Skatturinn - Iceland Revenue and Customs
Authentication
Electronic IDs and web keys are used to authenticate users in electronic communication with Skatturinn and grant access to Skatturinn's service portal.
Electronic ID
Electronic IDs allow you to prove your identity when using Skatturinn's electronic services. They provide secure access to the service portal and enable you to manage various matters online.
With an electronic ID you can, among other things:
authenticate yourself on Skatturinn's service portal
view and manage your tax affairs
submit data and information
verify information and sign documents electronically
More information about electronic IDs.
Representatives of companies and associations must log in using a web key to access company data. They have only limited access through their personal electronic ID.
Passwords
Passwords are used if an electronic ID cannot be used. Skatturinn issues several types of passwords that provide different levels of access to services on Skatturinn's service portal.
All individuals and entities subject to tax filing can obtain a primary password and a professional filing password. A password is for tax filers' electronic communication with the tax authorities on Skatturinn's service portal.
The primary password provides access to Skatturinn's service portal. It is issued by Skatturinn and is strictly for the taxpayer's personal use. If a taxpayer hires someone else to handle their tax return submissions, a professional filing key (Skilalykil fagaðila) must be used instead.
A primary web key (aðalveflykill) allows you, among other things, to submit tax returns for individuals and entities, access assessment results (álagning), and view various details regarding income, assets, and debt status.
Individuals
An individual's primary key has unlimited validity.
Children under 16 years of age do not receive a password. When submitting a child's tax return, it is done through the service portal of the child's guardian/provider.
Access for Married Couples
Married couples each have their own service portal at Skatturinn and their own password. They both have access to their joint tax return and other joint tax documents, such as copies of previous years' returns.
Personal information, such as withholding tax register summaries (staðgreiðsluskrá), payment status with the Financial Management Authority (Fjársýsla ríkisins), and assets according to the Vehicle Register (Ökutækjaskrá), is accessible only to the respective individual.
Access to personal tax information is therefore independent of marital status. In the event of a divorce, each individual retains access to their personal information, while the former spouse continues to have access to older joint tax documents.
Companies
A company's primary key has unlimited validity.
The primary key provides visibility into all data submitted for the company (pay slips, etc.), whereas other keys only provide visibility into the data submitted using that specific key.
Tax-exempt organizations
Tax-exempt organizations are legal entities that are not required to pay income tax. They are not automatically issued a password, but can apply for one if they need to communicate electronically with Skatturinn.
The same rules apply to passwords for tax-exempt organizations as to other web keys. With a web key, organizations can, among other things, submit data regarding:
paid wages
VAT-liable sales
capital gains
A password can also be useful for home/building owner associations (húsfélög), for example to apply for a VAT refund for maintenance and renovations.
Learn more about tax-exempt organizations.
The professional filing key (skilalykill) is intended for those who handle tax submissions on behalf of a tax filer, such as accountants and bookkeepers.
With a professional filing key, it is possible to submit tax returns, annual financial statements, pay slips, contractor statements, and other documents related to tax preparation. It provides access only to the data directly related to the submission and does not grant access to other personal information on the service portal.
Data can also be submitted directly from payroll and accounting software using a professional filing key.
Individuals and entities can apply to recieve password:
By picking it up at a Skatturinn service location upon presenting personal identification
To ensure data security, a company's password will only be handed over in person to the following individuals upon presenting personal identification:
Procurators / Authorized signatories
Managing directors
Chairs of the board (or a board member in a single-person board)
Skatturinn urges password holders to keep them secure and never provide them to unauthorized parties. Handing over a web key may grant access to personal information regarding financial status and communications with Skatturinn.
If an accountant or bookkeeper handles tax preparation on behalf of a taxpayer, a professional filing key (skilalykill fagaðila) must be used. It provides more limited access to the service portal than a primary password.
Skatturinn is not liable for any damage or loss that may result from authentication, the use of a password, or a user's actions on the service portal.
Passwords remain the property of Skatturinn.
The withholding tax password is used in business operations and can also be used for the electronic submission of other taxes and levies, such as financial activity tax, social security tax, and capital gains tax.
Electronic submission of withholding taxes on public dues can be done both on Skatturinn's service portal and via direct transmissions from payroll and accounting software.
Anyone holding a withholding tax key can submit withholding tax and view all of the tax filer's withholding submissions on their service portal. However, the withholding tax key only provides access to the specific data that was submitted using that key in data submissions (pay slips, contractor statements, etc.).
