Finnish citizenship through a parent

Who qualifies

• Likely FinnishA Finnish mother, or a Finnish father married to your mother, when you were bornThis applies wherever you were born. If your birth isn’t in Finland’s Population Information System yet, it needs registering first.
• By declarationBorn abroad on or after June 1, 2003 to a Finnish father not married to your motherYou can become Finnish by declaration once paternity is confirmed. If your parents marry before you turn 18, it’s automatic. Born before June 1, 2003? The old law applies, and Migri says you’d need to apply for citizenship (naturalize).
• Not at birthBorn before the 1984 change to a Finnish mother married to a non-Finnish fatherUnder the law then, you usually weren’t Finnish at birth. The last chance to claim it by declaration closed on May 31, 2008.
• Usually notBorn after your Finnish parent became a US or Canadian citizen before June 1, 2003Before that date Finns usually lost their citizenship when they took another, so you didn’t inherit it. Your parent can get it back by declaration and include children under 18.
• Usually notOnly a Finnish grandparent or earlier ancestorThere’s no descent route through grandparents. A window for children of former Finns closed on May 31, 2008.

Not sure which applies? Migri can determine your citizenship status if you ask.

The age 22 rule

If you have another citizenship as well as Finnish, you keep Finnish citizenship at 22 only if you have a link to Finland. Any one of these counts:

• you were born in Finland and live there when you turn 22;
• you’ve lived in Finland, Denmark, Iceland, Norway or Sweden for at least 7 years in total before 22;
• between 18 and 21, you applied for or got a Finnish passport or ID card;
• between 18 and 21, you told a Finnish embassy or consulate, or the Digital and Population Data Services Agency (DVV), in writing that you want to keep your citizenship;
• between 18 and 21, you did Finnish military or non-military service, or got Finnish citizenship by application or declaration.

The notice is free. You can send it to DVV online, by email or by mail, or through a Finnish embassy or consulate. It can’t go to an honorary consulate or to Migri. Include your full name, date of birth and address.

Migri writes to dual citizens at 18 if their address is in the Population Information System, so keep yours up to date. If you lose Finnish citizenship at 22, your children don’t lose theirs, and you can get it back later.

Getting Finnish citizenship back

Since September 1, 2011, any former Finnish citizen aged 18 or over can get it back by declaration. You don’t need to live in Finland, and there’s no language test. That covers people who lost it at 22, and Finns who became citizens of another country before June 1, 2003.

People who lost it by an authority’s decision, for example over false information, can’t use this route. You can add your children under 18 to your declaration, even if they’ve never been Finnish.

Apply online through Enter Finland, or on paper at a Finnish embassy or consulate. On paper at a US mission it costs US$325 (€280). Adult children and grandchildren of former Finns can’t use this route.

How to apply

1. Check you’re registered as FinnishYour birth needs to be in Finland’s Population Information System. If it isn’t, send your birth certificate (a US one needs an apostille) to DVV, directly or through a Finnish mission.
2. If your Finnish father wasn’t married to your mother, make a declaration firstFor births abroad on or after June 1, 2003. Paternity must be confirmed first. Adults make it on paper at a Finnish embassy or consulate.
3. Apply for a Finnish passport in personAt the embassy in Washington DC or the consulates general in New York, Los Angeles or Houston, by appointment. Honorary consulates can’t take applications. It costs US$275 and usually takes 2 to 3 weeks.
4. Between 18 and 21, this also keeps your citizenshipApplying for a passport or ID card counts as your link to Finland. So does the free notice.

Documents

• Your full birth certificate, showing your parents’ names (a US one needs an apostille)
• Proof your parent was Finnish when you were born, such as their Finnish passport
• Your parents’ marriage certificate, if your Finnish parent is your father
• Proof of paternity, if your parents weren’t married
• Your parent’s US or Canadian naturalization certificate, if they became a citizen there
• Your current passport

Birth certificates from EU countries, such as Ireland, don’t need an apostille. Documents not in Finnish, Swedish or English need an authorized translation. For UK, Irish and US certificates, see where to order certificates.

Common questions

What a Finnish passport gives you

The right to live, work, study and retire across all 27 EU countries plus Iceland, Liechtenstein, Norway and Switzerland. See what an EU passport lets you do.