Moving to Finland to be with a family member
If you have a family member who lives in Finland and you want to move in to live with him or her, you need a residence permit on the basis of family ties. If you do not have a residence permit, you can visit Finland and stay for a maximum of 90 days. For a visit, you usually need a visa.
Your family member who lives in Finland is called a ‘sponsor’. The sponsor cannot apply for a residence permit on your behalf. You need to do it yourself.
A requirement for getting a residence permit is that you must lead a family life with the sponsor.
All relatives cannot act as sponsors, as the Finnish law defines the persons considered to be family members. The concept of family is narrower in Finland than in many other countries.
These are the family members of a Finnish citizen and a foreign national who is not an EU citizen:
- a spouse
- a registered partner
- a cohabiting partner
- a guardian of a child under 18 years of age
- a child
In Finland, a person you are dating is not considered to be your family member. However, the person you are dating may get a residence permit on other grounds.
EU citizens do not need a residence permit in Finland. The legal definition of an EU citizen’s family members is also different. Read more on the page EU registration.
Before applying, watch our webinar on applying for a residence permit on the basis of family ties. The topics covered in the webinar include residence permit applications, income requirement and extended permits.
Your residence permit depends on your family ties
When you apply for a residence permit on the basis of family ties, the application you should use depends on the following facts:
- Your relationship to the sponsor – is he or she for example your spouse or your child?
- Is the sponsor a Finnish citizen, does he or she have a residence permit in Finland, or has he or she been granted asylum in Finland?
Read more about the requirements for getting a residence permit, and find out what you should do, on the specific page of each application. If you are not sure what application form you should use, use the Application Finder to find out.
- Applications: my spouse is in Finland
- Applications: my guardian is in Finland
- Applications: my child is in Finland
- Applications: my other relative is in Finland
My spouse is applying via the fast-track service
If your spouse is applying for a residence permit via the fast-track service and you apply at the same time, you can get a residence permit in two weeks. Your spouse can submit a fast-track application, if he or she is applying for
- a residence permit for a specialist
- an intra-corporate transferee permit (‘ICT residence permit’) as a specialist or a manager
- a residence permit for work in the top or middle management of a company
- an EU Blue Card or
- a residence permit for a start-up entrepreneur.
Choose the correct application on the basis of family ties. When your spouse has submitted his or her application, you will receive an email containing a fast track ID number that you should add to your application. You must submit your application within two days after your spouse submits his or her application.
Fast-track applications can be submitted only in the online service Enter Finland. For more information, see the page Fast track.
In most cases, you must have sufficient financial resources
‘Sufficient financial resources’ or 'secure means of support' means that you have sufficient funds for you and your family to live in Finland. Your income can come for example from employment, a private enterprise, assets or pensions.
The required amount of income depends on the size of your family. Not everyone who applies for a residence permit on the basis of family ties is required to have sufficient financial resources. Read more on the page Income requirement.
Changes in your family ties
If your family ties change during your application process, tell the Finnish Immigration Service about the changes. Changes in family ties include:
- birth of a child
- changes in a child’s custody
- marriage
- divorce
- death of a family member
See the page Changes in your family ties.
You are allowed to work if you have a residence permit on the basis of family ties
If you have been granted a residence permit on the basis of family ties, your right to work and study in Finland is not limited in any way. If your residence permit was granted to you on the basis of your dating relationship, you may work under certain conditions. Read more on the page Right to work.
Application process when you are applying for your first residence permit on the basis of family ties
Apply for a residence permit either in the online service Enter Finland or with a paper form.
You need to submit the application yourself. The sponsor cannot apply for a residence permit on your behalf. However, the sponsor must supplement your application. Read more on the page For a family member living in Finland.
When a child is applying for a permit, the child’s application must be completed and submitted by the child’s parent or guardian or other legal representative of the child.
Alternatively, the parent or guardian can give someone a power of attorney which authorises the person to complete and submit an application on behalf of the child if the child is under 18 years of age.
Children aged 15–17 can complete and submit their applications themselves. Consent by the parent or guardian or by other legal representative of the child must be attached to the application.
Once you have completed the application, you must visit a Finnish mission abroad or a service point of the Finnish Immigration Service in Finland to prove your identity:
- When you have submitted an online application, visit a mission or service point to prove your identity, to have your fingerprints taken and to show the originals of the documents that you have attached to your application. Pay the processing fee in the online service or when you visit a mission or service point.
- If you are submitting a paper application, fill in the application form and bring it with you when you visit a mission or service point to prove your identity. At the mission or service point, you will have your fingerprints taken. You will also need to present the originals of the documents that you have attached to your application.
If you have made a residence permit application on behalf of a child, you must bring the child with you to the mission or service point. This requirement applies to all children under the age of 18, including babies.
As Finland does not have missions in all countries, you may not be able to submit your application in your home country. You must legally reside in the country where you submit your residence permit application. Read more on the page Providing your identity abroad.
The processing time of your application depends on the grounds on which you applied. 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.
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.
If we notice that something is missing from your application or if we need additional information from you, we will contact you. We may investigate your family ties in the following ways:
- An oral hearing or an interview where we investigate the grounds for granting you a residence permit.
- A DNA analysis to investigate biological kinship.
- An age test where we investigate the true age of the applicant or the sponsor.
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. The earlier fee will not be returned to you. 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:
- If you submitted an electronic application:
- Send the additional information in the e-service through the page "Send additional information". This is the only way you can supplement an electronic application.
- If you submitted a paper application:
- 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 Notify us of changes.
You may cancel your application at any time during its processing. Read more on the page Cancelling an application.
If you have applied for a residence permit through the e-service Enter Finland, you will get an e-mail or a text message when a decision has been made. You will also see it in your user account in the e-service.
If you submitted your residence permit application on paper:
- 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 get a positive decision, you will get 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.
The D visa allows you to travel to Finland immediately after being issued with a residence permit
You can apply for a D visa if your spouse or your parent or guardian is applying for one of the following residence permits:
- Residence permit for a specialist
- EU Blue Card
- Residence permit for a start-up entrepreneur
- Residence permit for a specialist or manager on the basis of intra-corporate transfer (ICT residence permit)
- Residence permit for work in the top or middle management of a company
- Residence permit for studies
- Residence permit for a researcher
In addition, you can apply for a D visa if your family member is already living in Finland and has one of these residence permits.
You may also get a D visa if your family member is coming to Finland to work for a certified employer
- Residence permit for an employed person
- Residence permit on the basis of research completed in Finland
- Residence permit on the basis of a degree completed in Finland
- Residence permit for work in the service of a religious community
- Residence permit for work in the field of culture or the arts
- Residence permit for work in the field of mass media
- Residence permit for employment with international organisations or cooperation between states
- Residence permit for preparation of company’s arrival in Finland and supervision of orders
- Residence permit for delivery of a machine or system
- Residence permit for an athlete or a coach
- Residence permit for a consultant
- Residence permit for a visiting teacher, lecturer or trainer
- Residence permit on the basis of an intergovernmental agreement
You can also apply for a D visa if your family member is already living in Finland, is working for a certified employer and has one of the above-mentioned residence permits.
Prepare for your life in Finland
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)