Setting up your electronic ID
Understand what the electronic ID is for, how it is activated and where to go when you need help with the first setup.
A limited ID number for short stays and special cases
In Iceland the tax office, Skatturinn, issues a limited ID number called a kerfiskennitala to people who are not setting up a home, such as EEA workers on a short job, working spouses of an Icelandic or EEA citizen who are waiting for a permit decision, or people with taxable income in Iceland. It gives no residence rights and no registered address. If you are staying longer, you register with Registers Iceland instead.
How it works
Get a tax number or update your tax registration.
You may need a tax identification number to work, rent a home, open a bank account or start a business. In some countries it is issued automatically when you register your address; in others you request it from the tax office. If you become self-employed, you usually also have to register your business for tax. Bring your ID and proof of address, and check whether you already have a number before applying so you do not end up with a duplicate record.
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At a glance
Pick the office that is easiest to reach
The tax office, Skatturinn, takes the paper form for a limited ID number at its offices around Iceland, or by email. Offices differ on how they receive visitors, so see what to bring and confirm opening times before you travel.
Related services
Understand what the electronic ID is for, how it is activated and where to go when you need help with the first setup.
For anyone importing a car or buying a used one in Iceland: what happens before the inspection, what the station does and how ownership changes are reported.
Find out who can apply, which municipality handles your case and what to check before you contact social services.
See who can get a nafnskírteini, whether it can replace a passport for travel in the EEA and where a photo is taken for your application.
Who can apply, what you do online, what happens at the district commissioner and how a child’s passport differs from an adult’s.
Check how licences from the EEA and from other countries are treated, what to bring to the district commissioner and when you can apply.
Other countries
Moving on, or comparing before you decide? See how this works elsewhere.
Most offices in Berlin, Bielefeld, and Hamburg
Most offices in Warsaw, Łódź, and Kraków
Most offices in Seville, Valencia, and Zaragoza
Where to next
Tax offices across Iceland that accept the paper form for a limited ID number, in person or by email.
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