Social contributions (% of revenue) in Iceland
Iceland: Social contributions (% of revenue) was 9.5% in 2023. ▲ Rising
Social contributions in Iceland, 1972–2023
Source: Government Finance Statistics Yearbook and data files, International Monetary Fund (IMF). Measured in % of revenue.
Analysis
The most recent figure for social contributions in Iceland is 9.5%, measured in 2023.
The figure is up 0.3% on the previous year and down 9.1% over ten years.
Over the whole period, social contributions in Iceland peaked at 11.8% in 2010 and was at its lowest, 2.3%, in 1982.
That places Iceland 65th out of 112 countries with data for 2023, putting it in the middle of the range.
The long-run direction has been consistently rising across the 52 years of available data.
Social contributions (% of revenue) in Iceland, year by year
| Year | % of revenue | Change |
|---|---|---|
| 1972 | 4.8% | — |
| 1973 | 3.5% | -27.1% |
| 1974 | 3.6% | +2.7% |
| 1975 | 4.1% | +15.4% |
| 1976 | 3.0% | -26.3% |
| 1977 | 3.8% | +26.8% |
| 1978 | 4.3% | +11.8% |
| 1979 | 4.5% | +4.4% |
| 1980 | 4.2% | -5.5% |
| 1981 | 2.7% | -35.7% |
| 1982 | 2.3% | -13.8% |
| 1983 | 4.6% | +95.3% |
| 1984 | 4.7% | +3.2% |
| 1985 | 4.7% | -0.2% |
| 1986 | 4.4% | -5.8% |
| 1987 | 3.5% | -21.8% |
| 1988 | 2.8% | -18.2% |
| 1989 | 2.8% | -3.2% |
| 1990 | 3.1% | +11.7% |
| 1991 | 7.1% | +132.0% |
| 1992 | 8.0% | +12.0% |
| 1993 | 8.1% | +1.6% |
| 1994 | 8.1% | -0.6% |
| 1995 | 8.1% | +0.8% |
| 1996 | 8.7% | +7.4% |
| 1997 | 9.3% | +6.7% |
| 1998 | 8.9% | -4.3% |
| 1999 | 8.5% | -4.4% |
| 2000 | 8.8% | +3.1% |
| 2001 | 9.1% | +3.0% |
| 2002 | 9.2% | +1.9% |
| 2003 | 9.7% | +5.1% |
| 2004 | 9.2% | -4.9% |
| 2005 | 8.0% | -13.5% |
| 2006 | 8.0% | +0.0% |
| 2007 | 7.5% | -6.5% |
| 2008 | 6.5% | -12.9% |
| 2009 | 8.2% | +25.6% |
| 2010 | 11.8% | +44.7% |
| 2011 | 11.3% | -3.9% |
| 2012 | 10.2% | -9.8% |
| 2013 | 10.5% | +2.4% |
| 2014 | 9.9% | -5.1% |
| 2015 | 10.6% | +6.6% |
| 2016 | 7.1% | -33.4% |
| 2017 | 10.0% | +41.5% |
| 2018 | 10.4% | +4.1% |
| 2019 | 10.5% | +1.0% |
| 2020 | 10.2% | -3.1% |
| 2021 | 10.2% | +0.5% |
| 2022 | 9.5% | -7.2% |
| 2023 | 9.5% | +0.3% |
Iceland compared with similar countries
- Iceland's 9.5% is below the median for high income countries, which is 28.1%, 34% of the median. (49 countries reporting)
- Iceland's 9.5% is below the median for Europe & Central Asia, which is 29.8%, 32% of the median. (48 countries reporting)
Biggest year-on-year movements
Years where Social contributions (% of revenue) in Iceland changed far more than this series normally does. A large move can be a real event or a change in how the figure was measured — the source note below says who published it.
| Year | Change | From | To |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1991 | +132.0% | 3.1% | 7.1% |
| 1983 | +95.3% | 2.3% | 4.6% |
Averages by decade
| Decade | Average | Lowest | Highest | Years |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1970s | 3.9% | 3.0% | 4.8% | 8 |
| 1980s | 3.7% | 2.3% | 4.7% | 10 |
| 1990s | 7.8% | 3.1% | 9.3% | 10 |
| 2000s | 8.4% | 6.5% | 9.7% | 10 |
| 2010s | 10.2% | 7.1% | 11.8% | 10 |
| 2020s | 9.9% | 9.5% | 10.2% | 4 |
Countries ranked near Iceland
- 62 Trinidad and Tobago 12.2% compare
- 63 Egypt 9.8% compare
- 64 Peru 9.7% compare
- 66 Sweden 9.2% compare
- 67 United Arab Emirates 9.0% compare
- 68 El Salvador 8.8% compare
More public sector data for Iceland
- Democracy, annual growth rate 0 % change on previous year (2025)
- Chief executive of the government is elected, annual growth rate 0 % change on previous year (2025)
- Elected parliament, annual growth rate 0 % change on previous year (2025)
- Men's universal right to vote, annual growth rate 0 % change on previous year (2025)
- Universal right to vote, annual growth rate 0 % change on previous year (2025)
- Universal right to vote in practice, annual growth rate 0 % change on previous year (2025)
- Military expenditure (current USD), per capita 0 current USD per person (2024)
- Military expenditure (current USD), per unit of GDP 0 current USD per US$ of GDP (2024)
- Military expenditure (current USD), gaps filled 0 current USD (2024)
- Military expenditure (current USD), per square kilometre 0 current USD per square kilometre (2023)
Frequently asked questions
- What is social contributions in Iceland?
- Social contributions in Iceland was 9.5% in 2023, according to Government Finance Statistics Yearbook and data files, International Monetary Fund (IMF).
- What is the highest social contributions recorded in Iceland?
- The highest recorded value was 11.8% in 2010.
- What is the lowest social contributions recorded in Iceland?
- The lowest recorded value was 2.3% in 1982.
- How does Iceland rank for social contributions?
- Iceland ranks 65th out of 112 countries with data for 2023.
- Is social contributions rising or falling in Iceland?
- Over the last ten years it is down 9.1%. The long-run trend across the full record is rising.
- Where does this Iceland data come from?
- The figures come from Government Finance Statistics Yearbook and data files, International Monetary Fund (IMF), published as part of Social contributions (% of revenue). Statizoid updates them automatically from the source API.
Download this data
CSV · JSON — 52 observations, free to reuse under CC BY 4.0 (World Bank Open Data).
About this data
Social contributions are actual or imputed contributions payable to social insurance schemes to make provisions for social benefits to be paid. This indicator is expressed as a percentage of revenue which includes all transactions that add to the amount of economic value of a unit or sector.