Various social support

Municipal authorities are obliged to provide their residents with the necessary support to ensure that they can sustain themselves. A resident of the municipality is any person who is legally domiciled in the municipality, regardless of whether they are an Icelandic citizen or a foreign national. However, receiving financial support may affect your application for a residence permit or citizenship since you have to have a secure means of support (and financial support does not count).

Children and their families can receive a wide range of support from social and welfare services in their municipality. For example, due to social conditions, stress, illness, disability and violence. You can get social advice on finances, housing, parenting, divorce, custody and visitation issues, adoptions and more.

Co-operating after divorce is a resource for parents who want to improve communcation after going through a divorce, to ensure their children's welfare.

Most local authorities offer support to families who need more help, such as visiting services, help with housekeeping, connection with other service providers, for example school authorities and health institutions. These resources often go by various names but fall under the welfare services of each municipality.

Find your municipality

Reykjavík

In Reykjavík there are 4 service centres for different parts of the city. To get counselling or support, you can make an appointment for an interview with a counsellor at your centre by phone or email. See the centres. You can also call the Reykjavík City phone service at 4111111 to get more information. It is open there from 8:30 am to 4:00 pm.

Contact your service centre to get social support.

Foreign nationals have the same rights as Icelandic nationals to social services (if they are legally domiciled in the municipality). Anybody staying or intending to stay in Iceland for 6 months or longer must register their legal domicile in Iceland.

More support

See all support

Child Protection Services

Child protection service committees in each municipality help children who live in unacceptable living conditions and provide support for families.

Police

The police in Iceland help people who have suffered abuse of any kind. Police see abuse in close relationships as a very serious matter.

Icelandic Human Rights Centre

At the Icelandic Human Rights Centre, immigrants can get free legal counsel.

Parental education

Raising a child is one of the most important and demanding challenges that parents deal with in life. Competence in parenting is however neither inherent nor does it come automatically; it takes time to acquire necessary knowledge.