Registration of foreign citizens
The municipality of residence of foreign citizens who have moved to Finland and live in Finland can be entered in the Population Information System if they intend to reside permanently in Finland and have been issued either a permanent or continuous residence permit or a temporary residence permit for at least one year. Citizens of EU Member States and the Nordic countries do not need a residence permit. Details of permanent residents in Finland recorded in the Population Information System include name, date of birth, citizenship, family relations and address. Foreign citizens are issued a personal identity code on the basis of their registration.
How does registration take place?
According to Finnish legislation, foreign citizens must report to their local register office for registration if their stay in Finland is intended to last or has lasted at least a year. They must present their passport or valid residence permit, if applicable. Citizens of EU Member States can also present an official photo ID instead of a passport. As a rule, EU citizens can be required to present a certificate proving their registration if their stay in Finland has exceeded three months. Family members of an EU citizen who are not citizens of a Member State and whose stay has exceeded more than three months must, as a rule, have a residence card of a family member of an EU citizen or a valid residence permit. Other documents required for registration include marriage certificates and children’s birth certificates, as applicable. Person's information will also be checked from the register of aliens and compared with the documents presented by him.
To register with a local register office, you need to complete and sign the Registration of Foreigners form. All those moving into a new address must always submit an official notification of move, which is also a prerequisite for registration.
To register with a local register office, you need to complete and sign the Registration of Foreigners form. All those moving into a new address must always submit an official notification of move, which is also a prerequisite for registration.
The inter-Nordic agreement on population registration is applied to moves within the Nordic countries - Denmark, Finland, Iceland, Norway and Sweden. If you are moving from one Nordic country to another, you must inform the local register authority of the destination country of your arrival and present identification (passport, ID card issued by the police or other corresponding document) to the authority. If you are moving from Finland to another Nordic country, you must also submit a notification of move to a local register office in Finland.
The purpose of the agreement is to ensure that those moving within the Nordic countries are registered in the population register of only one country at a time and to prevent movers from not being included in any Nordic population register. The local registration authorities of the country of destination decide on the prerequisites of registration.
Registration of foreign citizens residing temporarily in Finland
Details of a foreign citizen residing in Finland temporarily – in practice for less than a year – can also be entered in the Population Information System. Foreign citizens residing in Finland on a temporary basis can submit their registration with the Population Information System to a local register office but also to a local tax office, the Finnish Immigration Service or branch of the Social Insurance Institution of Finland (Kela). They will be issued a personal identity code on the basis of their registration.
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