Visiting iceland

this forum is not generally for people looking to plan a vacation but I can briefly answer some questions.

-Iceland is very child-friendly. Most kids enjoy visiting the pools, which are available all over the country, even in small villages.
-accommodation depends on when you visit. In more rural areas the options in the countryside may be limited. Larger towns will have guesthouses or basic hotels, and in Reykjavik you can rent small apartments if you like to self-cater. Staying on farms in the country is also possible.
-the weather in Iceland is very unpredictable. If you come in February it may be well above freezing with no snow, or it may be frigid with tons of snow. Right now it's well above freezing and raining in north Iceland where I'm sitting.
-there is whale watching in Reykjavik so you don't have to go to Húsavík to see them.
-Húsavík is more than 5 hours of driving. It's also not like driving on a 4 lane highway. It's small roads with variable speeds and if you're REALLY coming in February, the road conditions can be quite dangerous.

scenery is nice but living in those remote eastern fjords has many challenges. Getting basic supplies, or buying larger things like furniture or auto parts can be challenging. If you want to visit family or have them visit you, it's not going to be simple, and some of those eastern villages are cut off from the rest of the country when the weather is particularly bad.

Hello,

Many thanks for the reply.

I was basically stating i'd like to visit first before deciding on a full move.

I understand what you are saying with regards to the eastern fjords. I guess it will be a visit but not a stay in those parts. i think if i was to choose a place to live it would need to be just outside of reykjavik. Perhaps Hafnarfjörður or even Keflavik.

when is the best time of year to visit for a chance of some snow but not too dangerous or hard to travel? i know that not one year is the same to the next but there must be a generalisation?

my best guess would be late September/October for cosmetic snow. If you come in the spring it's more likely to be large long-frozen snowbanks that are in the process of melting. Now in Akureyri the mountains are beautifully white and some roads are perfectly clear at sea level. However, if you go only a few meters above sea level, there are huge areas of ice.

this website is essential when planning road travel in Iceland. I highly recommend checking it regularly if you want to get a feeling for the evolution of road conditions throughout the year, and always check it before you take off on a trip.

http://www.vegagerdin.is/english/road-c … and1e.html

Hello,

that is fantastic thank you for your help. I can't wait to visit the beautiful country and im sure i will be bitten with the bug that will make me want to live there!

Are there many job opportunities for administration assistants or for model making/molds in manufacturing?

Davidiceland wrote:

Are there many job opportunities for administration assistants or for model making/molds in manufacturing?

you do realize how small the population is here, right? It's a country of just over 300 thousand people, and you're talking about living in some of the more remote areas.

jobs as an admin assistant will expect fluent Icelandic, even in international companies, and manufacturing here is fairly limited. There is some wool products production, a lot of fish processing, aluminum smelting, and some fishing-related production. Costs are high here when you consider that most raw materials have to be imported, and most finished products have to be exported since there are only 300k people MAX that you could sell to. THat's why most of the "big" international companies are working in software dev. Easy to export, and there's a high percentage of highly educated and multilingual citizens here.

Thank you for the very informative reply. It does sound like it will be very difficult.

What are the possibilities of purchasing a property in Iceland to live in on a basis of say 6 weeks at a time? Something like a holiday home.

parliament recently passed a bill that limits the purchasing of Icelandic real estate if you aren't a resident. Here's a brief summary of the law in English.

http://www.grapevine.is/Home/ReadArticl … rty-rights

As far as I know this law hasn't been repealed since then, which means it may be rather difficult to buy a holiday home here.

wow! that is really unfortunate. I was really hoping to buy a home there one day as i heard the prices are very good value. I also feel as if i have been bitten by the Icelandic bug! Here's hoping i can find a solution....

thank you

even though i am from the E.U will it still be hard to get kenitala? I have read that if you are in the E.U you can get this relatively easy? was i misinformed?

