There were 549 divorces in Iceland in 2008. Furthermore, 634 couples reported dissolution of a consensual union to the National registry. A total of 358 couples with dependent children divorced and 401 couples with dependent children reported dissolution of a consensual union.

Joint custody was introduced by law in 1992 and since then the number of parents that choose this arrangement has increased notably. Currently, it is most common that parents share the custody of their children. In the case of divorce, joint custody was chosen for 81.1% of all children and for 90.5% of all children after dissolution of a consensual union.