Changes to the rules on financial assistance

Conditions for stay in Iceland and short-notice reporting obligation introduced

At the beginning of the new year, changes were made to the rules on financial assistance in the City of Hafnarfjörður. The condition is that a person receiving financial assistance must reside in Iceland and can thus, when requested, even at short notice, prove their identity by presenting themselves at the Hafnarfjörður municipal service centre with photo identification. Financial assistance is intended for people in temporary difficulty and is designed to support individuals or families in meeting their basic needs. An application for financial assistance is submitted online via My Pages on hafnarfjordur.is. 

View the rules on financial assistance 

Intended for people in temporary difficulty  

Local authorities are obliged to provide financial assistance for the maintenance of individuals and families who cannot provide for themselves and their dependants without assistance, and also in cases of special circumstances. Financial assistance is provided in conjunction with other social welfare resources, such as advice and guidance. It is provided in the form of maintenance support or an offer of employment or an activity programme.  

The purpose of the assistance is to:  

• Support individuals receiving assistance to become self-sufficient. 
• To enable them to support themselves and their family without assistance.  
• Promote their empowerment

Must prove their identity within two working days.  

When applying for maintenance support for the first time, or if six months have passed since the last application for maintenance support, the applicant is required to prove their identity by attending the service centre and presenting a valid photographic identity document. If the applicant fails to comply with the requirement to verify their identity, the processing of the application and/or the payment of financial maintenance assistance may be suspended. Identity must be verified within two working days of the application being submitted, unless legitimate reasons for absence prevent this. Applicants are required to seek employment in Iceland and accept any suitable work offered, unless valid reasons prevent this. A condition for receiving financial assistance is that the individual resides in Iceland and is not receiving support or seeking work in another country.  Where there are reasonable grounds for suspicion that the applicant is not residing in Iceland, it is permissible to require the applicant to prove their identity by presenting themselves at a service centre and producing a valid photographic identity document. If the applicant fails to comply with the request to prove their identity, it is permissible to stop processing the application and/or the payment of financial assistance for subsistence.