Submission of other taxes and levies
The withholding tax password is used for the electronic submission of more taxes and levies than its name suggests.
A withholding tax password is used to submit, among other things:
withholding tax on wages
social security tax (tryggingagjald)
capital gains tax (fjármagnstekjuskattur)
financial activity tax (fjársýsluskattur)
pay slips and contractor statements
Individuals and entities can apply to recieve password:
By picking it up at a Skatturinn service location upon presenting personal identification
To ensure data security, a company's password will only be handed over in person to the following individuals upon presenting personal identification:
Procurators / Authorized signatories
Managing directors
Chairs of the board (or a board member in a single-person board)
Skatturinn urges password holders to keep them secure and never provide them to unauthorized parties. Handing over a web key may grant access to personal information regarding financial status and communications with Skatturinn.
If an accountant or bookkeeper handles tax preparation on behalf of a taxpayer, a professional filing key (skilalykill fagaðila) must be used. It provides more limited access to the service portal than a primary password.
Skatturinn is not liable for any damage or loss that may result from authentication, the use of a password, or a user's actions on the service portal.
Passwords remain the property of Skatturinn.
The Value added tax (VAT) password is used in business operations and can also be used for the electronic submission of other taxes and levies, such as the accommodation tax.
Electronic submission of VAT can be done both on Skatturinn's service portal and via direct transmissions from payroll and accounting software.
Anyone holding a VAT web key can submit VAT returns and view all of the tax filer's VAT submissions on their service portal.
Submission of accommodation tax
The VAT web key is also used to submit the accommodation tax (gistináttaskattur), which is a specific tax levied on each sold accommodation unit. Learn more about accommodation tax.
Individuals and entities can apply to recieve password:
By picking it up at a Skatturinn service location upon presenting personal identification
To ensure data security, a company's password will only be handed over in person to the following individuals upon presenting personal identification:
Procurators / Authorized signatories
Managing directors
Chairs of the board (or a board member in a single-person board)
Skatturinn urges password holders to keep them secure and never provide them to unauthorized parties. Handing over a web key may grant access to personal information regarding financial status and communications with Skatturinn.
If an accountant or bookkeeper handles tax preparation on behalf of a taxpayer, a professional filing key (skilalykill fagaðila) must be used. It provides more limited access to the service portal than a primary password.
Skatturinn is not liable for any damage or loss that may result from authentication, the use of a password, or a user's actions on the service portal.
Passwords remain the property of Skatturinn.
Individuals residing abroad can use either electronic ID (rafræn skilríki) via the Auðkenni app or apply to have a password mailed to their foreign legal domicile.
Electronic ID in the Auðkenni app
Electronic ID can be activated via self-service in the Auðkenni app anywhere in the world, provided the user has:
Reached 13 years of age (individuals under 18 require a guardian's signature).
Access to a smart device with NFC support.
A valid Icelandic passport.
Password sent abroad
Those who do not have an Icelandic legal domicile, an Icelandic online bank account, or Icelandic electronic ID can apply to have a password sent to their legal domicile abroad. Apply for a password abroad.
The password is sent by postal mail (not by email) to the foreign legal domicile or to a designated proxy/representative.
An administrator/representative of an estate can apply for a password to gain access to the deceased's service portal at Skatturinn.
This access grants authorization to:
View the deceased's service portal.
View the debt status and prior tax returns.
Submit a tax return in the first year following the death.
Access other necessary documents for the estate settlement.
Application process step-by-step:
Open the application for an estate password (umsókn um veflykil dánarbús).
Enter the estate's ID number (kennitala) and click "Request password" (Sækja veflykil).
Enter your ID number as administrator and your email address in the second step.
Supporting documents: A copy of the power of attorney or certificate from Sýslumaður (for example: a permit for private division/settlement or an estate administration power of attorney).
The password is sent by email via Signet Transfer to the estate's representative, who opens it using their personal electronic ID.
Processing time: Applications are generally processed within 4 business days of receipt.
Open an application for an estate password.
Applications for a homeowner association password can be submitted to receive it:
In the homeowner association's online bank account.
By postal mail to the homeowner association's registered legal address.
If you request to receive the password by postal mail, it can only be sent to the registered address according to Skatturinn's Register of Enterprises (Fyrirtækjaskrá). It is important that the mailbox/mail slot is clearly marked with the name of the homeowner association.