From vision to reality
Department of Service and Innovation Annual Report 2025
Reykjavík Municipal Archives
Reykjavík Municipal Archives: Status of transfer to the National Archives of Iceland
Throughout 2025, the city continued the large-scale transfer of the Reykjavík Municipal Archives' projects, functions, and holdings to the National Archives of Iceland, aligning with a 2023 City Council decision and the joint action plan between Reykjavík City and the Ministry of Culture and Business Affairs. Because the project is unprecedented in scope in Iceland, officials have executed it in phases and regularly review its work plan and timeline.
The transfer's first phase took effect Jan. 1, 2024, passing responsibility for electronic transfer, digital holdings, receiving new physical archives, oversight, and consultation to the National Archives of Iceland. Simultaneously, the Office of Information and Records Management at Reykjavík City assumed control of internal consultation and records management coordination across the city.
Second phase
In 2025, the primary focus shifted to the project's second phase, which involved transferring the Reykjavík Municipal Archives' physical holdings, inquiry services, web operations, digital copies, and case files.
As work advanced, the team realized the physical holdings required significantly more review and registration than initially expected. Stricter processing, box replacement, labeling, and registration requirements under the National Archives of Iceland's standards significantly slowed the project's pace.
A milestone in records and information management
Despite these obstacles, the year yielded meaningful progress. Staff successfully migrated legacy card indexes and storage records into the Scope records management system while completing the processing and registration of public records. The team continued registering private archives and moving storage records into the National Archives of Iceland's records management system to guarantee uniform registration and complete traceability for all holdings.
Transferring the Reykjavík Municipal Archives represents a milestone in advancing records and information management at Reykjavík City. This project strengthened collaboration between the city and the National Archives of Iceland, clarified records management responsibilities, and built a foundation for preserving and accessing materials detailing Reykjavík's history and administration for years to come.
