Trading Accounts

Information on Trading Accounts

Individuals or legal entities, other than those participating in the ETS system, are permitted to open a trading account in the Icelandic registry according to Article 16 of regulation (EU) 2019/1122 on registry system. Accounts created at the Environment Agency of Iceland are managed by the agency.

The following parties, other than those who are obliged according to Article 22 i. Act on Climate Matters (70/2012), are permitted to have a trading account in the registry and to have emission allowances:

auctioneer, auction platform or intermediary mentioned in the regulation on the auction of emission allowances according to VIII. section of the Act on Climate Matters 870/2012),
individuals who wish to do so and have a permanent residence in Iceland, and
legal entities that request it and are registered in the Iceland Revenue and Customs company register.

It is not permitted to trade with allowances more than the amount that account holders have on their account. Price of emission allowances, their quantity, dates of transfers, etc. is a matter of negotiation between account holders and those with whom they do business, without the intervention of the Environment Agency of Iceland. Financial transactions related to the purchase and sale of emission allowances take place outside the registry and do not need to be reported to the Environment Agency. The sole purpose of the registry in this context is to record the ownership of emission allowances.

Fees for establishment and annual account fee are according to the tariffs set by the Environment Agency of Iceland.

Account holders are requested to familiarize themselves carefully with the contents of regulation (EU) no. 2019/1122 on the registry.

Applying for a trading account

It is necessary to designate at least two authorized representatives for each account. Authorized representatives will be the primary users of the registry on behalf of the account holder (company or individual) who designates them. In addition, the account holder may designate additional authorized representatives once the account has been created and access to the account has been granted.

To apply for a trading account in the registry applicants need to:

Fill out the application form.
Create user accounts in the registry. Note that the users must be the same as the "authorized representative" in the information form.
- Instructions on the creation of user account int the registry
- Website of the Icelandic registry
- Terms of use
Send the required supporting documents of all parties, i.e. users and company to the Environment Agency of Iceland.

If any problems arise, please contact the registration system's service desk: ets-registry@ust.is

Documents

Applicants must submit to the Environment Agency of Iceland documents to confirm the registration of the organization or company, or the identity of persons applying for the creation of a trading account. Documents must also be submitted to confirm the identity of persons designated as authorized representatives.

When the applicant has completed the electronic application form and has registered as a user on the website of the registry, the application is processed by the Environment Agency of Iceland, which gives final approval to the application and access to the account if all conditions are met. Final approval and access to an account will only be granted when a satisfactory application with supporting documents from the company and all authorized representatives has been received by the Environment Agency and the account establishment and annual fee has been paid. Incorrect or incomplete company registration documents or the identity of authorized representatives will delay the application.

All authorized representatives must provide:

Copies of documents confirming their identity and permanent residence
Copy of criminal record.

Documents required by a legal entity (if applicable):

Application form to fill out
Copy of registration certificate (if a legal entity)
List of responsible parties (if a legal entity) (company, organization), any of these parties must sign the documents that require a signature.
Power of attorney for authorized representatives. Please use the "Power of attorney" form.

Documents required for authorized representatives:

Documents confirming the identity of the designated person and which can be a certified copy of either of the following:
- a passport or identity card issued by a country that is a member of the European Economic Area or the Organization for Economic Co-operation and Development,
- any other passport certified as valid by an EU embassy.
Documents that confirm the permanent residence of the nominated person, can be a certified copy of any of the following:
- identity card, if the person's legal address is stated there,
- any other identity document issued by the public authority, which contains the address of the person who has a permanent residence,
- a statement from the local authorities confirming the permanent residence of the designated person if the country of permanent residence does not issue an identity document in which the address of the permanent residence is indicated,
- any other document generally accepted in the Member State of the account manager as proof of permanent residence of the nominated person.
Criminal record of the designated person

All application documents submitted shall be in English or Icelandic. If the original document is in another language the documents must be accompanied with a certified translation to English or Icelandic.

All copies of documents submitted as evidence must be certified as a true copy by a Notary Public. If documents are issued outside Iceland, the copy must be Apostilled. The date of the certification or Apostille must not be more than three months prior to the date of the application.

Information on where to get the document legalized.

All data are handled in accordance with the Personal Data Protection Act (no. 77/2000) and Act No 70/2012 on Climate Change which transposes Commission Regulation (EU) No. 389/2013 for a standardized and secured registry system.