Right of residence for British citizen under the withdrawal agreement

• You have a valid passport or identity card issued by the United Kingdom.

• You have arrived in Finland as an employed person or a self-employed person; or
•  you have arrived in Finland as a family member; or
• you have arrived in Finland as a student.
• If none of these grounds apply to you, you may still reside in Finland as long as you have sufficient financial resources for yourself and for your family members. You are not required to have a specific amount of money, but you must have enough funds to support yourself. Social assistance or other equivalent benefits may not be your principal means of support. We will take your personal circumstances into account when considering whether your funds are sufficient. 

Your family member, who is a British citizen

• meets the criteria for residence as laid down in the withdrawal agreement
• lives in Finland or
• has lived in Finland prior to 31/12/2020

If the sponsor is not a British citizen, you cannot be granted this so called ‘Brexit permit’.

You were a family member of a British citizen before the transition period ended on 31/12/2020.

• spouse or cohabiting partner
• Persons living continuously in a marriage-like relationship within the same household regardless of their gender are comparable to a married couple if
  • they have lived together for at least two years or
  • they have a child in joint custody or
  • other weighty reason.
• a child who is under the age of 21 or dependent
  • The child must be under 21 years of age, or a direct descendant who is dependent of a British citizen or their husband/wife, i.e. a child or a grandchild.
• dependent parents
  • A dependant of a British citizen or their husband/wife who is their direct ascendant, i.e. a mother, father or grandparent etc.
• custodian, if the British citizen is underaged
• other relative
  • Other relative is comparable to a family member of a British citizen irrespective of citizenship, if
    • in his/her country of origin, the other relative is a dependant of such British citizen who has a primary right of residence in Finland or lives in the same household. Other relative of the spouse of a British citizen is usually not comparable to a family member of a British citizen.
    • a serious health condition requires that the British citizen in questions takes care of them personally.
    • the other relative has resided in Finland and applied for a residence card for a family member of an EU citizen, registration of right of residence or right of residence by virtue of the withdrawal agreement, or a visa by the time the transition period ends, i.e. 31/12/2020.

Submit your application in the online service Enter Finland or on paper. You must fill in a separate application form for each applicant.

You must submit the application yourself. Your employer or your family member, for example, cannot apply for your right of residence under the withdrawal agreement on your behalf. You can, however, submit an application on behalf of your underage child.

After completing the application, book an appointment at one of the service points of the Finnish Immigration Service. If you are temporarily abroad, book an appointment at a Finnish mission (embassy or consulate) or at an application centre of an external service provider.  Instructions for visiting a Finnish mission or at an application centre of an external service provider can be found on the website finlandabroad.fi. 

Depending on the method of your application, pay for your application in the online service Enter Finland, at a service point of the Finnish Immigration Service, at a Finnish mission or at an application centre of an external service provider.

• If you applied online in Enter Finland, you must visit a service point of the Finnish Immigration Service, a Finnish mission or an application centre of an external service provider to prove your identity and present originals of the documents you attached to your application. 
• If you are submitting a paper application, you must visit a service point of the Finnish Immigration Service, a Finnish mission or an application centre of an external service provider to prove your identity. Bring with you the application and originals of the attachments needed for the application. 
• All applicants must be present when submitting the application. If the applicant is an underage child, the child’s parent or guardian must be present when submitting the application. If the other parent or guardian of a child applying for a right of residence is not present when the application is submitted, you must attach to the application the other parent’s or guardian’s written consent for the child to move to Finland.
• Your fingerprints will be taken during your visit to the Finnish Immigration Service, a Finnish mission or an application centre of an external service provider. All applicants over the age of six must give their fingerprints when submitting their application. 
• You must attach to the application a passport photo of the applicant. The passport photo must comply with the photo guidelines issued by the police. The photo can be black and white or colour. The photo can be no more than six (6) months old. You will find detailed instructions on the website of the Finnish police.

If you have applied for a residence status online in Enter Finland, you can print out a certificate of a pending application from the online service.

If you are applying for a residence status with a paper application, you will receive a certificate of submitting an application for a residence status immediately after you have submitted your application.  

If needed, the Finnish Immigration Service will contact you during the processing of your application. Make sure that your contact details are up to date.

If you have submitted your application online and need to supplement your application, you should do it in the online service Enter Finland. If you have submitted a paper application and need to supplement your application, you should do it by post or encrypted email. The postal address of the Finnish Immigration Service and instructions for sending encrypted email can be found on the page migri.fi/en/contact-information. Use the covering note for additional information. 

You may cancel your application at any time during its processing. As a rule, the processing fee will not be returned to you. For more information, see the page migri.fi/en/cancelling-an-application.

You will receive the decision by post or on Enter Finland.

If you have submitted an electronic application, you will receive a notification by email or text message when the decision has been made.

You will be granted a residence permit card to prove your right of residence by virtue of the withdrawal agreement. If you are granted a right of residence or right of permanent residence under the withdrawal agreement, your permit will be valid as of 1 January 2021. This means that you will receive your residence permit card only after 31 December 2020, even if the decision on your application has been made already earlier. If you are in Finland, the card will be mailed to you.

The maximum period of validity of your residence permit card is five (5) years. Biometric identifiers recorded on the residence permit card chip will include a facial image and two fingerprints. To guarantee the data security of the card chip, the residence permit card must be replaced every five (5) years. 

If you are not satisfied with your decision, Finnish law gives you 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 administrative courts are subject to a fee. Contact the administrative court to find out more about court fees.

If you have received a negative decision on your application but now meet the requirements for a right of residence under the withdrawal agreement, you can reapply for a right of residence under the withdrawal agreement by submitting a new application by 30 September 2021.