Landspítali Reykjavík Careers, Salaries & Jobs

Landspítali is Iceland's national university hospital and, by its own description, the country's largest healthcare provider, employing more than 7,000 people in a wide range of roles.

It runs emergency departments for general, psychiatric, obstetric and gynaecological, and paediatric patients, alongside clinical research and specialist training.

Of the Nordic hospitals, Landspítali offers the most structured help to recruits from abroad. Its International Staff Services team in Human Resources helps all new employees with the applications and documents needed to relocate to Iceland, and the hospital says that residence permit applications it manages for its employees get expedited service at the Directorate of Immigration.

Language works differently in Iceland. The licence itself does not require Icelandic, but Landspítali expects employees to speak Icelandic at work as a general rule. English may be used until you reach adequate Icelandic, and the hospital provides Icelandic classes during your first two years, aiming for B2.

All Landspítali posts are advertised on Starfatorg, the state jobs portal. Applicants without an Icelandic ID can register online through the State recruitment site and apply directly.

Founded

2000 in its current form, through the merger of Landspítali and Reykjavík Hospital; the Landspítali building was taken into use on 20 December 1930

Leadership

• Runólfur Pálsson, CEO

Switchboard

+354 543 1000

• Emergency care

  Separate emergency departments for general, psychiatric, obstetric and gynaecological, and paediatric patients.

• National university hospital

  Landspítali is Iceland's university hospital and its largest healthcare provider.

• Specialist training

  Landspítali runs education and specialist training programmes for health professionals.

• Clinical research

  The hospital runs clinical research programmes alongside patient care.

• Landspítali's International Staff Services, part of its Human Resources Department, assists all new employees beginning their careers at the hospital with the applications and documentation needed to relocate to Iceland. You can contact it at [email protected].
• The hospital says that all residence permit applications it manages for its employees get expedited service at the Directorate of Immigration.
• International employees receive Icelandic language classes during their first two years, with the aim of reaching B2. Employees are expected to speak Icelandic at work as a general rule, but English may be used until adequate Icelandic is reached.
• All posts are advertised on Starfatorg. If you have no Icelandic ID, you can register online through the State recruitment website and apply directly.

• Licence from the Directorate of Health. Every regulated health professional needs a licence to practise (starfsleyfi) from the Directorate of Health (Embætti landlæknis). With an education from outside the EEA and Switzerland, Regulation No. 483/2023 applies: the Directorate usually sends your education to the relevant university faculty for evaluation, then grants the licence, asks for an adaptation period or aptitude test, or refuses. It says an application sent for evaluation should take no longer than four months once every document has arrived.

• The job comes first. The Directorate only takes up a non-EEA application once you have a work and residence permit or a signed employment contract with a health institution in Iceland, and it only issues the licence once you are in Iceland and have been granted the permit.

• Icelandic is not a legal condition of the licence. Article 15 of Regulation No. 483/2023 says knowledge of Icelandic is not a requirement for the licence, and that the employer must make sure you have the language skills and knowledge of the law the job needs. Employers set the standard post by post. At Landspítali, staff are expected to use Icelandic at work once they have learned it, with classes in the first two years.

• Work permit. Non-EEA staff usually come on a work permit for expert knowledge, which the employer applies for together with your residence permit. Conditions include a contract for a specific job requiring expertise and that help has first been sought from the Directorate of Labour to find a worker in Iceland or the EEA. Permits are generally granted for one year and can be granted for up to four years at a time.

• EEA and Nordic citizens. EEA, EFTA and Nordic citizens do not need a work permit, but still need a licence from the Directorate of Health.

1. 1

   Find a post on Starfatorg

   Search Landspítali vacancies on Starfatorg. If you have no Icelandic ID, register through the State recruitment site.
2. 2

   Apply and interview

   Apply directly to the post. Contact [email protected] with questions about moving from abroad.
3. 3

   Sign a contract

   For non-EEA applicants, a signed contract with a health institution in Iceland is what lets the Directorate of Health take up your licence application.
4. 4

   Licence application

   Apply to the Directorate of Health with your documents; it sends your education for university evaluation. International Staff Services helps with the paperwork.
5. 5

   Work and residence permit

   Landspítali applies for your work permit with your residence permit, and says its applications get expedited processing.
6. 6

   Arrive and start Icelandic

   The licence is issued once you are in Iceland with your permit. Icelandic classes run through your first two years.

Monthly amounts

• Doctor, grade 2 (foundation year or without it)

  ISK 861,271 to 1,091,033

  Medical Association salary table from 1 April 2026, steps 0 to 8.

• Doctor, grade 4 (after foundation year or in specialist training)

  ISK 913,723 to 1,157,476

  Medical Association salary table from 1 April 2026, steps 0 to 8.

• Specialist doctor, grade 14

  ISK 1,227,967 to 1,555,551

  Medical Association salary table from 1 April 2026, steps 0 to 8.

• Chief physician, grades 22 to 26

  ISK 1,555,551 to 2,217,846

  Medical Association salary table from 1 April 2026.

• Nurses, state salary table (grades 1 to 29)

  ISK 506,030 to 2,037,600

  Nurses' Association state table from 1 April 2026; your grade depends on the hospital's institutional agreement.