Icelandic EU membership could require 1,000 specialists

Full membership of the European Union could require nearly 1,000 highly educated specialists with experience in public administration in Iceland and abroad, mbl.is reports.

Some of them would likely come directly from the Government Offices of Iceland and other state institutions. The ministries currently employ about 700 people combined.

A report by Morgunblaðið estimates that up to 450 Icelanders could eventually secure jobs at EU institutions, where salaries are high, benefits are generous and special tax exemptions apply. Including their families, the Icelandic EU community could grow to around 1,900 people, roughly the size of Iceland’s 18th-largest urban settlement.

The report also examines the 14 main positions that would give Iceland a seat at the table, a larger permanent representation, interest representation and the increased staffing needs that would arise in Iceland alongside EU membership. The European Commission employs around 40,000 people.