Family members cannot yet apply for a residence permit online
The Finnish Immigration Service will not expand its e-service to include applications for residence permits on the basis of family ties in February as previously planned. For the time being, family members of Finnish citizens and of individuals who are residing in Finland with a residence permit can apply for a residence permit only by filling out a paper form.
The e-service will not include residence permit applications for family members before the ongoing legislative project established by the Ministry of the Interior concerning stricter family reunification criteria has ended.
E-service provides equal service and makes administration more effective
At the moment, it is possible to apply for Finnish citizenship and a residence permit for studies or for working through the Enter Finland e-service of the Finnish Immigration Service. EU citizens can also register their right of residence through the e-service.
The Finnish Immigration Service recognises the importance of developing the e-service so that residence permit applications for family members are also included, because it provides fast and equal service to everyone applying for a residence permit or Finnish citizenship. In general, digitalisation and automation makes public administration more effective and is cost-saving.
The Finnish Immigration Service will publicise the new schedule for expanding the e-service as soon as the details are confirmed.
Number of family members’ residence permit applications is expected to increase
The Finnish Immigration Service expects that the number of residence permit applications by family members will start to increase this year, when the asylum seekers who arrived in Finland last year begin to receive positive decisions. Family members of individuals who have arrived in the country as asylum seekers cannot apply for a residence permit on the basis of family ties before the asylum seeker has been granted a residence permit.
Family members of beneficiaries of international protection have formed the smallest group among applicants who apply for residence permits on the basis of family ties. Last year, family members of beneficiaries of international protection submitted 770 residence permit applications. In the coming years, their family reunification applications will, however, account for the largest share of applications made on the basis of family ties. One positive asylum decision leads to three family reunification applications on average.
By law, a residence permit application made on the basis of family ties must be processed within nine months. The Finnish Immigration Service monitors the number of applications that become pending and recruits staff within the limits of the accrued income from fees as the number of applications grows.
Residence permit is usually only granted to members of the nuclear family
As a rule, only family members who belong to the nuclear family of the individual residing in Finland can be issued with a residence permit. They include
- the spouse and underage children of an adult
- the guardians and underage siblings of a child.
Other relatives can be granted a residence permit only in exceptional cases.
Further information for the media
Tiina Suominen, Director, Immigration Unit, Finnish Immigration Service, tel. +358 295 430 431, firstname.lastname@migri.fi
