Ministry of the Interior - News

Application for Icelandic citizenship - New point of contact

Mon, 6 May 2013 10:01:00 +0000

Please be adviced that from the 1st of May 2013 applications and inquiries for Icelandic citizenship should be delivered to the Directorate of Immigration.

International Conference - Human Rights Protection & International Law

Tue, 9 Apr 2013 11:39:00 +0000

The international conference “Human Rights Protection and International Law: The Dilemma of Restraining and Promoting International Intervention” will take place at the Harpa Conference Center (Norðurljós) on 11–12 April 2013. Sponsored by the Icelandic Ministry of the Interior and the Institute of Cultural Diplomacy in Berlin in cooperation with the EDDA Center at the University of Iceland, the conference will debate the notion of the “Responsibility to Protect” from the perspectives of human rights, international law, and geopolitical interests.

Advertisement - General parliamentary elections

Mon, 4 Mar 2013 14:05:00 +0000

With reference to Art. 45 of the Constitution of the Republic of Iceland, No. 33 of 17 June 1944 (cf. Art. 15 of the Constitutional Law Act, No. 56 of 31 May 1991, Art. 20 of the General Elections Act, No. 24 of 16 May 2000 and Art. 162 of the Act No. 162 of 28 December 2010), it is hereby decided that regular general parliamentary elections shall be held on 27 April 2013.

Advertisement of the results of the referendum on 20 October 2012

Wed, 31 Oct 2012 14:38:00 +0000

With reference to the first paragraph of Article 10 of the Act on the Conduct of Referendums, No. 91/2010, the National Electoral Commission has informed the Ministry of the Interior of the results of the referendum on 20 October 2012 on the proposals by the Constitutional Council for a draft Constitutional Act and particular points relating to the proposals, which were declared at a meeting of the National Electoral Commission on 29 October 2012. No allegations of irregularity were received. After taking into account the rulings delivered by the commission on votes of disputed validity and the final reports from the constituency commissions, the results were as follows.

Outcome of the counting of votes cast in the referendum on 20 October 2012.

Wed, 24 Oct 2012 12:06:00 +0000

The National Electoral Commission has released details of the outcome of the counting of votes in the referendum held on 20 October 2012. The commission will meet on Monday, 29 October, to declare the results. Complaints alleging invalidity of the referendum may be submitted to the National Electoral Commission; this must be done not later than two days prior to the aforementioned meeting.

Iceland withdraws from co-operation with Norway on purchase of rescue helicopters

Tue, 18 Sep 2012 13:16:00 +0000

Icelandic authorities have decided to end the co-operation with Norway on purchase of rescue helocopters as a consequence of great restrictions on public expenditures in Iceland. New rescue helicopters involve large investment requirements which the Icelandic government cannot guarantee in the coming years. Icelandic authorities will instead enter into a leasing agreement for two helicopters in addition to what Iceland already possesses, in order to ensure that three rescue helicopters are available for the Icelandic Coast Guard.

Advertisement regarding the Referendum to be held on 20 October 2012

Thu, 13 Sep 2012 08:58:00 +0000

With reference to Article 5 of the Conduct of Referendums Act, No. 91/2010 (cf. the Resolution by the Althingi of 24 May 2012), an advisory referendum is to be held on 20 October 2012 on the proposals by the Constitutional Council for a draft Constitutional Act and particular points relating to the proposals.

Nordic Road Congress held in Reykjavík

Wed, 13 Jun 2012 09:37:00 +0000

Mr. Ögmundur Jónasson, Minister of the Interior, participated in the opening ceremony of the Nordic Road Congress, which is now held in Reykjavik with over 800 participants from 18 countries. The Nordic Road Association, Via Nordica, organizes the congress every fourth year in one of the the Nordic countries. The next congress will convene in Trondheim, Norway.

Presidential Election 2012

Wed, 9 May 2012 14:27:00 +0000

The electoral term of the President of Iceland expires on 31 July 2012. In accordance with the Act on Candidacy and Election of the President of Iceland, elections to choose a president for the next four-year term will be held on Saturday, 30 June 2012.

Commissioner for Human Rights visits Iceland

Thu, 9 Feb 2012 14:29:00 +0000

Commissioner for Human Rights for the Council of Europe, Mr. Thomas Hammarberg, met with Icelandic officials and non-governmental representatives Wednesday and Thursday February 8 and 9.

Decision on a Request to Purchase Land

Sat, 26 Nov 2011 12:06:00 +0000

The Ministry of the Interior has answered a request by the Beijing Zhongkun Investment Group on 31 August for granting a legal exemption as regards purchasing a share in the estate Grímsstaðir á Fjöllum, in all an area of 30,639 hectares. Because of discussion on this matter, the Ministry wishes to point out the following:

Iceland honors the World Day of Remembrance for Road Traffic Victims

Sat, 26 Nov 2011 11:55:00 +0000

A working group set up by the Minister of the Interior organized a ceremonial event in Reykjavík last Sunday, 20 November on the occasion of the World Day of Remembrance for Road Traffic Victims, which at the iniative of UN is held on the third Sunday of November each year since 2005.

