Denmark has been a member state of the International Organization for Migration (IOM) since 1954. In 2006, the Government of Denmark granted IOM privileges and immunities through an agreement signed between the two parties, leading to the opening of the IOM Denmark country office in Copenhagen in 2009.

Since 2013, the office of IOM Denmark is located at the UN City in Nordhavn, together with some of the other UN agencies in Denmark. In 2022, IOM signed the One UN Common Host Agreement between Denmark and the UN and, in 2023, the office assumed the functions of a Sub-Regional Office for the Nordic countries, leading IOM’s liaison and coordination with strategic partners in Denmark, Finland, Iceland, Norway and Sweden. This enables IOM to strengthen collaboration with and between partners in the Nordic countries on areas of mutual interest and increase their knowledge and understanding of IOM’s strategies and work globally.

In 2024, the office became a Country Office for Partnership and Advocacy (COPA) and a Country Office with Coordination Function (COCF), maintaining its coordination functions for the Nordics and reporting to IOM’s Regional Office for Europe and Central Asia in Vienna.