Maternity and paternity grant for parents who are not working

In the case of a primary adoption or permanent foster care, both parents may start receiving the grant from the 1st day of the month when the child enters the home.

If there is a trial period before the adoption or permanent foster care can be arranged, or if the child must be brought to Iceland from another country, the grant payment may be started at that time, provided the relevant authorities have confirmed the measure.

The right to child support is suspended 24 months after the child enters the home.

If the parent resided in another EEA country during the 12 months preceding the birth of the child.

Requirements:

• To have had legal domicile in Iceland when a child is born, is adopted or is permanently fostered.

• Not more than a month has passed since the period of insurance ended in that country.

The parent must apply for a U1 certificate so that the Directorate can obtain information about insurance periods in other EEA countries.

Parents who have received a residence permit in Iceland* for the first time may be entitled to a grant.

This may be the case even if the parent has not had a legal domicile in Iceland for the last twelve months before the birth of the child, initial adoption or permanent foster care.

Requirements:

It has not been more than 12 months since the granting of a residence permit.

* on grounds of international protection or on humanitarian grounds.

Applications should be made at least 3 weeks before the expected date of birth of a child, primary adoption or taking a child into permanent foster care.

It usually takes 2-4 weeks to process an application. If supporting documents are missing, the processing time may be longer.

Application status

If the applicant does not receive an email, the application is still being processed. If information is missing, the parent will be sent an email about it.

Processing completed

1. Letter of rights: The parent receives a letter by email when the processing of the application is complete. The letter contains the results of the calculation of entitlement to a birth grant.
2. Payment plan: Once a child is born, the applicant receives a payment schedule by email. It shows the amounts that will be paid each month.

You can change a period of maternity and paternity leave and register a new period after the leave begins.

Same online application

If a period is to be changed or a new one is registered, the parent uses the same application as was sent to apply originally. The application is on My Pages at Ísland.is. A new application should not be created.

Using your personal tax credit

Wage earners can use their personal tax credit to lower the income tax withdrawn from their salaries. This tax credit can be used during maternity and paternity leave.

Read more on the Iceland Revenue and Customs website