Driving in Iceland

Last verified 5 August 2026 · Samgöngustofa (samgongustofa.is); island.is; Umferðarlög nr. 77/2019; Reglugerð um ökuskírteini nr. 1348/2020

Two facts decide everything that follows: the date your address was registered, and which country issued your licence. The time allowed can differ by country, so ask Samgöngustofa for your own date and keep the email.

One practical point: car insurance assumes the driver holds a licence valid in Iceland. If you are near the end of the recognised period, your insurance company will tell you in writing where you stand.

If your licence is from the EEA, EFTA or a country with an agreement

A full licence from an EEA or EFTA country (the EU countries plus Iceland, Norway, Liechtenstein and Switzerland) can normally be exchanged with no theory test and no driving test. It is an office task, not an exam. Samgöngustofa also keeps a list of countries outside the EEA whose licences can be exchanged, sometimes with a practical test first. The list changes, so ask them rather than a forum.

You apply at the sýslumaður or through island.is, with your kennitala, your current licence, a paper passport photo, proof that your address is registered (búsetuvottorð, say: BOO-seh-tu-VOT-torth, from Þjóðskrá), and a doctor's certificate if your age or health calls for one. A European licence is handed in when the Icelandic one is issued, because you may only hold one at a time.

If your licence is from a country without an exchange agreement

Licences from many countries, among them the United States, Canada and Australia, cannot be exchanged directly. The route is the Icelandic theory test and the Icelandic practical test. Years of safe driving at home do not shorten it. It is worth knowing early rather than late.

You do not repeat the whole driving school. In practice you book a session or two with a driving instructor (ökukennari, say: UK-u-KEN-nar-ee), who checks your driving, books the practical test and usually lends the car. The theory test you book yourself at prof.is.

Not everyone needs to drive. In the capital area many people manage with the bus and a car-share. If driving matters to you, the path above is open whenever it suits your time and budget.

Last verified 5 August 2026 · island.is/okunam; island.is/en/drivers-license; island.is/aefingaakstur; Reglugerð um ökuskírteini nr. 830/2011; Umferðarlög nr. 77/2019

1. 1.A kennitala and a registered address. Both are needed before you can be entered in the licence system. If you are not there yet, start at residency.
2. 2.Choose a driving school (ökuskóli, say: UK-u-SKOH-lee). Before you pay, ask two things: can the lessons be in a language you understand, and what the whole course costs in writing.
3. 3.Get an instructor (ökukennari). The instructor opens your electronic study book (ökunámsbók) and records every lesson in it. It is the official record of your learning.
4. 4.Apply for the study permit (námsheimild, say: NOW-ms-HAY-mild). Online at island.is with electronic ID, then in person at the sýslumaður to sign, with photo ID and a printed passport photo (35 × 45 mm, plain background). The permit lasts two years.
5. 5.Ökuskóli 1. A classroom course, taken early, because practising with a friend or parent is only possible once it is done.
6. 6.First lessons. Usually around ten practical lessons with your instructor.
7. 7.Æfingaakstur, practising with a supervisor. Optional extra practice. See the note below.
8. 8.Ökuskóli 2. A second classroom course. It expires after two years, so a long pause in the middle can mean taking it again.
9. 9.Ökuskóli 3 and the skid track (ökugerði, say: UK-u-GER-thee). Classroom plus a day driving on a surface made slippery on purpose, so you feel how a car behaves on ice. It is training, not an exam, and the full licence needs it.
10. 10.Theory test (bóklegt próf, say: BOHK-legt PROHF). In person, on a tablet, at a Frumherji station (say: FRUM-her-yee), which runs the tests for Samgöngustofa in 17 places around the country. Fifty true-or-false statements, 45 correct to pass, and the result comes at once. Book it at prof.is and bring a passport or national ID card. Tests you find online are practice only.
11. 11.Practical test (verklegt próf). A few spoken questions at the car first: lights, safety equipment, tyres, the registration paper. Then about half an hour of driving on a route the examiner chooses. Your instructor books it and normally lends the car. Manual covers automatic too; automatic covers automatic only.
12. 12.Temporary licence (bráðabirgðaskírteini). Your first licence, valid three years. You drive alone with it. See below.
13. 13.Akstursmat after a year. A driving assessment with an instructor. A check, not an exam.
14. 14.Full licence (fullnaðarskírteini). After one continuous year on the temporary licence. What it needs is under "What happens when my first licence runs out" below.

