17.04.2020 Iceland has introduced various health and safety measures to limit the spread of COVID-19. Most of the measures are aimed at residents of Iceland and have to do with social distancing and public gatherings. The Icelandic government has published useful information regarding health and safety measures, public announcements and statistic on COVID-19 in Iceland in several languages on the website www.covid.is Iceland Revenue and Customs has adjusted its work environment and modus operandi to comply with the measures introduced by the government. This includes restructuring the work stations to comply with mandatory social distancing and partial ban on public gatherings. Up until 4 May 2020 a maximum of 20 people can gather in any given place, including workplaces (with some exceptions). No movement between work stations and designated 20 person compartments is allowed. All business travel has been cancelled/postponed until further notice.
Operating procedures regarding responses to the Covid-19 pandemic in terms of customs clearance and enforcement have been issued as well as plans regarding continuity of operations.
The Icelandic government has not introduced any additional import restriction on imported goods due to the pandemic. However, Iceland has introduced additional export restrictions on medical supplies and equipment in collaboration with the European Union and several European countries. For further information please see EU regulation 2020/402 of 14 March 2020, Iceland’s implementation regulation on the multi-national cooperation on export restrictions on medical equipment No. 301/2020 and an amendment to the Icelandic law on medicine, No. 13/2020.
The Icelandic government has introduced several economic measures to support the private sector. Many of the measures are available in English at the Prime Ministers homepage. The most useful measures for importers and exporters are the amendments to the current settlement system for import charges. The new economic measures allow importers to split the current bimonthly payment into two payments. For example, all import charges for January and February, can have two due dates, 15 March and 5 April.
Air Traffic has dropped radically due to the Covid-19 pandemic. The passenger air traffic through the international airport has decreased enormously and has led to less air cargo both in import and export. Iceland can however rely on scheduled air-cargo flights and special air cargo flights. We have not recognized changes in the maritime transport. No major changes have taken place regarding the clearance speed since the outbreak of the pandemic.
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