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Temporary protection

Residence permit card on the basis of temporary protection 

If you are granted temporary protection, you will receive a residence permit card. All residence permit cards issued on the basis of temporary protection are valid until 4 March 2025, even if their last day of validity is 4 March 2023 or 4 March 2024.

  • Expected processing time for electronic application

    2 weeks

  • Expected processing time for paper application

    2 weeks

  • Electronic application fee

    0 €

  • Paper application fee

    0 €

We recommend that you apply for a new residence permit card after your permit has been extended

You can apply for a new residence permit card as of 17 February 2024. We recommend that you apply for a new card in our online service Enter Finland. There is no need to hurry with the application, as you can apply for a new card at any time as long as your residence permit on the basis of temporary protection is valid. The updated validity period of your residence permit will be printed on the new card. The new residence permit card issued on the basis of temporary protection is free of charge.

Having a new residence permit card has considerable advantages when you reside and handle matters in Finland

We recommend that you apply for a new residence permit card for the following reasons: 

  • You can easily prove that your residence permit is valid, that you are staying in Finland legally and that you have a valid right to work. 
  • It will be easier for you to travel in Europe.
  • For example, Finnish authorities, banks, employers, healthcare and social service providers, schools and daycare centres can reliably verify that your residence permit is valid.

It is legal for you to stay in Finland even if you do not apply for a new card

All residence permit cards issued on the basis of temporary protection are valid, even if their last day of validity is 4 March 2023 or 4 March 2024. Your right to work on the basis of temporary protection will also be valid until 4 March 2025. 

However, with a new residence permit card you can always prove with certainty that you have a valid residence permit and right to work and reside in Finland. 

Changing a name on a residence permit card

If there have been changes in your name after you received your previous residence permit card, see the instructions on this page under Changing a name on a residence permit cardn before you order a new card.

Apply for a new residence permit card in the online service Enter Finland

We recommend that you apply for a new residence permit card in our online service Enter Finland. If you do so, you do not need to visit a service point. You can apply for a new card at any time as long as your residence permit is valid. You will receive your new card within approximately two weeks of submitting the application.

  • If you have children who are under 18 years of age and who have received temporary protection in Finland, you can use Enter Finland to apply for new residence permit cards for them as well.
    • However, you cannot use Enter Finland to apply for a new residence permit card for a child who has turned 6 after receiving his or her current residence permit card on the basis of temporary protection because, under law, your child’s fingerprints are required for the residence permit card. To apply for a residence permit card for a child who is at least 6 years old, you need to visit a service point of the Finnish Immigration Service to submit an application. The child must come to the service point with you.
  • Children who have reached the age of 15 can also apply for a new card independently in Enter Finland. They need to create a user account in the Enter Finland online service that is intended for applicants.
  • If you are a representative of an unaccompanied minor, you can use the Enter Finland online service intended for applicants to apply for a new residence permit card for the child. You cannot submit the application in the Enter Finland online service that is intended for counsels and representatives. See the instructions on how to create a user account and how to submit the application below (‘How to apply for a new residence permit card in Enter Finland’).

How to apply for a new residence permit card in Enter Finland

Check our video tutorial how to create an EnterFinland account and apply for a new temporary protection residence permit card.

If you cannot apply for a new card in Enter Finland, you can visit a service point of the Finnish Immigration Service and apply for it there

If you want a new residence permit card but cannot apply for it in Enter Finland, you can apply for a new card at a service point of the Finnish Immigration Service. Book an appointment beforehand in our appointment system. You can see all appointments available for booking at our service points in the appointment system.

The service point staff can help you in Finnish, Swedish or English. We do not have interpreters at our service points.

Do this if you assist a temporary protection client who needs help with submitting the application due to illness or disability, for example 

  • If a client who has been granted temporary protection needs a new residence permit card but is not able to submit the application in the online service Enter Finland or at a service point due to an illness or a disability, for example, please contact us by email. 

  • Use the Securemail service (securemail.migri.fi) of the Finnish Immigration Service to email suojelu.tilapainen.tupa@migri.fi. The Securemail service will encrypt your message. Do not use other email encryption services. For more information about sending us email using the Securemail service, please see the page Contact information.

  • Explain in your email that the client needs a new residence permit card for temporary protection. Include the following information in your email:

    • The client’s customer number at the Finnish Immigration Service. Do not write any other personal details or personal information about the client in your email.

    • A short explanation of why the client is not able to apply for a new residence permit card in the online service Enter Finland or at our service point. Based on your message, we will assess what needs to be done so that the client can get a new residence permit card.

