Please note that the content on this page is being updated in accordance with recent changes made to the Foreign Nationals Act with Act No 149/2018.
Prior to applying for a residence permit, the applicant must check whether he/she may stay in Iceland while the application is being processed by the Directorate of Immigration, cf. Art. 51 of Act no. 80/2016.
If an application is submitted at the Directorate of Immigration, the applicant is given guidelines regarding these rules. If an application is sent by mail, but the applicant is in Iceland, he/she receives a notification of illegal stay or refusal of the application by the Directorate of Immigration if he/she does not have a permission to stay. A notification is not sent to an applicant who has permission to stay.
The applicant shall check whether he/she has a permission to stay and needs to be aware of how the processing of the application may be stopped or the application rejectedif he/she does not have a permission to stay in Iceland.
An applicant for renewal of a residence permission may stay in Iceland while the application is being processed if the application for renewal is made within the correct time limits.
A foreign national who does not need a visa to come to Iceland
A foreign national who needs a visa to come to Iceland
A foreign national who always has permission to stay if he/she is in the country
Special exemption for an applicant for a residence permit on grounds of certain employment/work
A foreign national who submits an application for a renewal of a residence permit too late
A foreign national who has a residence permit, changes grounds of his/her residence permit
The consequences of submitting an application when an applicant does not have a permission to stay during the processing of an application and/or the applicant’s stay in Iceland is illegal
How do I know whether I have a permission to stay?
Compelling circumstances of fairness as basis for exemption
A foreign national who does not need a visa to come to Iceland
A foreign national who does not need a visa to Iceland may stay in Iceland while his/her application for a residence permit is being processed. A stay within the Schengen Area may not exceed 90 days total in a 180 day period. This means that if an applicant is coming from another Schengen member state where he/she has stayed for some time, such length of stay is considered as stay in Iceland.
Example: an applicant who is a US citizen applies for a student residence permit and has stayed for 50 days in Denmark before submitting his/her application. The applicant then comes to Iceland to apply for a residence permit and may then only stay in Iceland for 40 days while his/her application is being processed.
When applying for a residence permit the applicant shall fill out a statement stating when he/she entered the Schengen Area. The personnel at the front desk of the Directorate of Immigration do not determine whether or not the applicant has a permission to stay. If it turns out during the processing of the application that the applicant does not have a permission to stay the applicant is informed of this conclusion in writing as soon as possible, as a rule within 30 days from the date the application was submitted.
A foreign national who needs a visa to come to Iceland
A foreign national who needs a visa to come to Iceland cannot come or stay in Iceland while his/her application for a residence permit is being processed unless the applicant falls under the special exemptions as stated in Art. 51, para 1, items a-c, of the Act on Foreigners.
Example: an applicant who is a citizen of the Philippines applies for a student residence permit. He cannot stay in Iceland while his/her application is being processed. It does not matter whether the applicant has a valid visa to Iceland.
A visa is not issued to an applicant who wishes to come to Iceland before his/her application is decided on, even though the applicant has a permission to stay in Iceland during the processing of the application.
A foreign national who always has a permission to stay if he/she is in the country during the processing of an application
If an applicant is either a spouse or cohabiting partner of an Icelandic or Nordic national or a foreign national who has a permanent residence permit or residence permit which are basis for permanent residence permit, the applicant may stay in Iceland while his/her application is being processed.
If the applicant is the child of an Icelandic or Nordic national or a foreign national who has a permanent residence permit or a residence permit which is the basis for permanent residence permit, the applicant may stay in Iceland while his/her application is being processed. A child in this instance refers to a person under the age of 18.
These persons have a right to stay until a residence permit is granted or refused. They are not required to leave the country after the 90-day limit of stay in the Schengen Area has been reached.
An applicant who is required to have a visa must have arrived in Iceland for the exemption to be valid. Visas are not issued in order to activate this exemption.
If an applicant is a relative of a foreign national who has a residence permit, the relative in Iceland must have one of the following residence permits:
- For work requiring expert knowledge.
- For athletes.
- Family reunification.
- International protection
- On humanitarian grounds.
- Special ties to Iceland.
