Asylum in Finland
You have the right to apply for international protection (asylum) if you cannot return to your home country because you have a fear of being persecuted or you are at risk of suffering serious harm.
International protection can be:
- asylum (refugee status) or
- subsidiary protection.
Applying for international protection is also known as ‘seeking asylum’ or ‘applying for asylum’.
You must be within the Finnish territory to apply for international protection in Finland.
You must make an application in person to one of the following authorities:
- Border authorities or the police. When you visit the border authorities or the police to make an application, they can usually register your application during the same visit.
- Finnish Immigration Service in the following locations:
- Reception centres of the Finnish Immigration Service (the reception centres in Helsinki, Joutseno and Oulu).
- Detention units of the Finnish Immigration Service.
- Service points of the Finnish Immigration Service.
If you choose to make your application at the Finnish Immigration Service, you must also separately visit the police or the border authorities within 5 days of making your application to have the application registered.
You cannot make an application for example by sending a letter or an email to the Finnish Immigration Service. It is not possible to apply for international protection at a Finnish mission located outside Finland.
There is no application form that you could complete in advance to apply for international protection.
Families
When applying for international protection, each family member who wishes to apply for international protection must be present in person at the making, registering and lodging of the application. Children under the age of 18 must be present, too. An application will be opened for each family member who applies for international protection.
Ilman huoltajaa olevat lapset
When a child visits the authorities to register and later to lodge an application, one of the following persons must always be present:
- Temporary representative assigned by the reception centre.
- Representative assigned by a district court upon application submitted by the reception centre.
Applying for asylum
This page explains in brief how to apply for international protection in Finland. You will receive more detailed client instructions when the border authorities or the police register your application for international protection: What you need to know about applying for international protection.
Before the Finnish Immigration Service can examine your application for international protection, you must:
- make an application for international protection and
- visit the police or the border authorities to register your application for international protection and
- visit the Finnish Immigration Service to lodge your application for international protection.
Note that you have an obligation to complete all the 3 steps mentioned above and meet the time limits related to them. If you do not comply with your obligations, the Finnish Immigration Service may consider your application for international protection as implicitly withdrawn.
How to apply for international protection
- When you are in Finland, tell one of the following authorities that you wish to apply for international protection:
- Border authorities, the police, a reception centre of the Finnish Immigration Service, a detention unit of the Finnish Immigration Service, or a service point of the Finnish Immigration Service.
- The authorities enter your details in an official register.
- The authorities will either register your application or refer you to do the following:
- To register your application for international protection with the police or the border authorities if you made the application at a reception centre, detention unit or service point of the Finnish Immigration Service.
- To be housed in a reception centre if you are entitled to reception services and do not live in private accommodation you have found on your own.
- Border authorities, the police, a reception centre of the Finnish Immigration Service, a detention unit of the Finnish Immigration Service, or a service point of the Finnish Immigration Service.
If you are an unaccompanied child, the authorities will ensure that you have a temporary representative or a court-appointed representative to support you at all stages.
If you make your application at the Finnish Immigration Service, you will receive a set of client instructions. You must confirm with your signature that you have received the client instructions. Read the instructions carefully.
- You must visit the police or the border authorities within 5 days of making your application for international protection to have your application registered.
- Note that if you do not register your application within 5 days, your application will not be processed at all.
- In Finland, the authorities who register your application are in all cases the police or the border authorities.
- If you have made your application by visiting the police or the border authorities, the registration of the application can be done by them on the same day, immediately after you make the application.
- You will receive a document titled ‘Todistus turvapaikkahakemuksen rekisteröinnistä’ (certificate of registering of asylum application). Keep the document with you at all times and hand it to the Finnish Immigration Service when you lodge your application for international protection. Each family member who applies for international protection will receive their own document.
- When you register your application, you will also receive the following documents:
- Client instructions. You will have to confirm with your signature that you have received the instructions. Please read the instructions carefully. You will need to follow the instructions at the different stages of the processing of your application.
- Family information form. You will have to fill in the form and bring it with you when you lodge your application.
- Family tracing form if you have family members in EU+ countries. You must fill in the form and bring it with you when you lodge your application.
- If you need help with filling in the family tracing form, you can get assistance with it if you request free legal counselling. If you are an unaccompanied child, your temporary representative or your court-appointed representative assists you with completing the forms.
- The Finnish Immigration Service invites you to a meeting in which you will lodge your application. The invitation will state the place and method that is required for the lodging of the application. You will receive the invitation from your reception centre.
- You must lodge your application no later than within 21 days of the registration of your application. If you have been referred to the border procedure, you must lodge your application no later than within 5 days of the registration of your application.
- Tell the grounds for your application for international protection. Bring with you all available documents that support your application.
- At the meeting with you, an employee of the Finnish Immigration Service will ask some background information about you, such as your state of health, education and occupation. If you have children who apply for international protection together with you, the employee will ask if they wish to be heard in person during the processing of the applications.
- If the Finnish Immigration Service arranges an interview with you in connection with the lodging of your application, you will receive a separate invitation to that interview.
- When you lodge your application, you will receive a document titled ‘Todistus hakijan asemasta ja oikeuksista Suomessa’ (certificate of applicant's status and rights in Finland). Keep the document with you at all times. Each family member, even children, will be given their own document.
Receipt of client instructions at registration of application
Which instructions you are given depends on the procedure to which your application is referred and on whether you are under 18 years old:
- Normal asylum procedure
- Border procedure
- Subsequent application for international protection
- Unaccompanied child
- Child applying together with family
- Border procedure and subsequent application
Receipt of client instructions at making of application
If you make your application at the Finnish Immigration Service, you will be given client instructions related to reception services. Which instructions you are given depends on whether you are an adult or a co-applicant child.
- Instructions for adults
- Instructions for co-applicant children