Iceland

unitary parliamentary republic

name: Reykjavik geographic coordinates: 64 09 N, 21 57 W time difference: UTC 0 (5 hours ahead of Washington, DC, during Standard Time) etymology: the name means "smoky bay" in Icelandic and refers to the steam from the hot springs in the area

chief of state: President Halla TOMASDOTTIR (since 1 August 2024) head of government: Prime Minister Kristrun FROSTADOTTIR (since 21 December 2024) cabinet: Cabinet appointed by the president upon the recommendation of the prime minister election/appointment process: president directly elected by simple-majority popular vote for a 4-year term (no term limits); following legislative elections, the leader of the majority party or majority coalition becomes prime minister most recent election date: 1 June 2024 election results: 2024: Halla TOMASDOTTIR elected president; percent of vote - Halla TOMASDOTTIR (independent) 34.1%, Katrin JAKOBSDOTTIR (Left-Green Movement) 25.2%, Halla Hrund LOGADOTTIR (independent) 15.7%, Jon GNARR (Social Democratic Alliance) 10.1%, Baldur PORHALLSSON (independent) 8.4%, other 6.5% 2020: Gudni Thorlacius JOHANNESSON reelected president; percent of vote - Gudni Thorlacius JOHANNESSON (independent) 92.2%, Gudmundur Franklin JONSSON (independent) 7.8% expected date of next election: June 2028

legislature name: Parliament (Althingi) legislative structure: unicameral number of seats: 63 (all directly elected) electoral system: proportional representation scope of elections: full renewal term in office: 4 years most recent election date: 11/30/2024 parties elected and seats per party: Social Democratic Alliance (SDA) (15); Independence Party (IP) (14); Liberal Reform Party (11); People’s Party (10); Center Party (8); Progressive Party (PP) (5) percentage of women in chamber: 46% expected date of next election: November 2028

highest court(s): Supreme Court or Haestirettur (consists of 7 judges) judge selection and term of office: judges proposed by Ministry of Interior selection committee and appointed by the president for an indefinite period subordinate courts: Appellate Court or Landsrettur; 8 district courts; Labor Court

history: several previous; latest ratified 16 June 1944, effective 17 June 1944 (at independence) amendment process: proposed by the Althingi; passage requires approval by the Althingi and by the next elected Althingi, and confirmation by the president of the republic; proposed amendments to Article 62 of the constitution that the Evangelical Lutheran Church shall be the state church of Iceland also require passage by referendum

Arctic Council, Australia Group, BIS, CBSS, CD, CE, EAPC, EBRD, EFTA, FAO, FATF, IAEA, IBRD, ICAO, ICC (national committees), ICCt, ICRM, IDA, IFAD, IFC, IFRCS, IHO, ILO, IMF, IMO, IMSO, Interpol, IOC, IOM, IPU, ISO, ITSO, ITU, ITUC (NGOs), MIGA, NATO, NC, NEA, NIB, NSG, OAS (observer), OECD, OPCW, OSCE, PCA, Schengen Convention, UN, UNCTAD, UNESCO, UPU, WCO, WHO, WIPO, WMO, WTO

no regular military forces; the Icelandic National Police, the regional police forces, and the Icelandic Coast Guard fall under the purview of the Ministry of Justice (2025) note: the Icelandic Coast Guard is responsible for operational defense tasks in Iceland including but not limited to operation of Keflavik Air Base, special security zones, and the Icelandic air defense system; it also coordinates with NATO in such areas as air surveillance and military defense exercises

Iceland was one of the original 12 countries to sign the North Atlantic Treaty (also known as the Washington Treaty) in 1949; Iceland is the only NATO member that has no standing military force; defense of Iceland is a NATO commitment, and NATO maintains an air policing presence in Icelandic airspace; Iceland participates in international peacekeeping missions with the civilian-manned Icelandic Crisis Response Unit (ICRU) Iceland also cooperates with the militaries of other regional countries through the Nordic Defense Cooperation (Denmark, Finland, Iceland, Norway, and Sweden) and the Joint Expeditionary Force (Denmark, Estonia, Finland, Iceland, Latvia, Lithuania, the Netherlands, Norway, Sweden and the UK); in 1951, Iceland and the US concluded an agreement to make arrangements regarding the defense of Iceland and for the use of facilities in Iceland to that end (2025)

$26.561 billion (2024 est.) $26.424 billion (2023 est.) $25.012 billion (2022 est.) note: data in 2021 dollars

$65,600 (2024 est.) $67,200 (2023 est.) $65,500 (2022 est.) note: data in 2021 dollars

0.5% (2024 est.) 5.6% (2023 est.) 9% (2022 est.) note: annual GDP % growth based on constant local currency

5.9% (2024 est.) 8.7% (2023 est.) 8.3% (2022 est.) note: annual % change based on consumer prices

80.7% of GDP (2023 est.) note: central government debt as a % of GDP

$13.916 billion (2024 est.) $13.702 billion (2023 est.) $13.114 billion (2022 est.) note: balance of payments - exports of goods and services in current dollars

$14.298 billion (2024 est.) $13.63 billion (2023 est.) $13.237 billion (2022 est.) note: balance of payments - imports of goods and services in current dollars

3.2% (2024 est.) 3.6% (2023 est.) 3.8% (2022 est.) note: % of labor force seeking employment

revenues: $10.023 billion (2023 est.) expenditures: $10.364 billion (2023 est.) note: central government revenues (excluding grants) and expenditures converted to US dollars at average official exchange rate for year indicated

tourism, fish processing; aluminum smelting; geothermal power, hydropower; medical/pharmaceutical products

milk, chicken, lamb/mutton, barley, potatoes, pork, beef, eggs, other meats, cucumbers/gherkins (2023) note: top ten agricultural products based on tonnage

total: 364,036 (2024 est.) male: 182,268 female: 181,768

0.82% (2025 est.)

0-14 years: 19.8% (male 36,692/female 35,239) 15-64 years: 63.2% (male 116,210/female 113,810) 65 years and over: 17.1% (2024 est.) (male 29,366/female 32,719)

12.47 births/1,000 population (2025 est.)

6.62 deaths/1,000 population (2025 est.)

2.3 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2025 est.)

total population: 84 years (2024 est.) male: 81.8 years female: 86.3 years

urban population: 94% of total population (2023) rate of urbanization: 0.74% annual rate of change (2020-25 est.)

Icelandic 78.7%, Polish 5.8%, Danish 1%, Ukrainian 1%, other 13.5% (2024 est.) note : data represent population by country of birth

Icelandic, English, Polish, Nordic languages, German

Evangelical Lutheran Church of Iceland (official) 58.6% Roman Catholic 3.8%, Independent Congregation of Reykjavik 2.6%, Independent Congregation of Hafnarfjordur 1.9%, pagan worship 1.5%, Icelandic Ethical Humanist Association 1.4%, other (includes Zuist and Pentecostal) or unspecified 18.7%, none 7.7% (2024 est.)

fish, hydropower, geothermal power, diatomite

refugees: 8,960 (2024 est.) IDPs: 3,700 (2024 est.) stateless persons: 31 (2024 est.)

82 (2025)

total: 39 (2023) by type: general cargo 5, oil tanker 2, other 32

total subscriptions: 478,000 (2023 est.) subscriptions per 100 inhabitants: 123 (2022 est.)

percent of population: 100% (2023 est.)