🍺 Can I drink a beer out on the street?

With conditions

Quick answer

It depends on your behaviour and your municipality — being drunk is not itself banned, but drinking on the street is banned almost everywhere. The myth comes in two halves. Some believe being drunk in public is a crime; that is false — Article 21 of the Alcohol Act no. 75/1998 punishes only a person who, through intoxication, causes disturbance, danger or offence, not the intoxication itself. Walking home drunk is not an offence. Others believe drinking outdoors is free; that is also false — municipalities issue police by-laws (Reykjavik: no. 1097/2008) that restrict or ban the consumption of alcohol in public places: streets, squares and open areas. Police can confiscate the alcohol and issue a fine. The third point people forget: the drinking age is 20, not 18, and handing alcohol to anyone younger is a separate offence.

📋 The rules

Being drunk is not itself a punishable offence. Article 21 of the Alcohol Act no. 75/1998 punishes only a person who through intoxication causes disturbance, danger or offence in public.
Drinking alcohol on streets and open areas is restricted or banned by the police by-laws of each municipality (Reykjavik: no. 1097/2008), issued under Act no. 36/1988.
Police can confiscate the alcohol and impose a fine for a by-law breach; the amount is decided case by case and is not published in a fixed table.
The drinking age is 20 (Article 18). Selling, serving or handing alcohol to anyone under 20 is a punishable offence, wherever it happens.
It is prohibited to carry alcohol into or out of a licensed venue (Article 19) and to drink at premises that hold no alcohol-serving licence.

🔓 Exceptions

Walking home drunk, or simply being intoxicated without causing a disturbance, is not punishable — the provision requires disturbance, danger or offence.
Municipalities may permit drinking in defined areas or at events (for example outdoor festivals with a licence), so the rule is not identical everywhere.
At licensed venues, consumption is of course allowed within opening hours; the ban targets open public space and unlicensed premises.

⚠️ Penalties & fines

The penalty depends on what happened. A breach of a police by-law (drinking on the street) is dealt with by a fine and confiscation of the alcohol; the amount is assessed case by case and is neither fixed in the by-law itself nor published in an official table, so no figure is stated here. If an intoxicated person causes disturbance, danger or offence in public, that falls under Article 21 of the Alcohol Act, and the range for alcohol-law offences is fines or up to 6 years in prison, although a street breach almost always lands at the mild end. Handing alcohol to someone under 20 is a separate offence with its own fine. The hidden cost is the context: disturbance often comes bundled with other offences — vandalism, assault or resisting the police — each of which makes the case heavier and can land on the criminal record.

📎 Official sources

Last verified: 2026-07-12

❓ Frequently asked

Is it illegal to be drunk in public in Iceland?

No, intoxication in itself is not a punishable offence under Icelandic law. Article 21 of the Alcohol Act punishes only a person who through intoxication causes disturbance, danger or offence in public, so someone who walks home drunk without troubling anyone is not breaking the law.

Can I drink a beer on the street or in a park?

Usually not, because the police by-laws of each municipality restrict or ban the consumption of alcohol in public places, and in Reykjavik by-law no. 1097/2008 applies. Police can confiscate the alcohol and issue a fine, although some municipalities allow drinking in defined areas or at events under a special permit.

What is the drinking age in Iceland?

The drinking age is 20 under Article 18 of the Alcohol Act, not 18 as many visitors assume. Selling, serving or handing alcohol to anyone under 20 is a separate punishable offence, and the seller must ask for identification if there is any doubt about the age of the buyer.

How much is the fine for drinking in public?

The amount is not fixed in the by-law itself and is not published in an official fine table, so no reliable figure can be given here. Police assess the penalty case by case, often confiscate the alcohol, and may settle for a warning or impose a fine depending on the circumstances and behaviour.

Can I go to prison for being drunk outdoors?

Not for the intoxication alone, but if a drunk person causes disturbance, danger or offence it can fall under Article 21, where the range for alcohol-law offences reaches up to 6 years in prison. In practice such cases are usually tied to other offences like vandalism or assault, which make the penalty considerably heavier.

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