanent permits may operate on the basis of such permits for up to three years from the entry into force of the Act, but shall then apply for a permit according to Chapter II which deals with the GEV operating permits.

Foster permits issued by the Child Protection Agency under the conditions discussed above is subject to this provision and therefore the permit has a validity of three years from 1 January 2022 to 31 December 2024.