Conference in Reykjavik City Hall Wednesday September 14 on improving democracy within the state and the municipalities

Tue, 6 Sep 2011 15:55:00 +0000

Improving democracy within the state and municipalities is the main topic of a conference organized by the Icelandic Ministry of the Interior Wednesday September 14. Participants are kindly asked to register by sending e-mail to karitas.bergsdottir@irr.is Monday September 12 the latest. There is no conference fee and the presentations will be sent directly through the Internet.

Ring Road open for ferry transport; road connection possible in the middle of next week

Tue, 12 Jul 2011 14:56:00 +0000

This morning the Government held an extraordinary meeting to discuss the repercussions of the glacial flood from Mýrdalsjökull glacier, which washed away the bridge over the river Múlakvísl.

Advertisement on the referendum on 9 April 2011

Tue, 15 Mar 2011 11:02:00 +0000

With reference to Article 5 of the Referendum Act, No. 91/2010 (cf. Article 26 of the Constitution, No. 33/1944), it is hereby determined that a referendum will beheld on 9 April 2011 regarding the validity of the Act No. 13/2011.

Internet Governance Forum

Fri, 28 Jan 2011 12:18:00 +0000

Ministry of Education, Science and Culture, Ministry of the Interior and SAFT (Safer Internet) will host the first Internet Governance Forum on the International Safer Internet Day, on February the 8^th 2011.

Eyjafjallajökull and Aviation

Fri, 20 Aug 2010 10:10:00 +0000

Welcome to the most important Aviation Conference in 2010. Participation in the conference on the most dramatic event in recent aviation history is the best opportunity for you to make sure it will not happen again.

IATA Announces Eagle Awards - Isavia Most Improved ANSP

Mon, 7 Jun 2010 13:39:00 +0000

The International Air Transport Association (IATA) recognized the outstanding achievements of ISAVIA (Iceland), Air Traffic Control the Netherlands (LVNL), Nav Canada, Greater Toronto Airports Authority, and Charlotte Douglas International Airport (North Carolina, USA) with IATA's prestigious Eagle Awards.

Statistics report for 2009 published

Fri, 21 May 2010 10:06:00 +0000

The PTA has published a statistics report on the Icelandic electronics communications market. The report is an in-depth information on the electronic communications market in the years 2007-2009.

Volcanic eruption in South Iceland

Fri, 16 Apr 2010 14:27:00 +0000

The volcanic eruption in the glacier Eyjafjallajokull in South Iceland is continuing but Icelandic civil protection authorities have the situation as regards public response fully under control. The affected areas have been evacuated and damage has been limited to roads, bridges and other infrastructure that has been destroyed by flooding. Further damage to agricultural land is evident.

Road conditions and weather

Wed, 20 Jan 2010 10:36:00 +0000

Information on road conditions is entered from 7:00 - 22:00 and are displayed almost immediately. Outside these hours, information remains unchanged and is erased at some point after midnight.

Passenger numbers at Leifur Eiríksson Air Terminal in November 2009

Thu, 3 Dec 2009 16:30:00 +0000

Passengers passing through Leifur Eiríksson Air Terminal increased by approximately 4% in November 2009 compared to same month last year, or from 92,000 to 95,000.

Statistics report for the first half of 2009 published

Mon, 9 Nov 2009 16:04:00 +0000

The PTA has published a statistics report on the Icelandic electronics communications market. The report is an in-depth information on the electronic communications market for the first half of 2007-2009.

Passenger numbers at Leifur Eiríksson Air Terminal in October 2009

Fri, 6 Nov 2009 15:07:00 +0000

Passengers passing through Leifur Eiríksson Air Terminal decreased by approximately 11% in October 2009 compared to same month last year, or from 142,000 to 127,000.

ACI ranks Keflavik International Airport first class

Tue, 18 Aug 2009 15:08:00 +0000

The Airports Council International surveys the quality and passenger services of 127 different major international airports.

PTA has published its annual report for 2008

Mon, 3 Aug 2009 15:17:00 +0000

The Post and Telecom Administration in Iceland has published its Annual Report for 2008.

Passenger numbers at Leifur Eiríksson Air Terminal in July 2009

Sat, 1 Aug 2009 15:13:00 +0000

Passengers passing through Leifur Eiríksson Air Terminal decreased by approximately 13% in July 2009 compared to same month last year, or from 293,000 to 254,000.

PTA - Statistics report for 2008 published

Mon, 15 Jun 2009 15:31:00 +0000

The Post and Telecom Administration in Iceland has published its Annual Report for 2008. The report gives a clear and accessible overview of PTA´s role and operations in that year.

PTA - Statistic report for the first half of 2008 published

Mon, 1 Dec 2008 15:33:00 +0000

The PTA has published a statistic report on the Icelandic electronics communication market. The report is an in-depth information on the electronic communication market for the first half of 2008.

New Organizational Chart

Fri, 11 Apr 2008 15:01:00 +0000

A new Organizational Chart for the Icelandic Civil Aviation Adminsitration is affected form 15 February 2008. A new division of Air Navigation & Areodrome has been established as the third division along side Air Safety Division and Administration Division.