Partnership registered abroad
In Finland, only two partners of the same sex can have a registered partnership. If you have registered your partnership abroad with a partner of a different sex, we cannot enter it as a registered partnership in the Population Information System. In some cases, however, we can consider the possibility of acknowledging your relationship as a marriage.
If you have registered a partnership abroad with a partner of the same sex, we can also record your partnership in the Finnish Population Information System. This will keep your personal data up to date. If you changed your surname when your partnership was registered, we can also record your new surname.
If you are a Finnish citizen, you have the obligation to notify any changes in your personal data to the Finnish Population Information System.
Registration of a changed surname
If you changed your surname when you registered your partnership, we can also record your new surname. The change of surname should be shown either in the partnership registration certificate or your proof of identity document.
However, if the new surname is not shown in the partnership registration certificate or your proof of identity document, we can record your new surname based on your notification under certain conditions. This is possible if you live in Finland or are a Finnish citizen. A changed surname can also be recorded based on a separate certificate. Read more about changing your name abroad.
Finnish citizens living in Sweden
The Swedish authorities will inform us of your registered partnership. If you are a citizen of both Finland and Sweden, Sweden considers you a Swedish citizen only and will not forward the information. Persons with dual citizenship therefore have to submit the notification themselves.
Do the following
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Check if the original certificate or extract from the population register must be legalised and/or translated
You must present the certificate either as an original or as a certified copy
- If your document must be legalised, a copy of it must be requested of the legalised document. The copy is then also legalised.
- A certified copy can be issued either by a notary public or by the same authority that issued the original document.
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Deliver the documents
A) Through the Finnish mission
- If you are a Finnish citizen or a foreign citizen permanently residing in Finland
- Otherwise, you can ask the diplomatic mission whether it is possible to submit documents through them
B) By post
- Send the form and documents to Digital and Population Data Services Agency, PL 1003, 00531 HELSINKI, FINLAND. If your municipality of residence was in Åland before moving abroad, send the documents to Statens ämbetsverk på Åland.
C) By bringing the documents to our service location
NOTE. Only electronic documents that can be verified can be sent by email (for example, the document was originally issued electronically by a foreign authority). If necessary, the electronic document must also be legalised. An electronic document does not mean a scanned document.
See more detailed instructions for submitting documents.
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Please note that inquiries and email messages will not speed up the processing of the notifications
We will contact you if we need more information. You will receive an extract from the Population Information System after your details have been recorded. Check that the information has been entered correctly. If for some reason we do not record the information you have submitted in the Population Information System, you will receive a decision on this. Instructions for submitting a request for administrative review are attached to the decision.
This is how you get the document:
You will receive a notification of registration after your data has been saved.
You will receive a notification via encrypted email when your data has been saved. If you have enabled Suomi.fi Messages, you will receive a message there instead of via email. If you do not have Suomi.fi Messages or email, you will be notified by letter.
We will contact you if we need more information.
Check that all your details have been entered correctly. If the information you have provided cannot be entered in the Population Information System, we will send you a decision on the case. Instructions for submitting a request for administrative review are attached to the decision.
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Telephone service: 0295 536 320
Service hours: Mon–Fri 9–15