Mandates: Acting on behalf of a minor in different situations  

The functionalities of the e-Authorizations service work flexibly in a variety of situations involving acting on behalf of a child. The e-Authorizations service is an easy and reliable solution for an e-service, as it is backed by a strong expertise in Finnish legislation related to, for example, guardianship. 

The guardians of a minor can usually act on behalf of their child in all matters without a specific mandate. The guardians must be registered in the Population Information System. 

An e-service can also set a condition on the rule engine by which acting on behalf of a minor is only possible with a mandate that is granted in Suomi.fi e-Authorizations and validated by all guardians. Such situations may include applying for a passport or using banking and insurance services.

A mandate granted on behalf of a child may also be granted to a person other than their guardian. In some cases, an e-service may restrict the use of a mandate on behalf of a minor only to the child's guardian.

How does a joint custody agreement affect acting on behalf of a child?

Since autumn 2020, it has been possible to register the division of duties in joint custody agreements into the Population Information System in a machine-readable format. Suomi.fi e-Authorizations uses this encoded data when parents act on behalf of their child.

New joint custody agreements may restrict a parent's right to make decisions or act on behalf of their child to, for example, some of the following categories: social services, health services, early childhood education and care, teaching and education or membership in a religious community. 
If they choose so, an e-service may allow a guardian to act on behalf of their child regardless of a joint custody agreement if the e-service belongs to one of these categories.  

The implementation of the feature requires action from e-services and, in some cases, they are also required to define new mandate themes. For more information, contact the Suomi.fi e-Authorizations implementation team: [email protected]. 

Joint custody agreements concluded before autumn 2020 have been defined as free-form text. In that case, guardians can authorise each other to act on behalf of their child in matters that would otherwise be prevented by a joint custody agreement. Instructions for granting a mandate together can be found in the Suomi.fi Web Service.

In which situations acting on behalf of a child is restricted?

An e-service may restrict acting on behalf of a child in, for example, situations where a child is taken into care or based on an age limit (such as, making it impossible to act on behalf of a person over 10 years of age). 

A non-disclosure order may also restrict acting on behalf of a child. If a child or both of their parents have been issued a non-disclosure order, none of the guardians can act on behalf of the child 

If a child does not have a non-disclosure order but one of the guardians does, only the guardian with the non-disclosure order can act on behalf of the child. In this situation, the other guardian may also be granted a right to act on behalf of the child if the guardians can make the authorisation together. Instructions for granting a mandate together can be found in the Suomi.fi Web Service.