Permanent residence permit application

Apply with this application either for a permanent Finnish residence permit (P) or for a long-term resident’s EU residence permit for third-country nationals (P_EU). You can get a permanent residence permit when you have lived in Finland on a continuous residence permit (A permit) for an uninterrupted period of four years. You can get a P_EU residence permit when you have lived in Finland on a continuous residence permit (A permit) for an uninterrupted period of five years.

Expected processing time for electronic application

12–14 months

Long-term resident’s EU residence permit for third-country nationals

6 months
Expected processing time for paper application

12–14 months

Long-term resident’s EU residence permit for third-country nationals

6 months
Electronic application fee

160 €
Paper application fee

160 €
For applicants under 18

150 €

Application for an EU residence permit

This is what you should do

1

Make sure you meet the requirements for the residence permit you are applying for.

2

Make sure you have all the attachments needed. If necessary, have them translated and legalised. The processing time may be longer if you have not filled in your application sufficiently.

3

Fill in your application in the online service Enter Finland or use a paper application form.

4

Pay for your application in the online service Enter Finland, at a Finnish mission (embassy or consulate) or at a service point of the Finnish Immigration Service.

5

If you are abroad, visit a Finnish mission (embassy or consulate). If you are already in Finland, book an appointment at a service point of the Finnish Immigration Service.

6

Wait for a decision. The Finnish Immigration Service will contact you if necessary.

7

Read what happens after you have applied. Check the estimated processing time of your application. You can follow the processing of your application with the help of our chatbot Kamu. In addition, you will usually receive automated messages at the different processing stages of your application.

8

You should wait for the residence permit in the same country or locality where you submitted your application and proved your identity.

General requirements for entry into Finland

Make sure you meet the general requirements for entry into Finland before you submit an application.

You can only get a residence permit if you are able to travel to Finland and stay in the country legally. This means that you must have a valid passport. If your passport expires while the residence permit is valid, remember to renew it early enough. Your residence permit may be withdrawn if you don’t have a valid passport while residing in Finland.

Income requirement

You must have secure means of support regardless of the grounds on which you were granted your previous residence permits.

Right to work

Your right to work while your application is being processed depends on the grounds on which your previous residence permit was granted to you. If you apply for an EU residence permit after your previous residence permit has expired, you are not allowed to continue working. Read more about the right to work while an application for an extended permit is being processed.

After you get an EU residence permit, you have an unrestricted right to work. Please notice that your right to work is limited to Finland. As a holder of an EU residence permit, you may only work in the EU Member State that has granted the permit to you.

General attachments

Valid passport (you must present it when you submit the residence permit application)
Passport photo complying with the photo guidelines issued by the police or a photograph retrieval code you received from a photo shop, OLEL_PK
Color copies of the passport page containing personal data and all pages that contain notes

Application-specific attachments

For an underage child, written consent from the guardian who is not the person submitting the application
Clarification of income