Note that the right to family reunification is not attached to all types of residence permits. See further information about rights attached to residence permits.
Also note that spouses and children of students do not have permission to stay in Iceland while an application is being processed, as student residence permits are generally not the grounds for a permanent residence permit.
Special exemption for an applicant for a residence permit on grounds of certain employment/work
Special exemptions regarding permission of stay apply to the following residence permits:
- Work requiring expert knowledge.
- Athletes.
- Collaboration and service contracts.
An applicant for any of these residence permits is permitted to stay in the Schengen Area for 90 days while the application is being processed or for as long as the visa is valid.
Example: an applicant from Vietnam has received a visa to come to Iceland and has stayed in the Schengen Area (outside of Iceland) for 20 days when he/she applies for a residence permit on grounds of expert knowledge. The applicant may stay in Iceland for 70 days while his/her application is being processed, if the visa is valid for 90 days.
It is the responsibility of the applicant to leave Iceland before his/her permission to stay expires and also to familiarize him-/herself with the rules that apply to the consequences of not leaving Iceland within the specified time limits.
A foreign national who submits an application for renewal of a residence permit too late
If an applicant submits an application for renewal of a residence permit after the residence permit expires, the same rules apply as if this were the first application. The Directorate of Immigration therefore does not consider this as being an application for renewal of a residence permit; instead as an application for a first residence permit. This means that the applicant may have to leave Iceland or the application could be refused even though the applicant had a previous residence permit.
A person who does not need a visa to come to Iceland may stay in Iceland for 90 days from such time his/her residence permit expires if he/she has submitted an application. This also applies to persons who fall under the category as stated in Art. 51, para 1, items a and b, i.e. spouse and child.
No exemptions are made to this requirement. It is therefore very important for the applicant to submit an application for renewal within the time limits.
If an applicant for a residence permit applies after the period of validity of the residence permit has expired and the application is handled as an application for a first residence permit, a certain gap occurs in the applicant’s permit history. This means that the applicant begins again to count towards the requirements of the number of years needed to obtain a permanent residence permit and the right to citizenship.
Example: an applicant has a residence permit on grounds of expert knowledge and the permit expires on 30th January. The applicant submits an application after the expiry of the permit, i.e. 15th February. That applicant must leave the country and his/her application is considered as being a first application for a residence permit. This also means that the applicant must obtain further documents than he/she would otherwise have to do if this were considered to be an application for renewal.
A foreign national who has a residence permit applies for a residence permit on different grounds
If an applicant wishes to change the grounds of his/her residence permit, i.e. from having a student residence permit to a residence permit on grounds of expert knowledge, special rules apply to a permission to stay while the application is being processed. Two rules are most important in this respect:
- The applicant must apply for a residence permit at least four (4) weeks before the previous residence permit expires in order to be allowed to stay in the country while the application is being processed.
- The applicant must furthermore have been in legal stay in Iceland for nine (9) months before submitting an application for being allowed to stay in the country while changing his/her grounds of the residence permit.
Applicants who have a residence permit on the following grounds are not permitted to stay in Iceland while an application is being processed when changing the grounds of residence permit. This applies even though an application is made for a new residence permit at least four (4) weeks before the previous permit expires and the applicant has been in legal stay in Iceland for nine (9) months:
- On grounds of a collaboration and service contract.
- On grounds of agreements with other states.
- Missionaries.
- Volunteers.
- Au-pair placement.
Note that the aforementioned rules do not apply when applying for a residence permit on grounds of marriage or cohabitation, as the applicants may stay in the country even though they do not meet the aforementioned time limits.
THE Consequences of submitting an application when the applicant does not have a permission to stay while the application is being processed and/or the applicant is staying in Iceland illegally
Different rules apply depending on the kind of permission to stay of an applicant. The consequences are that the applicant must leave Iceland while his/her application is being processed or if the application is refused. Note that these rules also apply when applying for renewal of a residence permit after the validity of the previous permit has expired.
Application submitted during legal stay, however, the stay becomes illegal while the application is being processed:
This may happen if an applicant has permission to stay on grounds of a visa or does not need a visa to come to Iceland. Stay becomes illegal when the time the applicant has for staying has expired.
