Coming to Finland on other grounds

Apply for a residence permit by submitting a paper application.

After you have filled in your application, you must visit a Finnish mission (embassy or consulate) abroad or a service point of the Finnish Immigration Service in Finland.

Bring the filled-in application with you. Have your fingerprints taken, prove your identity and show the originals of the documents that you have attached to your application. Pay for your application at the service point or the Finnish mission.

You can find the expected processing times on the page Processing times. You may also use the Processing Time Checker to get an estimate on the remaining processing time of your application.

If we notice that something is missing from your application or if we need additional information from you, we will contact you.

If you submit your application abroad, you cannot come to Finland to wait for a decision while the application is being processed.

If you nonetheless come to Finland while your application is still being processed and you wish to wait for a decision here, you must cancel your first application and submit a new residence permit application in Finland. We will charge you a new processing fee for the new application. If you do not submit a new application after you have arrived in Finland, you must leave the country before your visa or visa-free period expires.

If you are in Finland when you apply for a residence permit, you are allowed to wait for the decision in the country even if your visa or visa-free period expires.

If you need to supplement your application, you can do so in one of the following ways:

• by post
• by email
• by bringing your additional documents to a service point or an office of the Finnish Immigration Service during their opening hours. There is a postbox meant for additional documents in all of our service points. Put your documents in the box.

Read more on the page Supplementing your application.

You may cancel your application at any time during its processing. Read more on the page Cancelling an application.

The way you will be notified of a decision depends on the way you submitted your residence permit application:

• If you submitted your application abroad, you will be informed of the decision by the Finnish mission (embassy or consulate) that you have selected in your application as your service point.
• If you submitted your application in Finland, you will be informed about the decision by the police, or the Finnish Immigration Service will inform you about it by post.

Some decisions will be sent by post with an advice of delivery. Read more about collecting your letter on the Advice of delivery page.

If you are granted a residence permit, you will receive a residence permit card.

If you applied for a residence permit in Finland and receive a negative decision, you may be refused entry to Finland.

If you are not satisfied with the decision, you have the right to appeal against the decision to an Administrative Court. Instructions on how to appeal will be attached to the decision.

The majority of decisions made by the Administrative Courts are subject to a fee. Contact an Administrative Court to find out more about court fees.

Among other things, the authorities may ask you for information about whether you have enough money to live in Finland.

If you were not issued a personal identity code together with your residence permit card, you must visit a service location of the Digital and Population Data Services Agency in person.

The Digital and Population Data Services Agency enters your personal details, information about your family relations and your address in the Population Information System. You can also apply for a municipality of residence at the Digital and Population Data Services Agency.

For more information, visit the website of the Digital and Population Data Services Agency (dvv.fi)