Colombian Refugee Oscar Florez Granted Citizenship

In the early days of June, Oscar Florez, a 17-year-old refugee from Colombia, was granted Icelandic citizenship by Alþingi. The decision was proposed by Alþingi’s general and educational committee, which oversees applications for citizenships submitted to parliament.

In April, 2025, RÚV reported that the Directorate of Immigration (ÚTL) was planning to deport Oscar — for the second time — back to his home country. In 2024, police escorted him to Colombia with his biological father who had abused him and surrendered his custody over Oscar.

When his father abandoned him during their arrival, Oscar subsequently lived on the streets of Bogotá, Colombia, for about a month. An Icelandic man, Svavar Jóhannsson, stepped in as Oscar’s guardian and brought him back to Iceland in November, 2024. Oscar took residence with Svavar and his wife Sonja Magnúsdóttir.

Alþingi’s ruling

Following ÚTL’s decision to deport Oscar in April, protesters organised demonstrations rallying for his cause. The Icelandic National Church also made a statement announcing their support for Oscar.

According to ÚTL’s ruling, Oscar should have been deported on June 3. His deportation was postponed due to new information from Alþingi. According to Alþingi’s general and education committee head and Social Democrat MP Víðir Reynisson, he suggested that Oscar’s application for citizenship would, “likely” be accepted.

Per Icelandic law, ÚTL manages and oversees applications for citizenship. However, Alþingi also has the power to grant citizenship via legislation, as it has done on numerous occasions.