Iceland's application fees are set by Parliament and rose sharply on 1 January 2026 — ISK 80,000 for a work-based permit — while the paid fast-track service was abolished.
Overview
Iceland's application fees are set by Parliament in the Act on Revenue Increase of the State Treasury (lög um aukatekjur ríkissjóðs) — not by the Directorate of Immigration (Útlendingastofnun) — and they jumped sharply on 1 January 2026: a first residence permit based on work now costs ISK 80,000 (renewals the same), a spouse permit ISK 110,000, a student permit ISK 70,000, an au pair permit ISK 120,000 and most other categories ISK 40,000. Permanent residence costs ISK 60,000 and a citizenship application ISK 60,000 (ISK 30,000 for a child, with a single fee covering a parent and children applying together). The same legislation abolished the separate service fee for fast-track processing of work-based applications. Fees are never refunded once the application is submitted. Only citizenship, permanent residence and renewals can be applied for — and paid — online via island.is; everything else is a paper application paid in advance by bank transfer, with the receipt attached, or the Directorate returns it unprocessed. Verified against island.is and utl.is as of June 2026.
First Residence Permits — Fees From 1 January 2026
| Permit | Fee |
|---|---|
| Residence permit based on work (expert knowledge, labour shortage, athletes) — D-107 | ISK 80,000 |
| Spouse (D-101), parent aged 67+ (D-106), parent of a child under 18 (D-110) | ISK 110,000 |
| Children (D-102) | ISK 60,000 |
| Students (D-108) | ISK 70,000 |
| Au pair (D-109) | ISK 120,000 |
| Working Holiday / special ties / legitimate and special purpose / missionaries / volunteers | ISK 40,000 |
| Provisional residence and work permit | ISK 40,000 |
| Residence card for family members of EEA/EFTA citizens | ISK 8,000 |
Renewals, Settlement, Citizenship and Visas
| Application | Fee |
|---|---|
| Renewal — work ISK 80,000; studies ISK 70,000; spouse ISK 60,000; children ISK 40,000; au pair ISK 120,000; other ISK 40,000 | see left |
| Permanent residence permit (online via island.is) | ISK 60,000 (child ISK 30,000) |
| Residence permit card renewal | ISK 8,000 |
| Citizenship application (online) | ISK 60,000 (child ISK 30,000; one fee when an adult and their children apply simultaneously) |
| Citizenship notification | ISK 30,000 (child ISK 15,000) |
| Schengen visa application | ISK 13,000 (ISK 6,500 ages 6–12) |
| Visa extension | ISK 4,600 |
| National visa issued for collecting a granted residence permit | ISK 8,400 |
How to Pay — Online vs Bank Transfer
- Online only for three case types: Citizenship, permanent residence and renewals are applied for digitally via island.is and paid in the final step of the e-form — the Directorate warns explicitly never to pay these by bank transfer.
- Everything else is paper, paid in advance: Transfer the fee to the Directorate's Íslandsbanki account (domestic 0515-26-410424; IBAN IS05 0515 26 410424 670269 6399, SWIFT GLITISRE) with the applicant's name and date of birth as the payment reference, and attach the receipt to the application.
- Unpaid or short-paid = returned: Applications without a valid payment receipt, or paid only in part, are returned to the sender by regular mail and not processed.
- Foreign-transfer trap: Your bank's international commission is withdrawn from the transferred amount unless you pay it separately — which silently turns a full payment into a short one.
- Where to deliver paper files: The drop box at Dalvegur 18, Kópavogur, by post to the same address, at the Directorate's reception, or at District Commissioners' offices outside the capital area.
- Non-refundable: The fee is not refunded after the application has been submitted — the amounts are determined in the Act on Revenue Increase of the State Treasury, so the Directorate has no discretion to waive them.
Frequently Asked Questions
How much does an Iceland work-based residence permit cost in 2026?
ISK 80,000 for the first application and ISK 80,000 again for each renewal — the rate for permits based on work (expert knowledge, labour shortage, athletes) since 1 January 2026. The same legislation abolished the separate service fee for fast-track processing of work-based applications, so there is no longer a paid queue-jump. Work permits are paper applications: your employer files the work-permit side for the Directorate of Labour together with your residence application to Útlendingastofnun, and the fee must be paid by bank transfer before submission with the receipt attached, or the whole file comes back unprocessed.
What will it cost to bring my spouse and children?
Family permits are priced per person: a spouse's first permit costs ISK 110,000 (renewal ISK 60,000), a child's ISK 60,000 (renewal ISK 40,000), and a parent aged 67+ or a parent of a child under 18 also ISK 110,000. Each application carries its own fee and its own bank-transfer receipt with that applicant's name and date of birth as the reference. Family members of EEA/EFTA citizens are on a different track entirely — their residence card costs only ISK 8,000. Remember the sponsor must also meet the secure-support requirements, so the fees are rarely the binding constraint.
Can I pay the application fee online?
Only for citizenship, permanent residence and renewals, which are filed digitally via island.is with payment in the last step of the e-form — the Directorate says explicitly not to pay these by bank transfer. Every other application is paper: pay in advance to Útlendingastofnun's Íslandsbanki account (IBAN IS05 0515 26 410424 670269 6399), put the applicant's name and date of birth in the payment reference, and attach a receipt showing payer, recipient, amount and date. Watch international transfers: your bank's commission is deducted from the transferred amount unless paid separately, and a short-paid application is returned by regular mail.
Do I get the fee back if my application is refused?
No. The fee is not refunded after the application has been submitted — the amounts are set in the Act on Revenue Increase of the State Treasury, so this is statute, not Directorate policy. A refusal does not bank credit toward a future attempt either: reapplying means paying the full fee again. That makes the order of operations matter — being lawfully present when you apply, having the work-permit side confirmed by the trade union, and attaching authenticated documents the first time is materially cheaper than funding a second application. If you are refused, the appeal route to kærunefnd útlendingamála runs on a strict 15-day deadline.
How much do permanent residence and citizenship cost?
Permanent residence costs ISK 60,000 (ISK 30,000 for a child) and is applied for online via island.is after four years' continuous residence; the residence card itself renews at ISK 8,000. A citizenship application costs ISK 60,000, ISK 30,000 for a child, and a single ISK 60,000 fee covers an adult and their children applying simultaneously; the notification route (for example for Nordic citizens) costs ISK 30,000 (child ISK 15,000). Budget the Icelandic test for citizenship applicants on top — the autumn 2025 round, the most recent completed, charged a non-refundable ISK 40,000, with the test administration currently between providers.
What changed in Iceland's immigration fees on 1 January 2026?
Parliament approved across-the-board increases effective 1 January 2026: work-based permits to ISK 80,000, spouse permits to ISK 110,000, students to ISK 70,000, au pairs to ISK 120,000, most other categories to ISK 40,000, and permanent residence and citizenship applications to ISK 60,000. The same legislation abolished the service fee for expedited (fast-track) processing of work-based residence permit applications, removing the only paid acceleration option. The Directorate also flagged a tie-breaker: if any of its web pages disagree on an amount, the official fees page on island.is prevails — check it the week you pay, not when you start preparing.