Iceland
Iceland Long-Term Visa for Remote Workers: health insurance requirements
Yes: health insurance is required
Iceland's long-term visa for remote workers lets visa-exempt non-EU/EEA/EFTA nationals stay and work remotely for up to 180 days (90 if applied for after already entering Schengen). It does not renew and you cannot reapply within 12 months of a previous Icelandic long-term visa. The income bar is high and health insurance valid in Iceland is a hard requirement.
The requirements at a glance
| Local-licensed insurer required | No: compliant international IPMI is accepted |
|---|---|
| Accepted proof | Insurance policy document showing it is valid in Iceland or the wider Schengen Area for the full visa period, covering medical treatment, emergencies and hospitalisation, and stating coverage amounts and geographical validity. Submitted with application form L-802 to the Directorate of Immigration. |
Confirmed monthly income of ISK 1,000,000 (commonly cited as roughly $7,000 to $8,000), or ISK 1,300,000 with a spouse or partner. Work must be location-independent for a foreign employer or clients, with no Icelandic companies or clients. Applicant must be visa-exempt for Schengen and not have held an Icelandic long-term visa in the past 12 months.
Who qualifies for the Iceland nomad visa
The income bar is what decides most applications, and it is the number people look for first. Here is the current one, with the conditions that come attached to it.
- Income required
- ISK 1,000,000/mo (≈ $7,300)
- Length of permit
- 6 monthsnot renewable
- Who can apply
- Employed remotely, Freelancer
- Nationality restrictions
- Only non-EEA/EFTA nationals who are also visa-free for the Schengen area.
Up to 180 days only, not renewable within 12 months; rises to ISK 1,300,000/mo with a spouse.
What the income bar really means
Two things get people rejected on income even when they earn enough. The first is proving it: consulates want a documented, repeating history, usually bank statements and contracts covering several months, not a screenshot of a good quarter. Irregular freelance income clears the bar on average and fails on paper. The second is dependants, who almost always raise the threshold, and by a percentage of the base figure rather than a flat amount.
Treat the number above as the floor for the paperwork, not as a comfortable income for living there. It is set by the country’s own cost of living or minimum wage, which means it moves, and in several countries it is re-set every year.
The Directorate of Immigration's guidance explicitly states that travel insurance is not accepted for the remote-work visa and that applicants must hold long-term health insurance valid in Iceland, yet publishes no fixed minimum coverage figure.
Our take
The insurance condition is unusually strict in wording: the Directorate states plainly that ordinary travel insurance is not accepted and that you need long-term health cover valid in Iceland or Schengen for the entire stay, covering treatment, emergencies and hospitalisation. Get a policy that names Iceland and the duration, and that spells out coverage limits.
No fixed minimum sum is published in the official guidance, which is a trap if you anchor to a small number. Given that serious cases are flown by air ambulance and the most specialised are sent abroad, the figure that actually protects you is high, and the policy must include repatriation and medical evacuation, not just in-country treatment.
What happens if you get it wrong
Buying a standard short-trip travel insurance policy and assuming it qualifies. The remote-work visa guidance specifically rejects travel insurance and wants long-term health cover, so a holiday policy can get the application refused.
Choosing a policy with no or weak evacuation and repatriation cover. With only two advanced-care hospitals in the country and routine air transport for serious cases, a treatment-only policy leaves the most expensive part of an Icelandic emergency uninsured.
Interactive
Verified pricesWhat would it cost in Iceland without insurance?
You pay, out of pocket
$1,500–$8,000
A serious private admission or common surgery.
Bars to scale. A flight home is in another league.
That is the bill you carry alone. Insurance exists for exactly this.
See what cover costsTypical private-care estimates for illustration, not a quote. Actual bills vary by hospital, city and severity.
FAQ
Yes, in effect. It is the long-term visa for remote workers: up to 180 days for visa-exempt non-EU/EEA/EFTA nationals, with a high income requirement and mandatory long-term health insurance.
Yes, strictly. You must hold health insurance valid in Iceland or Schengen for the whole stay covering treatment, emergencies and hospitalisation. The Directorate is explicit that travel insurance is not accepted and it must be long-term health cover.
No specific minimum sum in ISK or EUR is published in the official guidance. The policy must state its coverage amounts and where it is valid, so buy generously rather than to a fixed number and make sure evacuation and repatriation are included.
Up to 180 days if you apply from your home country before travelling, or up to 90 days if you apply after entering Schengen. It does not renew, and you cannot reapply within 12 months of a previous Icelandic long-term visa.
Confirmed income of ISK 1,000,000 a month for a single applicant, or ISK 1,300,000 with a spouse or partner, commonly cited as roughly $7,000 to $8,000 a month.
How to apply
- Processing time
- About three to four weeks, per Directorate of Immigration guidance.
- Government fee
- ISK 12,200 (the long-term visa processing fee), paid by bank transfer before submission.
- Where to apply
- By mail or drop box to the Directorate of Immigration in Kopavogur (or a District Commissioner). Not an embassy application. It cannot be extended or converted.
- 1
Check eligibility: this visa is only open to nationals who do NOT need a visa to enter the Schengen area, who have not held this Icelandic long-term visa in the past 12 months, who work remotely for a foreign employer, and who earn at least ISK 1,000,000 per month (ISK 1,300,000 with an accompanying spouse, partner or children).
- 2
Complete the Directorate of Immigration application form and gather your passport, proof of remote employment and income, and health insurance.
- 3
Pay the ISK 12,200 fee by bank transfer before submitting, making sure the receipt shows your name and date of birth.
- 4
Mail the paper application and all documents to the Directorate of Immigration in Kopavogur, or deliver it to the Directorate's drop box or a District Commissioner's office.
- 5
Wait for the decision, which takes roughly three to four weeks (longer if additional documents are requested).
- 6
The visa is granted for up to 180 days and cannot be renewed, extended or converted. You may only apply again after leaving Iceland and staying away for 12 months.
Fees and processing times move, sometimes without announcement, and a consulate can add a document the published checklist does not mention. Treat the above as the shape of the process rather than a guarantee, and check the current requirement with the mission handling your application before you book anything.
What policy actually satisfies this visa
Iceland does not publish a minimum figure, which sounds permissive and is not. It means you are judged against somebody's unwritten idea of adequate, and the safe reading of adequate is enough to cover a serious hospital admission in Iceland, not the cheapest policy that technically exists.
A compliant international policy is accepted, so you are not forced into a local insurer. That matters more than it sounds: it means one policy can follow you when you leave, instead of expiring at the border.
Repatriation is not named as a condition, though it is the benefit you would most want to have if the worst happened, and it costs very little to add.
And the dates. The policy has to run for the whole permit, which a standard travel policy cannot do because it stops at around 90 days. An officer comparing your policy period with your permit period does not have to look hard to see it expire in the middle.
Ask your insurer for a certificate of cover that states your full name as it appears on your passport, the exact policy period, the territory covered, and the benefit amounts. That is a normal request and any decent insurer issues it without fuss. The insurance being real and the paperwork still failing is a more common way to lose an application than being uninsured.
The visa tells you the minimum. It does not tell you what to actually carry. Those are different questions, and the paperwork minimum is nearly always the smaller of the two answers.
Get a policy that satisfies this visa
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