    • Your own contact details: name, email and phone number and your role or relationship with the client

  • We will contact you when we have received your message.

Destroy your old residence permit card after you have received your new card

Do not return your old residence permit card to the Finnish Immigration Service. Destroy the old card instead.

  • Cut the card’s chip into four parts – first into two parts vertically and then horizontally.
  • Put the parts in the mixed waste bin, preferably in several different bin bags.

The residence permit card must be destroyed so that it will not be misused. If you have already sent your old card to the Finnish Immigration Service, we will destroy it for you.

If your residence permit card for temporary protection does not contain a personal identity code

Personal identity code is not an obligatory piece of information on a residence permit card. Residence permit cards are not official identity documents. 

However, if you want a new residence permit card that contains your Finnish personal identity code, you can apply for a new residence permit card.

If the expiration date printed on your residence permit card is 4 March 2023 or 4 March 2024

  • You can apply for a new residence permit card free of charge once, because a new residence permit card for temporary protection is free of charge when your residence permit on the basis of temporary protection has been extended.  

If the expiration date printed on your residence permit card is 4 March 2025

  • Ask the Finnish Immigration Service to correct the information printed on your new residence permit card by sending an email to the address tilapainen.suojelu.korjauspyynnot@migri.fi.
  • Please write only your customer number and a mention that you wish to order a new residence permit card that contains your personal identity code.
  • Do not include any personal information in your email. Do not send your personal identity code by email.
  • You will get a new card free of charge.

Changing a name on a residence permit card

If you have been granted the passport of your country of nationality after the first decision on temporary protection

See here what to do if you have been issued with the passport of your country of nationality after getting a first decision on temporary protection but the name in your passport differs from the name in your first residence permit card:

If you change your personal information through the Digital and Population Data Services Agency, read the instructions on how to apply for a new residence permit card

  • If the expiration date printed on your residence permit card is 4 March 2023 or 4 March 2024
    • You can apply for a new residence permit card free of charge once, because a new residence permit card issued on the basis of temporary protection is not subject to a fee when your residence permit on the basis of temporary protection has been extended.
  • If the expiration date printed on your residence permit card is 4 March 2025

If you have had a passport or another identity document already before the first decision on temporary protection

If the expiration date printed on your residence permit card is 4 March 2023 or 4 March 2024

  • Ask the Finnish Immigration Service to correct the information printed on your new residence permit card by sending an email to the address tilapainen.suojelu.korjauspyynnot@migri.fi.
    • Please write only your customer number and a mention that you wish to order a new residence permit card that contains your personal identity code.
    • Do not include any personal information in your email. Do not send your personal identity code by email.
  • You can apply for a new residence permit card free of charge once, because a new residence permit card issued on the basis of temporary protection is not subject to a fee when your residence permit on the basis of temporary protection has been extended

If the expiration date printed on your residence permit card is 4 March 2025

  • Ask the Finnish Immigration Service to correct the information printed on your residence permit card by sending an email to the address tilapainen.suojelu.korjauspyynnot@migri.fi. 
    • Please write only your customer number and a mention that you wish to order a new residence permit card that contains the missing information or your correct name.
    • Do not include any personal information, such as your personal identity code, in your email.
  • In our reply, we will tell you whether getting a new card is free of charge or whether you need to pay a fee to apply for a new card.
  • You will get a new card free of charge if your name needs to be corrected due to an error made by the Finnish Immigration Service.
  • If the reason for the name change is something else than an error made by the Finnish Immigration Service, you will need to pay a processing fee for the new card. The processing fee is 60 euros. A new card is subject to a fee because, by law, a residence permit card that is issued on the basis of temporary protection and valid until 4 March 2023 or 4 March 2024 can be renewed without a fee only once.

If your residence permit card is lost or stolen

You should always report your lost or stolen residence permit card to the Finnish police. If your card is lost or stolen outside Finland, report it to the authorities in the country in question and to the police in Finland. If your residence permit card was granted on the basis of temporary protection and the expiration date printed on the card was 4 March 2023 or 4 March 2024, you can apply for a new residence permit card free of charge.

If you had a new residence permit card that was granted on the basis of temporary protection and the expiration date printed on the card was 4 March 2025, a new card is subject to a fee. For instructions on how to apply for a new card, see the page Renewal of residence permit card.

Right to work

You will have the right to work and study as soon as you register your application for temporary protection with the police or a border control authority. Your right to work is valid until 4 March 2025 even if you do not apply for a new residence permit card.