Iceland is not a member of the EU, but it is a member of the EEA. I don't believe you can register for a kennitala yourself- your bank or job has to do it AFAIK. I met a guy last year who was from Ireland and he had been waiting more than 6 months to get it due to some problems being able to prove he was not married (his country apparently doesn't have this kind of population register that tracks it like Iceland does) and some other issues.

if you are moving from another Scandinavian country, it's extremely easy though. Moving from, say, Denmark to Iceland is quite seamless.

as for real estate prices, they aren't exactly fantastic value when you consider that the banks had to take over so much real estate when people couldn't pay their ballooning house loans. Plus, people with icelandic currency to invest can't take money out of the country, so some are buying real estate with it. Both of these have meant that home ownership for the average people is a very different experience than it was 10 years ago.

Yes i understand iceland is not in the E.U. Everything else you have said is also understandable.

The guy you were talking about, perhaps he was from northern Ireland, as that is classed as united kingdom.

perhaps a route of getting danish passport then icelandic would be easier, who knows.
that is a real shame with regards to housing.

There has to be a way to do it, as i'm sure a lot of British people like myself have done it previously. Perhaps i could get an admin job at the airport or behind the scenes somewhere. Perhaps a telephone company or internet provider.

this website http://www.prospects.ac.uk/work_in_iceland.htm  states:

"f you are from a non-EU country, then contact the Iceland embassy in your country for more information.

Once you have resided in Iceland for six months you automatically become a member of the Icelandic social insurance system, regardless of nationality"

many thanks.

Davidiceland wrote:

"f you are from a non-EU country, then contact the Iceland embassy in your country for more information.

Once you have resided in Iceland for six months you automatically become a member of the Icelandic social insurance system, regardless of nationality"

resided=registered in þjóðskrá, or the national registry. This is where you get your kennitala. So, if you arrive here and just hang around for six months, you don't get insurance instantly when month 7 starts. This is referring to the fact that you need to get other coverage for the first six months you are living here as a resident. That may happen with government treaties (moving from other scandinavian countries), or special paperwork (moving from other EEA countries), or by buying insurance yourself (what many have to do when they come from outside EEA.

you can of course just live in Iceland and then apply for citizenship here when your time is up, if you are so "bitten by the Iceland bug". Is Danish nationality easier to acquire than Icelandic somehow?

Well denmark is in the e.u and i am from england also in the e.u

If i apply for citizenship, what is the likelihood of being accepted?

Davidiceland wrote:

Well denmark is in the e.u and i am from england also in the e.u

If i apply for citizenship, what is the likelihood of being accepted?

As far as I am aware, both Danish and Icelandic citizenship have similar "fast track" rules, and they only apply to citizens of other Nordic lands. So, being an eu citizen gives you no advantage getting Danish citizenship over Icelandic. In both cases, you will have to learn the language and be a resident of the country for a number of years.

You can apply for Icelandic citizenship through parliament, explaining the exceptional circumstances you think justify not fulfilling the usual rules (which include residency period, personal recommendations from Icelanders, stable income, regular tax payments, and a language test). However, if you have only been here as a visitor and just want to buy a small summerhouse, I have doubts your application will be received favorably.

Oh..this is a shame as i feel i have a lot to offer and a high work ethic.

Thank you kindly for all your input

Davidiceland wrote:

Oh..this is a shame as i feel i have a lot to offer and a high work ethic

If you want to offer it to Iceland by committing the years of residency, work, taxes, and participation in the community, the country will be more than willing to welcome you. Compared to the citizenship process in my native land, Iceland is very uncomplicated. You can do the paperwork yourself, and for most people I know who applied, the wait time is under 12 months to get it. They aren't going to hand it out without seeing some commitment to the country first though.

But how can i get a job for 12 months without a work permit/visa?

You can get residency by getting a job and then officially declaring your address to the population register in Iceland. As an EEA passport holder, you do not need a visa.

This twelve month wait I refer to is the time it took these people to receive citizenship after submitting the paperwork. They fulfilled all the other criteria already, including the seven years of residency, regular employment, general law abiding standing, and language knowledge.