What happens when my first licence runs out after three years?

Your first Icelandic licence is a temporary one (bráðabirgðaskírteini, say: BROW-tha-BIRG-tha-SKEER-tay-nee), valid three years. Many people call it a learner's licence, but you drive alone with it.

If you meet the conditions (Ökuskóli 3 done, the akstursmat done, no penalty points in the last twelve months), you can apply for the full licence any time after the first year. It does not have to wait until the three years end. The full licence lasts fifteen years at a time.

If you do not meet them yet, for example because you have a penalty point, you can renew the temporary licence and get another one for three years. There is no need to take the driving test again.

Both applications are made on island.is or at a sýslumaður office. Official page: full licence and renewing the temporary licence.

If you wear glasses or have a health condition, the office may ask for a medical certificate from your doctor saying you are fit to drive. The application waits until it arrives.

The test in your own language

The car theory test (B) is offered in Icelandic, English, Polish, Arabic, Thai and Vietnamese; the bigger classes in Icelandic, English, Polish and Arabic. A read-aloud tool inside the test reads the questions to you, so reading quickly is not required. If your language is not on the list, the test can be taken with an interpreter approved by Samgöngustofa, whom you pay yourself. Telling the driving school early gives them time to arrange it. Official page on interpreted tests.

Practising with a parent or friend (æfingaakstur, say: EYE-ving-a-AK-stur)

Iceland allows practice with an ordinary person, not only a paid instructor, which is how most learners get their road hours. The supervisor, the leiðbeinandi (say: LAYTH-bay-nan-dee), must be at least 24 years old, have held a class B licence for at least five years, and have had no loss of licence or serious driving offence in the last twelve months.

It begins after Ökuskóli 1 and roughly ten lessons, once your instructor writes the confirmation into your study book. The supervisor applies at island.is with their own electronic ID; the permit is issued in both names for up to eighteen months and belongs in the car. The learner sign is only a sticker. In law the supervisor is the driver. The car must be under 3,500 kg, may pull a trailer up to 750 kg, and nobody may charge for supervising.

Æfingaakstur is extra practice on top of lessons, not a replacement. Winter hours are the most valuable: most first accidents involving new drivers happen on ice, in the dark, or in side wind.

What you pay for

We do not print amounts, because they change. There are several separate payments: the study permit and the licence card, Ökuskóli 1, 2 and 3 (the track day is usually the dearest), every practical lesson by the hour (most people need between 17 and 25), both tests with the instructor's car, and the akstursmat a year later. Current official fees are on island.is. Asking the school for the whole price in writing, including what happens if you stop halfway, saves surprises later.

Last verified 5 August 2026 · Samgöngustofa; Umferðarlög nr. 77/2019; Reglugerð um ökuskírteini nr. 1348/2020

• AM, A1, A2, A. Small mopeds up to full motorcycles. You move up the ladder with age and experience, and each step has its own lessons and test.
• B. The ordinary car licence, and what most people mean by "a driving licence".
• BE. A car with a heavier trailer or caravan than B allows. Common for people with boats, horses or work trailers.
• C1 and C. Lorries and heavy goods vehicles; C1 is the smaller class. C1E and CE are the same with a trailer.
• D1 and D. Buses; D1 is the smaller bus, D the full coach. D1E and DE are buses with a trailer.
• T. Tractors and some slow work machines.

A B licence comes first before the lorry and bus classes. Minimum ages and health requirements differ from class to class, and Samgöngustofa lists the exact age for each one.

Last verified 5 August 2026 · Samgöngustofa; island.is; Umferðarlög nr. 77/2019; Lög um leigubifreiðaakstur nr. 120/2022

Taxi

Taxi driving has its own law and is administered by Samgöngustofa. It asks for a B licence held for a set period, a clean record, a health certificate and a taxi driver's permission (leigubifreiðaakstur, say: LAY-gu-BIV-ray-thar-AH-kstur, "hired car driving"). Running your own taxi business is a further step. These rules changed in recent years, so advice from a driver who qualified a while ago is often out of date. Samgöngustofa will send the current requirements by email if you ask.

