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Temporary protection

Other residence permits 

You may have another residence permit in addition to the residence permit granted on the basis of temporary protection

It is possible for you to simultaneously hold a residence permit on the basis of temporary protection and another residence permit granted on some other grounds. This second residence permit may be either a continuous residence permit ('A permit') or a temporary residence permit ('B permit'). The residence permit for temporary protection is the only residence permit that you may hold simultaneously with another valid residence permit.

Applying for a residence permit on grounds other than temporary protection

You can apply for a residence permit if you have grounds for the permit in question. Grounds for a residence permit can be, for instance, that you have family ties, a job or studies in Finland.

To find out which residence permit application is best suited for your situation, you can use the Application Finder on our website.

Take this into account when you apply for a residence permit:

  • Residence permit applications are subject to a fee. 
  • A first residence permit is usually granted for one year at the most.
  • To check the expected processing time of an application, see our Processing Time Checker or the page that contains information about that application on our website.
  • Once you have submitted an online application in Enter Finland or submitted your application at a service point of the Finnish Immigration Service, you are staying legally in Finland even if the second permit expires. If you submitted an online application in Enter Finland, book an appointment for visiting a service point. At the service point, you will need to prove your identity and present the documents required as attachments to the application. Only after this is done, your application is considered to be received by the Finnish Immigration Service. 

If you already hold a residence permit on the basis of temporary protection, you should apply for an extended permit. The processing fee that you need to pay will be the processing fee for an extended permit.

The grounds for your residence permit will determine what type of right to work you will have

If you have applied for temporary protection, you have an unrestricted right to work in Finland. Your right to work is unrestricted, meaning that you can find employment in any field. Even if you obtain another residence permit on some other grounds, the right to work that you have gained on the basis of temporary protection will not be affected.

If you also hold a work-based residence permit in addition to your residence permit for temporary protection 

If the other residence permit that you hold in addition to your temporary protection permit is a work-based residence permit and restricted to a certain field or to a certain employer, the Finnish Immigration Service may withdraw your work-based residence permit. Withdrawal of such permit is possible if the employer for whom you are working or the field in which you are working is not covered by the permit. However, you can continue in your job even if your permit is withdrawn because you still hold a residence permit for temporary protection.

Read more on the page Right to work.

Where do I get services?

If you already have a residence permit and are granted temporary protection

You will continue to receive services in the same way as before. If you have received services from the municipality where you live, you will continue to receive them from the municipality. 

If you have already been granted temporary protection and are now granted another residence permit 

In this case, you have had a residence permit on the basis of temporary protection, and either your reception centre or the municipality where you live has provided you with services. If you already have been granted a municipality of residence, you can continue to receive services from the municipality. If, however, you have been using your reception centre’s services, you can now apply for a municipality of residence from the Digital and Population Data Services Agency (dvv.fi) and receive your services from the municipality where you live. You may also move to an apartment of your own and apply for Kela benefits (kela.fi).

You can ask your reception centre for more information about moving to a municipality. 

If you are in Finland and have applied for some other residence permit instead of temporary protection

If you have submitted your residence permit application in Finland

If you have submitted your residence permit application in Finland, you can stay in Finland while you wait for the decision even if your visa-free period ends. 

The Finnish Immigration Service is processing residence permit applications from Ukrainians as normal.

Read more about processing times.

Read more about how and when a decision is served.

If you have applied for a residence permit but the decision is negative

If the decision on your residence permit application is negative, you can apply for temporary protection. 

We have temporarily suspended issuing negative decisions that would involve removal from the country to Ukraine. In Finland, the enforcement of decisions regarding removal from the country is the responsibility of the police. The police operates in accordance with the principle of non-refoulement. The police has announced that it has suspended returns to Ukraine (poliisi.fi).

If you have a valid residence permit in Finland

If you live in Finland and have a valid residence permit in Finland, you can continue living in Finland as before. 

Apply for an extended permit before your current residence permit expires. Read more about applying for an extended permit.

If you no longer meet the requirements for the previous residence permit, you can apply for temporary protection. Read more about how to apply for temporary protection.

If your current residence permit is about to expire

Apply for an extended permit if you still meet the same requirements you met when your previous residence permit was granted to you. 

