How to apply for an Iceland Schengen visa from the UK

Where you apply

Apply to Iceland if it is your main destination: where you will spend the longest or, if the time is equal, the country you visit first. The UK checklist warns that an application will be rejected if you are staying longer in another Schengen country.

The Embassy of Iceland in London has issued Schengen visas to UK residents since September 2020; Denmark, which used to, no longer represents Iceland for visas in the UK. VFS Global receives the applications:

• London, Manchester and Edinburgh: files go to the embassy in London. VFS asks Edinburgh applicants to allow two extra days, as files travel through its London office.
• Cardiff: opened on 1 April 2026 for applicants living in Wales and nearby.

You need a valid UK residence permit: VFS says that if you hold only a UK visitor visa, you apply in your country of residence. Everyone, children included, applies in person, by an appointment booked online, and each family member needs their own. Book under the category for your trip, such as Tourism, Business, Family Or Friends Visit, Minors or EU Family.

Step by step

1. 1

   Register online

   On Iceland's visa website, with details exactly as in your passport. Keep the confirmation email: VFS staff ask to see it.
2. 2

   Fill in the Schengen form

   VFS asks for a second form too: the harmonised Schengen application form, in English or Icelandic, printed and signed.
3. 3

   Book at VFS Global

   Choose London, Manchester, Edinburgh or Cardiff and the category for your trip.
4. 4

   Attend the appointment

   Hand in both forms and the documents, give fingerprints, and pay the visa fee and the VFS service fee in cash or by card. VFS staff tick off the checklist, and you sign its last page.
5. 5

   Send anything missing within five days

   If VFS marks a document as missing, email it to the embassy at visa@utn.is within five calendar days, as a PDF, with your name as in your passport, your passport number and the centre's city. Otherwise the file is decided without it.
6. 6

   Wait for the decision

   Normally 15 days once the embassy receives the file from VFS, and up to 45.

Documents

The country's own checklist is the one that counts. The core of it:

• Passport issued within the last ten years, valid at least three months after you leave the Schengen Area, with two blank pages.
• Proof of your UK immigration status, such as your eVisa and a share code, valid beyond your return.
• The signed application form and a photo to the ICAO passport standard.
• Travel medical insurance with at least €30,000 cover, valid in every Schengen country for the whole trip.
• Recent bank statements, and a letter from your employer or proof of studies or self-employment.
• A flight reservation, and hotel bookings or an invitation letter.

On top of that, VFS Global's UK checklist for Iceland asks for:

• A valid Home Office share code; your UK status must be valid one month beyond your departure from the Schengen Area.
• Expired passports that hold visas, valid or expired.
• Original UK bank statements for the last three months, every page stamped and signed by the bank, and credit card statements showing the limit. They must show at least ISK 8,000 a day in a hotel, or ISK 4,000 if a third party pays.
• A recent signed employer letter giving your position and salary and the employer's UK registration number, plus three months' payslips; the self-employed bring a letter from an accountant, banker or solicitor stating the annual salary drawn, and a self-assessment form.
• A round-trip flight reservation with a valid PNR in your name.
• For a family or friends visit, an invitation or a sponsorship, using the forms on island.is.

The photo must be 35 × 45 mm, on a white background and no more than six months old.

Fees and processing time

Visa fee, adults

€90, charged as £75 (VFS Global, November 2026)

Children aged 6 to 11

€45, charged as £38 (VFS Global, November 2026)

VFS service fee

€40 including VAT, per application (VFS Global, November 2026)

Payment

Cash or card at the centre; no cheques or bank transfers, and no refunds

Processing

Normally 15 days, up to 45 (VFS Global)

On 3 June 2026 VFS said that, because of high application volumes, processing is taking longer than usual and the 15 days normally aimed for cannot be guaranteed, so leave a wide margin before you travel.

Applications and refusals

In 2025, the consulates of Iceland in the UK received 15,804 short-stay Schengen visa applications: 3.1% of all those lodged in the UK, and the 10th most of any Schengen country. They refused 32.0% of the applications they decided; across every Schengen country in the UK the rate was 10.5%, according to the European Commission's visa statistics.