So id need residence before i can get citizenship...but you cannot buy real estate without citizenship lol

Davidiceland wrote:

So id need residence before i can get citizenship...but you cannot buy real estate without citizenship lol

Did you read the link I posted above regarding real estate purchase? You asked about buying a holiday home for use a few weeks per year. That may require citizenship, but you can be a legal resident of Iceland without being a citizen. As a resident of Iceland, you can purchase property.

I see.

So to be classed as a resident you would be in full time employment? At this point youd then apply for citizenship?

Davidiceland wrote:

I see.

So to be classed as a resident you would be in full time employment? At this point youd then apply for citizenship?

here's information on registering in Iceland as an EEA citizen:
http://utl.is/index.php?option=com_cont … 48&lang=en

once you've been registered and in Iceland for seven years, you can apply for citizenship. The information on those rules are only available in Icelandic (presumably you're only going to be applying when you know enough of the language to understand the page)

http://utl.is/index.php?option=com_cont … 01&lang=en

Fantastic. I think id like to work and try and earn my citizenship after being a resident and learning the language. Ive learned portuguese so am familiar with how difficult it can be.

Many thanks for your help. Perhaps when i am in iceland on vacation you could treat me to your views on the local delights and best places to eat etc.

I cant wait to visit the 66north store. Is there one in reykjavik?

Not to be a pessimist, but learning Portuguese isn't going to be much help with Icelandic. It's a rather gnarly language with more connections to German than the Latin languages.

I actually don't live in Iceland anymore, so my knowledge of the latest restaurants is a bit old.

Of course there is a 66 north store in Reykjavik. I prefer going to the outlets though. It is a very expensive brand!

Thanj you for the reply.

Yes i would assume icelandic is alot harder than other europeans languages.

Are there many other outlets to choose from that sell clothes like 66 north?

As you are an EU citizen you can move freely to Iceland without asking anyone. If you want to buy a property there you can also do that if you want. It is against the EU law forbidding an EU citizen buying a property in Iceland.
Being a EEA country means that Iceland follows all EU rules except the free trading of goods, and they don't have any congress people in Brussels. Otherwise EU and EEA are the same.

Hello,

do you have any links to websites to prove this?

thank you,

It is on utl website. Can't post a link because it will be blocked.

"A citizen of an EEA/EFTA country may stay and work in Iceland without a permit for up to three months from his arrival in the country, or stay up to six months if he/she is seeking employment. If the individual resides longer in Iceland, he shall register his right to residency with Registry Iceland, Þjóðskrá. Residency in another Nordic country is not deducted from the residency period."

If you are coming from an EU country you get covered by a health insurance when you register as a resident in Iceland . There is no 6 month waiting time for EU citizens coming from another EU member state. You do though have to have the correct forms and papers filled out in the UK before you move to Iceland. Failure to do so may results in a 6 months waiting time.

I thought the big question here was about purchasing property if you are NOT registered as a local.

Furthermore, even those quoted texts above indicate that if you want to stay longer than 3-6 months you need to have some means of support in Iceland.

I have contacted the embassy and as i am in the e.u i can work and reside in iceland no problem. This will then entitle me to buying property.

Im doing a manufacturing apprenticeship which includes silicone mould making and various other bits and pieces. Its weird how this opportunity as my current work place could be opening doors for my iceland move in the near future!!
Im due to be visiting iceland in feb 2015 where i can hopefully get chatting with locals and plan my future.

Wow im excited

I am a  US citizen and I purchased my place in Reykjavik last September after three previous visits .  It was a bit of a lengthy process and it involved first getting an offer accepted on the property by the seller and then getting an Icelandic bank account and Kennitala and  showing proof of funds to buy the property .I payed cash as I did not want to deal with a foreign loan and not everyone can do that I understand, The next step was getting permission from the ministry for a foreigner to purchase property ,this process took about three months which I thought was not bad . I had the fortune of finding a great realtor with Remax in Iceland and they helped me get through this process from start to finish . I was fortunate that this new property law did not effect me in my purchase .