Iceland Opens to Vaccinated UK and US Tourists

Iceland is broadening its tourism base by equally welcoming vaccinated travellers from all countries without mandatory testing or quarantine, notably the US and UK, its largest tourism markets in recent years.

The exemption also pertains to those who can provide valid documentation of prior infection.

Iceland’s Prime Minister Katrin Jakobsdottir stressed that in the past 12 months, the world has been through a lot, “and we are all hoping for a slow and safe return to normalcy.”

“This also includes the resumption of the opportunity to travel, which is valuable to culture, trade, and enterprise,” Iceland’s Prime Minister pointed out

From 18 March, all travellers following regular visa requirements will be permitted to visit Iceland as long as they can provide one of the following documents:

Certificate of full vaccination against COVID-19,
Document of previous COVID infection

Accepted Vaccines

The following certificates are accepted for vaccines authorised for use by the World Health Organisation (WHO) and European Medicines Agency.

Comirnaty; Pfizer/BioNTech
COVID-19 Vaccine Moderna
Covidshield COVID-19 Vaccine AstraZeneca
COVID-19 Vaccine Janssen

The certificate is valid regardless of where the vaccination took place.

A vaccine certificate must include the following:

Written in one of the following languages: English, French, Icelandic, Danish, Norwegian, Swedish. A document in another language can be valid if accompanied by a certified stamped translation in one of the aforementioned languages
First name and last name (as per travel documents)
Date of birth
Nationality
Passport number (or travel document number)
Name of disease vaccinated against (COVID-19)
Dates which the vaccinations were performed
Information on the issuer of the certificate (supervising clinician/administering centre), with the signature of the International Certificate of Vaccination
Vaccine administered
Manufacturer and batch/lot number of vaccine

Travellers with COVID-19 Antibodies

Travellers with certification showing that they have recovered from COVID-19 in Iceland or in the EEA/EFTA countries (positive PCR test and/or presence of antibodies) are eligible to bypass the entry requirements, namely testing and quarantine, similar to vaccinated individuals, based on presumed immunity to COVID-19.

This document must be issued by a laboratory within the EEA/EFTA-area, or a confirmation from the Chief Epidemiologist in Iceland. Clinical diagnoses are not deemed valid.

The following certificates are considered a valid confirmation of a previous COVID-19 infection:

Positive PCR-test result for COVID-19 that is older than 14 days
Presence of antibodies against COVID-19 measured by ELISA serologic
Rapid diagnostic test

Starting 1 May, Iceland will refer to the European Centre for Disease Prevention and Control (ECDC) risk assessment colour code system to determine border measures. The Icelandic government will lift restrictions on travellers arriving from low-risk countries (green and yellow) as a negative PCR test result will void the mandatory quarantine.

Entry Rules for Non-Vaccinated

Aside from vaccinated travellers, Iceland is accepting travellers with passports (or valid residency) from EU/EFTA countries, under the following entry requirements:

Completed pre-registration form
Negative PCR test result taken no longer than 72 hours of departure
Test upon arrival in Iceland
Five-day quarantine
Followup test on day five/six

For more updated information, please visit the Iceland Directorate of Health.

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