Selling into Iceland through distributors

How the market buys

Iceland applies EEA procurement rules through the Public Procurement Act No. 120/2016. For purchases above the EEA thresholds, article 84 requires the buyer to announce the award of a contract or framework agreement no later than 30 days after the contract is concluded, with the results of the procedure, and to send that notice to the Publications Office of the European Union, which publishes it. That is why Icelandic awards appear on TED alongside those of EU countries.

Central government purchasing — tenders and framework agreements for state bodies and companies run by the treasury — is handled by Fjársýslan (Fjársýsla ríkisins), the government's agency for public finance services; the former Ríkiskaup website now leads to Fjársýslan's pages. Municipalities, hospitals, utilities, ports and the airport operator run their own tenders. Many of them list their current tenders on Útboðsvefur.is, a public site that gathers open tenders by buyer and type (works, goods, services), with several notices published in English as well as Icelandic.

Iceland is in the EEA but not in the EU customs union — the EEA Agreement does not cover the Customs Union — so goods arriving from the EU cross a customs border. Where the award notices in your category name an Icelandic importer or distributor rather than a manufacturer, that company is the route in.

Lawful first contact

Article 94 of the Electronic Communications Act No. 70/2022 (lög um fjarskipti) sets the rules for unsolicited communications. Its first paragraph allows e-mail and other electronic messages for direct marketing only where the end-user has given informed consent in advance, with an exception for a business's own customers. Its fourth paragraph then makes the point that matters for B2B outreach: notwithstanding those rules, the general e-mail addresses of companies and institutions, where they exist, may be used for direct marketing of goods and services. The same article forbids marketing e-mail that does not clearly show the name and address of the sender. Under article 102, breaches of article 94 are enforced by Fjarskiptastofa, the Electronic Communications Office.

The line is therefore clear in the text. A first e-mail to a company's general address, such as info@ or sala@, is lawful without prior consent. The exception is limited to general addresses, so an e-mail to a named employee's own address does not benefit from it; treat such addresses as needing prior consent. When you hold a named person's details, data protection law applies to them as well.

In practice: find the general address on the distributor's website; write a short message in English or Icelandic that says who you are, where you are based and why your range suits what the company already sells; include your full company name and postal address in every message; and stop at once if asked. Follow up by telephone only after a reply, and keep named contacts for after the distributor has answered.

What local distributors expect

Before an Icelandic importer or distributor takes on a new range, expect it to ask for:

• Clear delivery terms to Iceland: shipping route, who clears customs, who bears any duties and taxes due on import, and realistic lead times.
• Order quantities that fit a small market, and a willingness to supply mixed or smaller consignments.
• Conformity evidence for the category — CE marking and declarations of conformity where the product is regulated — and documentation the distributor can show public buyers.
• Product information it can pass on to customers, in English to start and in Icelandic where buyers or users need it.
• A long-term view: the distributor will want to know that you will support the product, spare parts included, for years.

How to enter, step by step

1. Settle delivery terms first. Work out the shipping route, who clears customs, who bears any duties and taxes due on import, and realistic lead times; goods from the EU cross a customs border.
2. Assemble conformity evidence and product information. Have CE marking and declarations of conformity ready where the product is regulated, documentation the distributor can show public buyers, and product information in English, with Icelandic versions where buyers or users need them.
3. Find who already wins your category. Start with the award notices above the EEA thresholds on TED for your CPV codes; Cresques reads these and lists the winning companies. Follow open tenders on Útboðsvefur.is and on Fjársýslan's pages.
4. Check the central framework agreements. Fjársýslan handles tenders and framework agreements for state bodies, and Miðlægir samningar lists the state's central framework agreements by category, with their end dates. If your category is covered, find out which importers hold the agreement.
5. Write the first e-mail to a general address. Find the general address on the distributor's website, such as info@ or sala@, and write a short message in English or Icelandic saying who you are, where you are based and why your range suits what the company already sells. Include your full company name and postal address, and stop at once if asked.
6. Keep named contacts and calls for later. Use named employees' addresses and the telephone only after the distributor has replied.
7. Fit the offer to a small market. Propose order quantities that suit it, and be willing to supply mixed or smaller consignments.
8. Show long-term support. Explain how you will support the product, spare parts included, for years, then follow up on the first order.

Where the evidence comes from

Above the EEA thresholds, Icelandic buyers must announce contract awards within 30 days and send the notices to the Publications Office of the EU, so they appear on TED, the online supplement to the Official Journal of the EU. Each notice names the winning company and carries CPV codes, so the importers and distributors that win, for example, hospital equipment or road and utility supplies, can be identified from the public record. Open national tenders can be followed on Útboðsvefur.is and on Fjársýslan's pages.

Cresques reads the award notices for the CPV categories you choose and shows who already sells that category in Iceland. It does not help you bid for the contracts; the notices are evidence of who the buyers already trust, and the lawful first contact above is how you reach them.