Municipality of Residence
You can only have a municipality of residence in one country at a time.
When you have a municipality of residence, you usually have the right to use the services provided by your municipality of residence. In addition, you can get a Finnish identity card and a driving licence, you can use services provided by authorities or receive financial benefits or subsidies.
If you have arrived from Ukraine, received temporary protection and lived in Finland for at least one year, see the instructions on the Instructions on arriving in Finland from Ukraine page to apply for a municipality of residence.
Find out if you can obtain a municipality of residence
Frequently asked questions
The municipality of residence cannot be applied with a notification of change of address. Apply municipality of residence using the online form. If you cannot use the online form, print and submit the filled paper form "Changing a temporary address into a permanent address".
General requirements for obtaining a municipality of residence:
- The person has arrived in Finland
- The person intends to live in Finland for at least one year
- The person stays legally in Finland
Specific requirements for obtaining a municipality of residence:
In addition to meeting the general requirements, at least one of the following must also be met:
- The person is a citizen of a Nordic country
- The person has registered their right of residence with the Finnish Immigration Service (a residence card for a family member of an EU citizen)
- The person has a continuous (A) or permanent (P) residence permit
- The person has a family member who has a municipality of residence in Finland
- The person has a temporary (B) residence permit that is valid for at least one year in addition to one of the following conditions being met
- The person is of Finnish descent
- The person has previously had a municipality of residence in Finland
- The person has proof of work or studies leading to a degree in Finland lasting at least two years
- The person has lived in Finland temporarily continuously for at least one year after immigration
Bring an acceptable identification document to your appointment, such as a valid passport or official photo identity card issued to a citizen of an EU Member State, Iceland, Norway, Liechtenstein, Switzerland or San Marino
A non-EU citizen is legally residing in Finland in, for example, the following situations:
- They have a valid or pending Finnish residence permit.
- They stay for a maximum of 90 days with a visa, exempted from the visa requirement or with a residence permit of another Schengen state.
Check the website of the Finnish Ministry for Foreign Affairs to see whether you need a visa.
If you already have a Finnish personal identity code, you can register a temporary address in Finland by submitting a notification of temporary move to Finland to the post office. Select the section “temporary change of address” in the form.
You can apply for a municipality of residence when the conditions for receiving a municipality of residence are met.
A municipality of residence may be granted from the date on which the conditions for receiving a municipality of residence are met. However, the date on which the municipality of residence is granted cannot go back more than one month of the date on which you submitted the notification.
You can only be granted a municipality of residence once you have received a positive decision on the registration of an EU citizen’s right of residence. However, if your family member already has a municipality of residence in Finland, you can be granted a municipality of residence before the decision of the Finnish Immigration Service.