Haku

People found guilty of certain serious offences can lose their Finnish citizenship.

Illegal entry and stay are prevented through cooperation between authorities Illegal entry and stay remain low in Finland when compared with all migration to Finland. Most people move legally to Finland on the basis of work, family ties or studies...

Interoperability

16.4.2026 | Helsinki, 16 April 2026 Statement of the European Coalition for Civil Preparedness and Resilience Ministers and representatives responsible for the internal security, civil preparedness and resilience of the Kingdom of Belgium, the Kingdom of Denm...

3.4.2025 | The provisions of the Aliens Act on detention and entry bans will be tightened. In addition, the Act will provide for the possibility of withdrawing a residence permit from an alien staying outside Finland and imposing an entry ban on the alien for security reasons. 

16.10.2024 | The Ministry of the Interior has sent out for comments a draft government proposal on temporary protection. As the crisis in Ukraine drags on, there is a need to reform the legislation on temporary protection. The project will prepare the necessary amendments to the Aliens Act concerning people who have fled the war in Ukraine but also other possible situations of temporary protection in the future. 

5.12.2024 | The Government proposes amendments to the legislation on temporary protection. The aim is to streamline the granting of temporary protection from the perspective of both the beneficiaries and the authorities. The amendments concern people who have fled the war in Ukraine but also other possible situations of temporary protection in the future. The Government submitted the proposal for the amendments to the Aliens Act to Parliament on 5 December.

4.7.2024 | The period of residence required for Finnish citizenship will be extended from the current five years to eight years starting from 1 October. This underlines successful integration as a prerequisite for being granted citizenship. It will also enable addressing security concerns more effectively than before. In addition, only time lived in Finland under a residence permit will be taken into account when calculating the period of residence.

3.10.2024 | The Government proposes that the provisions of the Aliens Act on detention be tightened and the provisions on entry bans be reformed. In addition, the Act would provide for the possibility of withdrawing a residence permit from an alien staying outside Finland and imposing an entry ban for security reasons. The Government submitted a proposal on the amendments to Parliament on 3 October.

18.4.2024 | The Government has proposed an amendment to the Citizenship Act that would extend the period of residence required for Finnish citizenship from the current five years to eight years. In addition, only time lived in Finland under a residence permit would be taken into account when calculating the period of residence. The proposal to amend the Citizenship Act was submitted to Parliament in a government session on 18 April.

17.5.2024 | The Ministry of the Interior has sent out for comments a draft act that would tighten provisions on detention and revise the provisions on entry bans of the Aliens Act. In addition, the act would provide for the possibility of withdrawing a residence permit from an alien staying outside Finland and imposing an entry ban for security reasons. The deadline for submitting comments is 28 th June 2024.

9.2.2024 | The Ministry of the Interior has requested comments on a draft version of amendments to the Citizenship Act concerning the period of residence. The public consultation will end on 4 March 2024. According to the proposed amendments, the period of residence required for Finnish citizenship would be extended from the current five years to eight years.

24.6.2025 | Minister of the Interior Mari Rantanen met with Somalia's Minister of Internal Security Abdullahi Sheikh Ismail in Helsinki on 23 June. The meeting was a continuation of Minister Rantanen’s visit to Mogadishu earlier this year. Its purpose was to further strengthen relations between Finland and Somalia in the field of internal security and to agree on the next steps in cooperation on return issues.

20.12.2023 | The start of 2024 will see the entry into force of amendments to acts and decrees. This press release provides a summary of the most important changes.

20.12.2022 | The President of the Republic approved supplementary legislation on the Entry/Exit System (EES) and the European Travel Information and Authorisation System (ETIAS) on 20 December. The supplementary legislation amends the national legislation as required by the relevant European Parliament and Council regulations. 

13.12.2021 | Today, on 13 December, the Ministry of the Interior published the Strategy on Expatriate Finns 2022–2026. The Strategy sets objectives and actions to respond to the service needs of expatriate Finns and to make better use of their expertise.

6.5.2024 | The European Union will begin providing secure satellite connections to its Member States at the end of this year. The plan is to offer Members States high-speed broadband connectivity in areas where no terrestrial connections are available. In April, the Ministry of the Interior launched a preliminary study on the adoption of secure satellite connections.

1.2.2021 | The Ministry of the Interior has set up a project to prepare Finland's strategy on expatriate Finns for 2022–2026. The position of expatriates is in a constant state of change, and the aim is to better respond to the changes, for example by means of digitalisation. The intention is that also Finns living abroad will maintain their contacts and opportunities to influence Finnish society.

8.6.2021 | The Ministry of the Interior has sent a draft government proposal for supplementary legislation on the Entry/Exit System (EES) and the European Travel Information and Authorisation System (ETIAS) out for comments. The purpose of the proposal is to make amendments to the national legislation as required by the relevant European Parliament and Council regulations. 

2.11.2020 | The European Commission has pointed out that the EU-UK withdrawal agreement has been partially misinterpreted in Finland. Under the withdrawal agreement, all UK citizens, including those who have a document certifying a permanent right of EU residence in Finland, must exchange that document for a residence permit card.