Applications, 2025

15,804

Rank in the UK

10th of 28 Schengen countries

Refused

32.0%

All Schengen countries in the UK

10.5% refused

The Commission counts applications where they are lodged, not by nationality, so these are residents of the UK of many nationalities. A refusal rate is an average over every applicant and says little about any one file; and the country you apply to is set by your main destination, not by its refusal rate.

What applicants reported

19 applicants in the United Kingdom have reported their Iceland visa to Visa Catcher's statistics. The median time from appointment to passport back was 9 days.

Reports

19

Appointment to passport back (median)

9 days; typically 5–13 days

Approved

95% of 19 with a known outcome

Validity granted (median)

53 days

Multiple entry

78%

See every Iceland report from the United Kingdom · how the statistics work

How often new dates appear

London. Our monitors saw new Iceland appointments appear in London 8 times in the last 90 days, on 4 different days; the typical gap between two releases was about 13 hours. The latest release we saw was on 4 November at 08:40 UK time. Over the past year (436 releases) they were spread across the week and the day, with no day or hour that stands out: new dates can appear at any time.

Getting the appointment

The form is the easy part. The hard part is a free date with VFS Global: when demand is high the calendar can stay empty, and new dates go quickly when they appear. In the last 90 days our monitors saw new dates appear in London 8 times, typically about 13 hours apart.

These are the ways to get a date, including ours:

Each Iceland route we track has its own page, and every route is on the UK appointment board page. For how the booking systems work, see how to book a Schengen visa appointment in the UK.

• Iceland visa appointment, London
• Iceland visa appointment, Manchester
• Iceland visa appointment, Edinburgh
• Iceland visa appointment, Cardiff

Questions

Do I fill in one form or two for an Iceland visa from the UK?

Two. Register online on Iceland’s visa website, visa.government.is, and show VFS Global the confirmation email; and print and sign the harmonised Schengen visa application form, in English or Icelandic.

Can I apply for an Iceland visa at the Danish visa centre?

No. Denmark no longer represents Iceland for visas in the UK. The Embassy of Iceland in London decides Icelandic Schengen visas itself; book an Iceland appointment with VFS Global.

Where can I apply for an Iceland visa in the UK?

At VFS Global in London, Manchester, Edinburgh or Cardiff; the Cardiff centre opened on 1 April 2026. The Embassy of Iceland in London makes the decision.

How much money do I need to show for an Iceland visa?

VFS Global’s UK checklist asks for three months of original UK bank statements, stamped and signed by the bank, showing at least ISK 8,000 a day if you stay in a hotel, or ISK 4,000 a day if a third party covers your costs.

What is the refusal rate for Iceland Schengen visas in the UK?

In 2025, the consulates of Iceland in the UK refused 32.0% of the short-stay visa applications they decided, against 10.5% across all Schengen countries in the UK, according to the European Commission’s visa statistics. They received 15,804 applications, the 10th most of any Schengen country.

Sources

• Embassy of Iceland in London: visa to Iceland
• Government of Iceland: the Embassy in London starts issuing Schengen visas (1 September 2020)
• Island.is: apply for a visa to Iceland (Schengen visa)
• Iceland’s online visa registration
• VFS Global: Iceland visa application centres in the UK
• VFS Global Iceland, UK: how to apply
• VFS Global Iceland, UK: visa fees, documents, forms and processing time
• VFS Global Iceland, UK: document checklist for tourism, business and family visits (PDF)
• VFS Global Iceland, UK: new visa application centre in Cardiff from 1 April 2026 (17 March 2026)
• VFS Global Iceland, UK: longer processing times (3 June 2026)
• VFS Global Denmark, UK: Denmark no longer represents Iceland
• EU Visa Code, Regulation (EC) No 810/2009 (consolidated text of 28 June 2024)
• European Commission: visa policy and the short-stay visa fee
• European Commission: Schengen visa statistics for consulates, 2025 (2025-consulates-schengen-visa-statistics.xlsx)

Rules and fees are set by the consulates and their visa centres and can change; check the official pages above before you apply. Our coverage, prices and release statistics on this page are live. Visa Catcher is an independent appointment-tracking service, not affiliated with any visa centre, embassy, consulate or government.