Organization : Police of Finland
Type of Facility : Residence Permit
Country: Finland
Website : https://poliisi.fi/etusivu
Residence Permits
A residence permit is an authorisation issued to a foreign national allowing repeated entry into the country and residence in the country for purposes other than tourism or similar short-term stays.
There are fixed-term residence permits and permanent residence permits.
A fixed-term residence permit is issued either for a temporary stay in the country (temporary residence permit, status B) or a continuous stay (continuous residence permit, status A). The type of residence permit depends on the purpose of the stay.
For example: studying is considered temporary, but the stay in Finland of a family member of a Finnish citizen is considered continuous. The permit authority will determine the purpose of any given stay on the basis of the details provided by the foreign national applying for the permit.
The first fixed-term residence permit is generally issued for a period of one year.
Basically, an application for a residence permit must be submitted abroad, before entry into Finland.
The first fixed-term residence permit is issued by the Finnish Immigration Service; after that, any new fixed-term residence permit (extension) will be issued by the police. However, the first residence permit for a family member of a Finnish citizen in Finland and that family member’s unmarried children is issued by the police.
Residence permit application forms and further instructions on how to use them may be found on the website of the Finnish Immigration Service. The fees charged for permits issued by the police and by the Finnish Immigration Service are different. The fees for permits issued by the police may be found in the Ministry of Interior Decree on service charges.
Criteria for issuing residence permits:
Principally, the applicant must have a secure means of support at the time of applying for his/her first residence permit and at the time of applying for its extension.
The police and the Finnish Immigration Service may refuse a residence permit if the applicant poses a risk to public order and security, to public health or to Finland’s international relations. A residence permit may also be refused if there is reason to suspect that the applicant intends to evade the provisions on entry into the country or residence in the country.
New fixed-term residence permit (extended permit):
New fixed-term residence permits are issued by the police. You must submit an application for a new fixed-term residence permit before the current permit expires. Make sure you submit the application well in time before the expiry of the current permit. Different police departments have different processing times for residence permits.
The police will issue a new fixed-term residence permit if the grounds on which your previous permit was issued continue to exist. A new fixed-term residence permit may be granted on grounds different from the previous one, if such grounds would have been sufficient for granting the original residence permit.
A new fixed-term residence permit is valid for a maximum of four years.
Foreign nationals are allowed to reside in Finland legally while their applications are being processed, until a final decision on the matter has been made, or until an enforceable decision has been made to deport a foreign national.
The necessary forms and attachments are available on the Finnish Immigration Service website and this website under each permit type. The fees charged for permits issued by the police are different from those charged by the Immigration Service.
Permanent residence permits and EU residence permits for third-country nationals with long-term EU resident status:
A foreign national may be issued a permanent residence permit by the local police in his/her place of residence on application if the applicant has been continuously resident in Finland for four years on a fixed-term residence permit (status A) and still fulfils the criteria for being issued a continuous residence permit.
The same attachments are needed for the permanent residence permit application as for the fixed-term residence permit application. The fee charged for the permanent and fixed-term permits is the same.
The four-year minimum residence requirement is calculated from the date on which the applicant entered the country with a valid residence permit for continuous residence. If the residence permit was applied for in Finland, the four-year period is calculated from the start date of the first fixed-term residence permit for continuous residence issued to the applicant.
A permanent residence permit may be refused if:
** the applicant is found guilty of an offence punishable by imprisonment;
** the applicant is suspected of an offence punishable by imprisonment;
** the applicant is found guilty of two or more offences;
** the applicant is suspected of two or more offences.
Permanent residence permits are valid indefinitely.
EU residence permits for third-country nationals with long-term EU resident status
EU residence permits for third-country nationals with long-term EU resident status are valid indefinitely.
The police may issue an EU residence permit for a third-country national with long-term EU resident status on application to an applicant who, having been issued a continuous residence permit and immediately before submitting the residence permit application, has been continuously resident in the country for five years and still fulfils the criteria for being issued a continuous residence permit. A ‘third-country national’ is a citizen of any other country than an EU Member State or comparable country.
The grounds for refusing a residence permit are the same as for a permanent residence permit.