EU/EEA Citizens
EU citizens may stay in Finland for a maximum of three months without registering their right of residence if they have a valid identity card or passport.
EU-citizens who reside in Finland for more than 3 months have to register their right of residence for Finnish Immigration Service (MIGRI) through Finnish Immigration Services online service Enter Finland. The application should be submitted within three months of the date of entry to Finland. After submitting in the online application, book an appointment from the Finnish Immigration Service to prove your identity. Please note, processing an online application will not start until you visit Finnish Immigration Service's service point in Finland and prove your identity and show your original documents.
Prepare the following to register a right of residence:
- your national proof of identity or passport
- study certificate
- proof that you have sufficient income to support yourself
- proof that you have sufficient health insurance coverage (European Health Insurance Card
Registration the right of residence for Finnish Immigration Service is subject to processing fee. The fee can be paid while submitting the registration application in Enter Finland or during the visit to Finnish Immigration Service's service point.
Citizens of Nordic Countries
Citizens of the Nordic countries do not need neither a visa nor a residence permit to reside or work in Finland. Citizens of the Nordic countries are not required to have a passport or any other identity document. However, they must be able to prove their identity and verify that they are a Nordic citizen if necessary. A driving licence is not acceptable proof of identity, nor does it indicate the nationality of the holder. Nordic citizens are registered by the local register offices. Nordic citizens are required to register if they reside in Finland for more than six months.
Registration in the Finnish Population System
Information of all Finnish inhabitants are registered into the Finnish Population Information System. The registered information is used, among other things, in the organisation of elections, and for taxation, health care, juridical administration and statistical purposes.
Within a month of moving to Finland, everyone should visit the local registry office (Digital and Population Data Services Agency, DVV) to register their name, date of birth, nationality, family relations and address. During the registration process, Finnish identity number is also assigned and in some cases also municipality of residence.
Students studying a full degree and planning to stay in Finland permanently, receive also a municipality of residence. As a resident of a Finnish Finnish municipality (i.e., you have a place of domicile in Finland), students are entitled to treatment in the Finnish public healthcare system and will be charged the same user fees as Finnish citizens.
Finnish identity number is a unique number sequence with 11 characters, formed on the basis of date of birth and gender. Finnish identity number is used always in official context,i.e. when opening a bank account, paying taxes, visiting the hospital or studying in Finland. According to the regulations, KAMK is requested to save each students Finnish identity number to KAMK's student data register (Peppi). Finnish identity code is saved for Finnish students automatically from the application but all other students arriving to Finland abroad, should inform their Finnish identity number to KAMK Study Office immediately after receiving their Finnish identity number.
In some case students outside of EU/EEA countries receive their Finnish identity number during the residence permit process.