  • You will benefit from applying for an extended permit if, for example, you still have the same job as before or if the family ties that were the grounds for your previous residence permit still exist. Read more about applying for an extended permit.

Apply for an extended permit before your previous residence permit expires. When you have done so, you will have an application pending, you will still be allowed to live in Finland and you will keep your right to work. If you submit your application for an extended permit too late, it is still legal for you to live in Finland until the decision on your application for an extended permit has become final.

If you submit your application for an extended permit after your previous permit already has expired, the right to work according to the permit has also expired, meaning that you are not allowed to work. Read more about the right to work while an application for an extended permit is being processed.

If you no longer meet the requirements for the previous residence permit, you can apply for temporary protection. Read more about who can get temporary protection.

If you have a valid certificate for seasonal work

If you have arrived in Finland visa-free, you may stay in Finland for as long as you have visa-free days left, which is 90 days at maximum.

When you have a certificate for seasonal work, your right to work is valid if: 

  • the right to work stated in the certificate is valid; and 
  • you have visa-free days left.

A certificate for seasonal work does not extend your visa-free stay in Finland.

If your certificate for seasonal work is about to expire

If your certificate for seasonal work is about to expire or if you are running out of visa-free days, you can apply for temporary protection. 

  • Temporary protection involves an unrestricted right to work, meaning that you can find employment in any field. If you apply for temporary protection, your right to work will become unrestricted immediately after you visit the police or a border control authority to submit your application for temporary protection.
    • The police or the border control authority will print out a certificate which you can use to prove your right to work.
    • If you have already applied for temporary protection but have not received a certificate from the police or border control authority, we can send you the certificate by email. Send your request for the certificate to migri@migri.fi using the website securemail.migri.fi, which is meant for sending encrypted email. 

Read more about how to apply for temporary protection.

If you are working in Finland with a certificate for seasonal work or a visa for seasonal work and wish to continue doing seasonal work in Finland immediately after your certificate or visa expires, it is also possible to submit your application for a first residence permit for seasonal work while you are in Finland. 

Read more about applying for a residence permit for seasonal work. 

What happens if I am granted temporary protection but have also applied for asylum?

If you are granted temporary protection and have also applied for asylum, the Finnish Immigration Service will suspend the processing of your asylum application for as long as your residence permit on the basis of temporary protection is valid.

When will the Finnish Immigration Service resume the processing of my asylum application?

When your residence permit issued on the basis of temporary protection expires, you will receive a letter from the Finnish Immigration Service asking if you wish for the processing of your asylum application to resume. 

  • If you want the Finnish Immigration Service to continue the processing of your asylum application, inform the agency of this by the specified deadline. The Finnish Immigration Service will then process your application in accordance with the normal asylum examination process. Read more about how to apply for asylum. 
  • If you do not want the processing of your asylum application to resume or if you do not reply to the letter by the set deadline, the Finnish Immigration Service will issue a decision on the expiry of your asylum application. You cannot appeal against the expiry decision. This will be stated in the decision.
  • A decision on the expiry of your asylum application will also be made if you cancel your asylum application or leave Finland.

Other situations in which your asylum application will be processed

  • Your asylum application will be processed while you are receiving temporary protection if there is a justified reason to do so.  
  • The Finnish Immigration Service will also process your asylum application if a procedure for removing you from the country is initiated.

If you already have applied for asylum

If you already have applied for asylum, it is advisable to also submit an application for temporary protection. Applications for temporary protection are processed at a considerably faster rate than asylum applications. 

You must apply for temporary protection separately by visiting the police or a border control authority. For more detailed instructions, see section Applying for temporary protection. 

If you are granted temporary protection, the processing of your asylum application is suspended.

Applying for a permanent residence permit 

A permanent residence permit in Finland can be granted after you have lived in Finland with a continuous residence permit (an A permit) for an uninterrupted period of four years. The time you have lived in Finland with a temporary residence permit (a B permit) is not counted towards the four-year residence requirement. 

If you have a residence permit on the basis of temporary protection (which is a B permit) and you move from a reception centre to a municipality, your permit will remain unchanged.

Read more on the page Permanent residence permit.

Applying for Finnish citizenship

You can apply for Finnish citizenship when you meet the requirements for becoming a citizen. One of the requirements is that you have lived in Finland for long enough (usually five years). You also need to know Finnish or Swedish at least on a satisfactory level. 

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