Labour Shortage Residence and Work Permit

a work permit based on a shortage of labour may be granted when employees cannot be found either on the Icelandic labour market or within the EEA/EFTA member states or the Faroe Islands.

Please be informed that work permits due to a shorter of employees are only granted in exceptional circumstances and are only intended to respond to temporary fluctuations in the Icelandic labour market.

The foreign national has entered into an employment contract with an employer.

The employer provides specific detailed reasoning regarding the necessity to hire foreign employees from states outside the EEA, the EFTA states or the Faroe Islands, and, amongst other things, how their employment is important to the employer's business operations.

Furthermore, the employer is required to search for an employee who already has an unrestricted access to the Icelandic labour market before this type of permit is applied for, also when applying for an extension.

The assistance of the Directorate of Labour has been requested to find an employee in Iceland and within the EEA, the EFTA- states or in the Faroe Islands.

the Directorate may consider it necessary to advertise a job at the Directorate of Labour and through the Directorate's Eures employment service.

It is preferable that an advertisement that is posted in connection with an application for a work permit is actively advertised for at least three weeks.

In cases where a job that is applied for a temporary work permit is considered a regulated profession, a confirmation of the relevant foreigner's license must be obtained to perform the job.

All work permits are limited to a specific employer and do not transfer with a foreigner to a new employer. A foreigner who works for more than one employer must therefore apply for a work permit from each employer.

The applicant may not start working until a work permit has been granted.

The permit confers the right to family reunification for the holder's marital spouse , cohabiting spouse , after at least one year of cohabitation, children under the age of 18 , if the holder has custody of them, parents 67 years or older

The permit may be granted for up to one year, however, not longer than the period of validity of the work permit.

The permit may be renewed for up to two years at a time, if the conditions of the permit are still fulfilled, however, not longer than the period of validity of the work permit.

a foreigner may be granted a residence permit for six months to look for another job.

The permit can be a basis for a permanent residence permit