Finnish nationality law
Finnish nationality law details the conditions by which an individual is a national of Finland. The primary law governing these requirements is the Nationality Act, which came into force on 1 June 2003. Finland is a member state of the European Union and all Finnish nationals are EU citizens. They are entitled to free movement rights in EU and European Free Trade Association countries and may vote in elections to the European Parliament.
Any person born to a married Finnish parent is typically a Finnish national at birth, regardless of the place of birth. Children of unmarried couples in which only the father is Finnish must be legitimised for them to acquire Finnish nationality. Foreign nationals may naturalise after meeting a minimum residence requirement and demonstrating proficiency in Finnish, Swedish, Finnish Sign Language, or Finland-Swedish Sign Language.
Terminology
The distinction between the meaning of the terms citizenship and nationality is not always clear in the English language and differs by country. Generally, nationality refers a person's legal belonging to a country and is the common term used in international treaties when referring to members of a state; citizenship refers to the set of rights and duties a person has in that nation.This difference does not exist in Finnish and both terms are translated as kansalaisuus when referring to national status. The Ministry of the Interior has officially translated the name of the legislation in force as both the "Citizenship Act" in 2023 and the "Nationality Act" in 2003.
Acquisition and loss of nationality
Entitlement by birth, descent, or adoption
Children automatically receive Finnish citizenship at birth if at least one married parent is a Finnish citizen, regardless of birthplace. Individuals born to unmarried Finnish mothers automatically receive citizenship without further requirements. Children born within Finland to unmarried Finnish fathers acquire citizenship after paternity is established; those born abroad may receive that status automatically after their parents marry, or by declaration if their parents never marry.Adopted children under the age of 12 are automatically granted Finnish citizenship, while older adoptees became eligible to acquire citizenship by declaration. Abandoned children found in Finland with unclear parentage are considered to be Finnish unless they are found to have foreign nationality before the age of five.
Children of recognised refugees or individuals provided official protection by Finland acquire Finnish citizenship by birth in the country if they do not automatically acquire foreign nationality at birth. Any person born in the country who would otherwise be stateless at birth and who does not hold an entitlement to apply for any foreign nationality also acquires Finnish citizenship by birth.
Voluntary acquisition
Foreigners may naturalise as Finnish citizens after completing a required period of residence. Applicants must hold no criminal record and pass a language skills test equivalent to level B1 in the Common European Framework of Reference for Languages in Finnish, Swedish, Finnish Sign Language, or Finland-Swedish Sign Language.The residence requirement is met living in the country continuously for eight years. The minimum period is reduced to four years of continuous residence or six years of discontinuous residence for: spouses or registered civil partners of Finnish citizens who have been married for at least three years, registered refugees or stateless persons, children over the age of 15 applying with or after a naturalising parent, and applicants with strong ties to the country who can also fulfill the language skills requirement early. Children under 15 with a naturalised parent may be granted citizenship immediately after becoming domiciled in Finland, provided that they meet all other requirements. Citizens of other Nordic countries meet the residence requirement after living in the country for two years.
Individuals between age 18 and 22 who have been domiciled in Finland for at least 10 years, including continuous residence in the preceding two years, are eligible to acquire citizenship by declaration. Nordic citizens resident in the country for at least five years who did not acquire their other Nordic citizenship by naturalisation are also entitled to become Finnish citizens by declaration.
The government has discretionary power to deny naturalisation if an applicant is suspected of being a threat to national security, that person does not intend to settle in Finland, or granting citizenship is exceptionally contrary to the national interest. Conversely, individuals who acquire citizenship by declaration are entitled to gain that status after meeting the requirements.
Loss and resumption
Finnish citizens may apply to relinquish their citizenship, provided that the applicants are ordinarily resident overseas and already possess another nationality or are in the process of naturalising in a foreign country. Relinquishing citizenship is not possible if the applicant becomes stateless, except where naturalisation as a foreign national requires renunciation of Finnish citizenship.Finnish citizens with multiple nationalities automatically lose their Finnish citizenship on reaching age 22 unless they have a sufficient connection to Finland. This can be fulfilled by being domiciled in Finland or permanently resident in another Nordic country for at least seven years. Affected individuals between age 18 and 22 may otherwise submit a written declaration of intent to retain Finnish citizenship, apply for or hold a Finnish passport, or complete military or government service in Finland.
Citizenship may be involuntarily removed from a person who fraudulently acquired it within five years of that person having become a Finnish citizen, or individuals who were granted citizenship by descent from a Finnish father but paternity is later annulled. Revocation on the basis of fraud has only occurred on one occasion. Other than those whose citizenship was removed because of fraud or annulled paternity, former citizens may apply to reacquire Finnish citizenship by declaration.
While losing Finnish citizenship is rare, the benefits of citizenship for persons residing abroad without close ties to Finland are few. A citizen without domicile in Finland and without municipal domicile has no rights to Finnish social security, to Finnish consular help in personal emergencies, or to Finnish health services. The most important remaining rights are the absolute right to return to Finland, to vote in national elections, to have a Finnish passport, to work in the European Union without the working visa requirements faced by non-European Union citizens, and to enroll in Scandinavian universities as a European Union citizen. In addition, all Finnish citizens have the right to receive consular protection from Finnish foreign missions in case of a major crisis in the host country or in case of arrest or incarceration. However, if a Finnish citizen is also a citizen of the host country, Finnish foreign missions will not act on his behalf.
Ålandic provincial right of domicile
People from the autonomous Finnish province of Åland, have provincial right of domicile in addition to their national citizenship. The right of domicile is called hembygdsrätt and it gives Ålanders the right to buy and own real estate, abstain from national service, vote for and be elected to the Lagting and set up a business on Åland. Ordinary Finns without a right of domicile have none of these rights in Åland.Ordinary Finns can get Ålandic right of domicile after living on the islands for five years and proving their satisfactory knowledge of Swedish. Ålanders lose their right of domicile after living outside Åland for five years, or on forfeiting their Finnish citizenship.
Non-Finns can obtain Ålandic right of domicile when obtaining Finnish citizenship, if they fulfill the requirements for the right of domicile.
Municipal domicile and registration
The Finnish law grants several rights, e.g. social services, municipal franchise and education on the basis of municipal domicile. The concept of municipal domicile is based on residency and is tied to citizenship only weakly. However, the naturalization legislation refers several times to the municipal domicile as a requirement for naturalization.Registration of the municipal domicile
As the main rule, the person is domiciled in their place of residence. A new-born is domiciled in the municipality of its mother. If a person has several residences, the place to which they have the closest ties is their domicile. The ties may be related to work, family or other similar arrangements. The register authorities will determine the domicile of the person whose opinion cannot be resolved.A person who leaves the country to stay abroad for more than a year, loses municipal domicile immediately. However, exceptions are made for persons who retain close ties to Finland or work as diplomats, missionaries or aid workers.
Finnish and EEA member state citizens are domiciled in their places of residence immediately if they move into the country from abroad. Aliens are domiciled if they have a permanent residence permission or if they are family members of a person domiciled in Finland. Other aliens are domiciled if they have a temporary residence permit for at least a year and the reasons for their stay point that they might remain in the country. Any family members of a person with a municipal domicile are also domiciled in the municipality if they live together. All foreigners with a municipal domicile are also required to register into the national population database.
When moving, the person's domicile will not change if the move has been caused by
- temporary work, study, illness or other similar reason that will not last for more than a year
- care in a hospital, sanatorium, nursing home, asylum etc.
- professional seafaring
- detention in a penitentiary
- membership of the parliament or membership of the European Parliament
- service as a conscript