Residence permit application for an entrepreneur

1. You are a self-employed person and your form of business is one of the following:

• a private trader, in other words a private entrepreneur
• a partner in a general partnership
• a general partner (not a silent partner) in a limited partnership
• a member of a cooperative who has an unlimited liability for refinancing

• entrepreneur in a limited liability company

2. Your business operations are profitable.

Your business must be profitable. Your means of support must be secured by your income from your business. A Centre for Economic Development, Transport and the Environment (ELY Centre) will assess whether you meet these requirements.

3. You have registered your business in the Trade Register maintained by the Finnish Patent and Registration Office.

 

In addition, you must meet the general requirements for obtaining a residence permit. See the general requirements for granting a residence permit.

If necessary, have the attachments translated and legalised.

General attachments:

• A valid passport accepted by Finland (um.fi). Present your passport when you submit your residence permit application.
• A passport photo complying with the photo guidelines issued by the police, or a photograph retrieval code you received from a photo shop
  • The passport photo must be no more than 6 months old.
• Colour copy of the passport page containing your personal data.
• If applicable, a document showing that you are legally staying in the country where you submit your residence permit application to Finland (your visa or residence permit, for example).

When you apply for an extended permit, you do not need to submit a document as proof of legal stay, and you do not need to submit the form MP_1 (your opinion on possible denial of admittance or stay and entry ban).

Attachments regarding form of company:

• If your company is a limited liability company:
  • memorandum of association, if your company has not been entered in the Finnish Trade Register;
  • articles of association, if your company has not been entered in the Finnish Trade Register;
  • shareholder register.
• If your company is a cooperative that has not been entered in the Finnish Trade Register:
  • the cooperative’s memorandum of association.
• If your company is a general partnership that has not been entered in the Finnish Trade Register:
  • memorandum of association.
• If your company is a limited partnership that has not been entered in the Finnish Trade Register:
  • memorandum of association.
• If your company is a general partnership ('ay') or a limited partnership ('ky'), attach a document proving that you have acquired a share of the company.

Attachments regarding company operations:

• Business plan
  • Add this attachment if you are applying for a first residence permit for an entrepreneur or if you are applying for an extended permit and there have been changes in your business activities.
• Documents regarding your company’s business premises (rental agreement or proof of ownership of the premises) 
  • Add this attachment if your company has business premises and if you are applying for a first residence permit or if you are applying for an extended permit and there have been changes in your business activities.
• Proof of professional qualifications and competence (degree certificates and/or certificates of employment) 
  • Add these attachments if you have relevant work experience or qualifications in your company’s line of business.
• Proof of financial resources (a bank statement, for example) 
  • Attach bank statements from your own bank account from the past three months if you have funds of your own for the initial operating stage of your company or for supporting yourself.
• Financial forecast for the next two years 
  • Add this attachment only if you are applying for a first residence permit for an entrepreneur or if you are applying for an extended permit and there have been changes in your business activities.
• Proof of the funding granted to your company
  • Add this attachment if you have received funding for starting a business.
• Proof of change of ownership 
  • Add this attachment if you have bought an existing company, if you have received the company as a gift or if you will be working in exchange for a share in the company.
• Proof of payment regarding your business acquisition 
  • Add this attachment if you have bought a company that has already been in operation.
• Loan agreement 
  • Add this attachment if you have taken out a loan to buy the company.
• Payment agreement with National Enforcement Authority Finland or with other creditors to repay a debt
  • Add this attachment if your company has tax debt or other outstanding debt.
• Most recent financial statements (income statement and balance sheet) 
  • Add this attachment if the accounting period has ended but the financial statements have not been submitted to the Finnish Tax Administration.
• The most recent updated accounts (income statement and balance sheet) from the beginning of the current accounting period
• Copies of agreements signed with customers, if such agreements exist.

Sector-specific attachments:

• Driver’s licence and vehicle registration certificate 
  • Add this attachment if your company's line of business is food courier services and you deliver orders by car. If you have a Finnish driver’s licence and a Finnish personal identity code, we will obtain the necessary information directly from Traficom.
• Contract with partner company 
  • Add this attachment if your company’s line of business is either food courier services or restaurant industry and the restaurant offers home delivery.
• Documents required of companies in the tourism industry  
  • If your company’s line of business is tourism, add copies of the licences required for operating in the tourism industry. In addition, check what type of travel service combination providers are obligated to deposit a security and to register with the travel guarantee register of the Finnish Competition and Consumer Authority. 

You can fill in the application in the online service Enter Finland. The fee for an online application is lower than for a paper application. If you apply for your first residence permit in Enter Finland, you might not need to visit a service point when you apply for an extended permit.

If you cannot use Enter Finland, fill in a paper application. You will find a link to the application at the bottom of the page.

If you apply online via the online service Enter Finland, pay the processing fee: 

• with a credit card or with Finnish online banking credentials when you submit the application, or
• when you visit a Finnish mission abroad to prove your identity.

If you apply with a paper application, pay the processing fee:

• when you visit a Finnish mission abroad to prove your identity.

Book an appointment to visit a Finnish mission (embassy or consulate) abroad to prove your identity.

For more information, see the page Proving your identity abroad.

• If you applied online in Enter Finland, you will receive notifications of your application's progress and of possible requests for additional information by email and text message.
• If you applied on paper, you will receive notifications of your application's progress and of possible requests for additional information by email.

For more information, see: Processing of applications

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)