Doing Business in Greenland - Book - Page 16
8.4 Requirements for security
plans and insurance etc.
The application for a licence must
be accompanied by a written
safety plan, including a risk
assessment and emergency plan,
which must be available to tourists
at all times in Greenlandic and
English.
The risk assessment must be
suitable for providing tourists with
clear
and
comprehensive
information about the main risk
factors
associated
with
the
activity.
8 Tourism
The Greenlandic toursim industry is regulated with the purpose of
sustainable development, local anchorage and security in a vast
unexplored environment.
As a general rule, tourist activities
must be covered by insurance or
security.
8.1 Act on Tourism Activities
A new Act on Tourism Activities in
Greenland has been adopted. The
Act will enter into force on 1
January 2025.
activities in Greenland, unless your
annual turnover does not exceed
DKK 50,000. A tourism operator
may be a natural person as well as
a legal person.
8.2 Scope of the Act ("tourism
activities")
The Act applies to "tourist
activities" - i.e. offering travel
experiences in Greenland primarily
to tourists with a commercial
purpose in the form of day trips
without accommodation and trips
lasting several days.
A licence may be granted provided
that the following conditions are
met:
Natural persons: must have a
registered address in and be
fully liable to pay tax to
Greenland, and must not be
subject
to
insolvency
proceedings.
8.5 Exemption
In special cases, Naalakkersuisut
may grant exemptions from the
requirements for obtaining a
licence and from the provisions on
safety plans and insurance etc.
Exemptions can be granted for 2
years and extended for up to 2
years at a time.
However, the Act does not cover
hotel business or the provision of
pure passenger transport (without
elements of tourism activities).
Legal entities: must be a limited
liability company (A/S or ApS)
or a partnership (I/S) domiciled
in Greenland, and must not be
subject
to
insolvency
proceedings. In addition, at
least 2/3 of a limited liability
company's capital and voting
rights must be owned (directly
or indirectly) by a natural
person who fulfils the above
conditions. For partnerships, at
least 2/3 of the members must
fulfil the conditions.
A 'tourist' is defined as any person
(both foreigner and local) who
travels to a place outside its normal
place of residence or domicile for
pleasure, recreation or holiday
purposes (in whole or in part).
8.3 Licence requirements to
operate a business with tourism
activities
In future, you must have a licence
to operate a business with tourism
16
Thor Suhr
Partner, attorney-at-law
ts@nuna-law.gl
Helen Kibsgaard
Partner, attorney-at-law
hk@nuna-law.gl