The applicant must leave Iceland, the processing of the application is stopped and the applicant receives a notification that his/her stay has become illegal. The applicant is informed of this in writing and shall submit a confirmation of departure and must leave the country within 15 days from the time he/she received the notification. If the applicant does not leave within this deadline, the application is refused within 30 days from such time the stay became illegal. It is therefore very important for the applicant to leave the country as stated by the rules.
An exemption from the aforementioned is granted when an applicant applies for a residence permit based on work, and if the Directorate of Immigration has already sent the application for a work permit to the Directorate of Labor before the stay became illegal. The applicant is then not notified about the illegal stay; instead a residence permit is either granted or refused when the decision of the Directorate of Labor has been received.
Application is submitted during legal stay; however, the applicant does not have a permission to stay while the application for a residence permit is being processed:
An application for a residence permit is refused if the applicant does not have a permission to stay while the application is being processed.
Example: the applicant is required to have a visa, for example, from the Philippines, and applies for a residence permit on grounds of study or au-pair placement while in Iceland with a valid visa. The application is refused because applicants for au-pair placements or study are not permitted to stay in Iceland while their application is being processed, i.e. if they are required to have a visa.
Application is submitted during illegal stay or the applicant comes to Iceland without permission to stay while the application is being processed:
An application for a residence permit is refused if the applicant is in illegal stay or arrives in Iceland without a permission to stay while the application is being processed.
Example 1: an applicant that has stayed longer than 90 days in the Schengen Area and applies for a residence permit in Iceland, may have to leave the country though he falls under the provisions of Art. 51, para 1, items a and b.
Example 2: the applicant has applied for a residence permit on grounds of an au-pair placement and has sent the application by post. The applicant arrives in Iceland with a visa before a residence permit is granted. The application for a residence permit is refused as he/she was not permitted to come to Iceland before the residence permit was granted.
If an applicant is in illegal stay in Iceland this could result in expulsion and refusal of re-entry to Iceland and the entire Schengen Area.
How do I know whether I have a permission to stay?
Personnel at the reception desk of the Directorate of Immigration does not provide information on whether the applicant has a permission to stay when an application is submitted. The reason for this is that it is not certain that all necessary information is available, as well as there is a risk of misunderstanding or incorrect information being given.
Applicants are advised to study the rules that are stated above carefully. A few important points for clarification purposes:
- If you do not have a residence permit in Iceland your maximum permission to stay is 90 days in the Schengen Area over 180 day period.
- If you have stayed longer in Iceland or in the Schengen Area Area there is every likelihood that you do not have permission to stay.
- Stamps in passports can be indicators of permitted time of stay.
- You should check whether you need a visa to come to Iceland.
- You should check whether special rules apply to the type of residence permit you intend to apply for.
- If you are in doubt about permission to stay you should contact the Directorate of Immigration.
Compelling circumstances of fairness warranting an exemption
Exemptions may be granted from the rules on stay in Iceland while an application is being processed if compelling circumstances of fairness warrant this.
Exemptions are only granted in compelling circumstances of fairness. Major interests must exist for the applicant or external circumstances out of the applicant’s control prevent him/her from leaving. Such circumstances can be special family circumstances, illness or accident of the applicant or his/her family, natural disasters or conflict of war.
The following circumstances can generally not be the grounds for exemption being granted:
- Inconvenience resulting from having to leave the country.
- Lack of time.
- Financial circumstances, for example, costs of airline ticket or housing.
- The applicant has a job in Iceland and the employer wants him/her to start working.
- The school where the applicant intends to study has already started.
- The applicant forgot to apply for a residence permit or had to leave Iceland.
- Misunderstanding regarding the rules on permission to stay.
- The applicant was refused a residence permit or international protection.
Applications for exemptions on grounds of compelling circumstances of fairness are evaluated in every single case and a conclusion cannot be given in advance.
An exemption from the obligation of having to leave Iceland shall be applied for when an application is made or as soon as possible when it becomes clear that the applicant does not have permission to stay according to the general rules.