Lorry and bus

First the licence class itself (C, CE, D and so on), still widely called the meirapróf (say: MAY-ra-PROHF, "the bigger test"). On top of that, paid drivers normally need a professional driving qualification: a course and test repeated every few years. A medical certificate is part of the file, and the health rules are stricter than for a car. Telling the driving school from the first phone call that the goal is professional driving gets you the full route and the real timeline. Some employers pay part of the cost, and it is a fair question to ask at interview.

Delivery and courier work

Food delivery and small parcel work is usually done on a bicycle, scooter or ordinary car, so a B licence is enough. The questions that matter here are different: employed or self-employed, whether the vehicle is insured for work use, and how the income is taxed. Both work and taxes cover that side.

Professional driving rules and the repeat-training period change over time. Confirming your own case with Samgöngustofa before paying for a course is time well spent.

Last verified 5 August 2026 · Samgöngustofa; island.is; Umferðarlög nr. 77/2019; Vegagerðin (road.is)

• The right-hand rule (hægri reglan, say: HIGH-gri REG-lan). At a crossing with no signs and no markings, the car coming from your right goes first. This is one of the most common reasons foreign drivers lose points in the practical test.
• Winter tyres. Studded tyres (nagladekk, say: NAG-la-dek) are allowed in winter and not in summer; the dates are set in regulation and Samgöngustofa publishes them each year. Many people use unstudded winter tyres for the whole cold season.
• Before a drive out of town. road.is shows road and weather conditions. In winter it is the difference between a normal trip and a closed mountain pass.
• Renewal. Licence cards expire, and from a certain age they are renewed more often and with a doctor's certificate. Nobody sends a reminder, so note the expiry date. Renewal goes through island.is or the sýslumaður.
• Points and bans. Traffic offences add penalty points, and enough points, or one serious offence such as drink-driving, means the licence is set aside for a period. A ban given here applies here, whichever country issued the card. If a fine or notice arrives that you do not understand, the law and you explains what a record can mean for a residence permit.
• Bringing a car with you. Skatturinn (the tax authority) has its own rules for a car brought in as part of a household move, with conditions on how long you owned it and how soon after moving it arrives. Freight and inspection costs often decide the matter. Ask Skatturinn before you ship anything.

Last verified 5 August 2026 · Samgöngustofa (samgongustofa.is); island.is; Umferðarlög nr. 77/2019; Reglugerð um ökuskírteini nr. 1348/2020

• Can I drive here as a visitor on my own licence? Yes, for a short stay, as long as it is valid, has your photo, and is written in Latin letters.
• What if my licence is not in Latin letters? Carry an International Driving Permit together with your national licence. Both must be in the car; the permit alone is not enough.
• Can I apply to swap the week I arrive? Normally no. You are usually asked to have lived here with your address registered first. Samgöngustofa will tell you how long your own wait is.
• Do I keep my old licence? An EEA licence is handed in when the Icelandic one is issued. Licences from outside the EEA can often be kept. It is worth asking when you apply.
• Do I need lessons if I already drive? For a swap with a test, you do not repeat the driving school, but you normally need at least one session with an instructor, who also books the test and lends the car.
• Can I have the licence on my phone? Yes. With an Icelandic licence and electronic ID, it appears in the island.is app. Setting up electronic ID is covered in residency.
• Can I get an International Driving Permit here? Yes, once you hold an Icelandic licence. FÍB, the Icelandic automobile association, issues them.

Last verified 5 August 2026 · Official Icelandic sources

• Samgöngustofa: licences, tests, country lists and vehicles. samgongustofa.is
• island.is: applications, renewals and your own licence details when you log in with electronic ID. island.is
• Sýslumenn: the district commissioners, where applications are handed in. syslumenn.is
• Frumherji: the theory and practical tests. Book the theory test at prof.is.
• Vegagerðin: road and weather conditions. road.is

The rules for exchanging licences from outside the EEA are reviewed and the country list changes. Before relying on anything here, confirm your own case with Samgöngustofa and ask for the answer by email.

If you have just arrived and are still working through registration and electronic ID, start at residency.