Processing personal information for income-based preschool fee discounts

• Under the Rules on Preschool Services, if all requirements are met, the parent who shares the preschool child’s legal residence and legal residence affiliation in Registers Iceland records receives the discount. A single parent must also be registered as single with Registers Iceland. For sibling discounts in joint physical custody arrangements, the fees are reduced for the parent who makes the payment.
• To qualify for an income-based discount, your total annual income reported on your tax return must fall within the limits in the fee schedule of Reykjavík City’s Department of Education and Youth. The City uses the total annual income shown on the most recent tax return approved by the Director of Internal Revenue.
• Each year, the discount expires on Sept. 1 unless you renew it before Aug. 20.
• The income limits for single parents apply only if the parent is registered as single with Registers Iceland. The Department of Education and Youth may ask parents to provide a statement confirming that they are single. If parents divorce or stop living together as a couple, the discount takes effect on the day the City receives the application, provided Registers Iceland records show the change in marital status. The income limits for single parents do not apply if the parents share the same legal residence.
• The Department of Education and Youth reserves the right to request documents or confirmation to verify that the requirements for the discount are met. Examples include a copy of a tax return approved by the Director of Internal Revenue, a copy of a fee notice, or comparable documents that verify income.
• If the Department of Education and Youth does not receive the requested documents or confirmation by the deadline, it may deny the discount or end an existing discount until it receives sufficient documentation.
• The discount ends without notice if the parents do not meet the eligibility requirements. Under the general rules of the law of obligations, the City may recover any discount granted based on incorrect or misleading information and will require those concerned to pay the difference.
• This policy also applies to parents whose children attend a private preschool with a service agreement with Reykjavík City, although the specific discount is determined by the terms of that agreement.

The purpose of this data collection is to provide income-based discounts to eligible parents. The processing of personal data from applications for income-based discounts is necessary for Reykjavík City to determine whether applicants qualify under the Rules on Preschool Services and the Department of Education and Youth’s fee schedule. This processing is part of the municipality’s work to carry out its statutory duties. The legal basis for this processing is Article 9, paragraph 1, item 5 of Act No. 90/2018 on Data Protection and the Processing of Personal Data.

If you do not provide the requested information, Reykjavík City may be unable to process your application for an income-based discount; however, this will not affect the child's preschool service.

Data storage 

The City deletes your personal data related to the income limits. As required by law, the City keeps records of any discount granted and the preschool fees in its financial systems for as long as those records serve a practical purpose.

If the Department of Education and Youth requests documents, such as a tax return or fee notice, to verify that you meet the requirements for the discount, it deletes them once the review is complete. The City records the outcome of the review.

When you apply for an income-based discount through Vala, the system processes the information you provide along with other required and specified data. 

Vala connects automatically to Registers Iceland to gather basic personal information on the registration page, such as the service user's name, ID number, and legal residence. Vala checks the guardian's marital status (single parent or cohabiting) with Registers Iceland and displays the relevant application options. The application displays the names of the child and the logged-in parent. 

The service user can start an application on the website to apply for an income-based preschool fee discount.  

Vala processes the application automatically and records the discount percentage on the child's profile. Reykjavík City's accounting system handles invoicing based on the available data.  

The City processes the names, ID numbers, home addresses, phone numbers, and email addresses of parents whose child attends preschool. It also processes information about preschool-age siblings, monthly billing, documents submitted as attachments, marital status, whether income falls within the limits, and documents that verify income. Records of outstanding payments are kept in the access-controlled system. We also process technical information, such as the IP address, the device used to sign in, and actions taken in the system.

The City deletes your personal data related to the income limits. As required by law, the City keeps records of any discount granted and the preschool fees in its financial systems for as long as those records serve a practical purpose. If the Department of Education and Youth requests documents, such as a tax return or fee notice, to verify that you meet the requirements for the discount, it deletes them once the review is complete. In accordance with the Public Archives Act (Act No. 77/2014), the City keeps a record of the outcome of the review. After the specified retention period, all processed data must be transferred to the National Archives of Iceland for preservation, per Act No. 77/2014 on Public Archives.

How do we ensure the security of personal data?

Reykjavík City uses appropriate organizational and technical measures to protect personal data, including access controls and encryption. All City staff involved in processing an applicant's personal data are bound by confidentiality.

Sharing personal data with third parties

The City of Reykjavík will not share any other personal data belonging to you with third parties unless the City is required to do so on the basis of law, governmental orders, or a court order. Furthermore, the City will not share your personal data outside the European Economic Area without express authorization and without informing you accordingly.