Required documents for Finnish Citizenship application, Step By Step Guide on How to Apply for Finnish Citizenship, important things to note.

When it comes to applying for citizenship, different countries have different guidelines and requirements depending on the part of the world you are located in, or set rules based on international relations. Applying for the citizenship of the country you are currently residing in can be daunting especially if the application process is unclear, rigorous and time consuming. So make sure you are equipped with the right information and that you have all the required documents ready before you start the process.

Finnish citizenship application is pretty straightforward and the guidelines are easy to follow. What can be challenging however, based on experiences and general public opinion of many immigrants who have gone through the process, is the length of time you have to wait for your application to be processed.

Now that is where the major challenge is. And this lengthy wait period is due to the queue as a result of the bulk of applications received by the Finnish immigration service on a yearly basis.

In my new video on YouTube, I shared about my Finnish citizenship application experience, and how long it took me from the time I applied to the time I actually got the citizenship. I also shared my experience during the permanent permit and EU residence permit application. Definitely check it out below once you are done reading this post.

I am so glad that the video turned out to be a success since many of my viewers found it very helpful. I love to share my personal experience so others can learn from my mistakes and save themselves some unnecessary waste of time or money.

Okay, coming back to Finnish citizenship application, I promised in the last video that I would sharing with you guys the Required documents you need to attach when applying for the Finnish Citizenship, and Step By Step Guide on How to Apply for Finnish Citizenship and afterwards get your Finnish Passport.

So here are the official steps you need to take when applying for the Finnish citizenship as listed by the Finnish Immigration service:

1. Check whether you meet the requirements for becoming a Finnish citizen: There are 6 major requirements for becoming a Finnish citizen and in this video I explained those requirements in detail. how to qualify, and also debunked some popular myths about acquiring Finnish citizenship! So check it out and keep your pen and paper close by. :D. 

2. Get your documents ready and up to date: This is crucial to your application. There are a number of documents that you must attach to your application in order for it to be processed. Before listing the documents below, I would like to quickly point out that it is also very necessary to check if your documents need to be first translated or legalized. For example, if your documents were issued in languages other than Finnish, Swedish or English.

And in this case, you have to use the services of an authorized translator. You can find the list of the authorized translators on the website of the Finnish National Agency for Education on this direct link. If your document has to do with family ties, say marriage certificate, or birth certificate, then you have to get it legalized. In the application form, it will be mentioned there if your documents need to be legalized.

The general documents to be attached are;

A. Your passport, and it must be valid. So ensure you renew your passport if you notice it’s about to be expired.

B. A certificate to prove your language skills. However, you can be exempted from providing this certificate if you show the following;

• A statement from your employee.
• A written statement by you explaining why you should be exempted from this requirement.
• A medical certificate concerning the exception to the language skills requirement.
• Your elementary school certificate to show that you studied in Finnish or Swedish, or an certificate from a school here in Finland to show that you regularly participated and completed studies in Finnish or Swedish.
• And finally, if you do not have a formal education, then you need to submit a Certificate of illiteracy to prove that.

C. A financial or bank statement to show your current and earlier income streams. This does not include incomes that the Finnish Immigration service has access to, for example, extracts from tax authorities or from your social benefits.

With regards to the general length of time before you can apply, there are exceptions to the rule in which case you can be granted the Finnish citizenship even when you have only stayed in Finland for a shorter period. I explained the 6 requirements for this exception in detail in This Video. So make sure to check it out.

Therefore, if you wish to submit your Finnish citizenship application under this special circumstance, you need to attach the following documents;

1. A statement from your employee.

2. A written statement by you explaining why you should be exempted from this period of residence requirement.

3. Fill in your application: The next step is to actually fill in your application which can either be done online or by paper. In most cases, it is done online on Enter Finland website. This is an Official website by the Finnish Immigration where you fill out applications for Residence permits (first, permanent, extended), EU citizens permits, Brexit permits, seasonal work permit, and citizenship applications.

4. Pay the Processing Fees: The application is subject to a fee. Once you have filled in the application form, you will be prompted to pay the processing fees and this fee differs in amount depending on whether you submitted a paper application or electronic one. You can find the amount of the processing fees on this link. Your application will not be processed if you do not pay the processing fees.

5. Go for the Interview: The next stage is to visit a service station to identify yourself and you have about 3 months time frame to do that. For this, you need to book an appointment on this Booking page. Make sure to do this early because of the bulk number of applications they receive.

Sometimes it can take up to one month before you can find a date to visit the service station so make sure you start early. When you have successfully booked an appointment, you will receive a confirmation and reminders of your appointment by email and by text message. In this Video, I shared my personal experience of the Interview and how it generally goes. So make sure to check it out after this post.

6. Then you wait: This is the most challenging part for many. The waiting time can be pretty long depending on the number of applications they have at the moment and most important, on your own application. If there is some incomplete information in your own application, this will increase your waiting time because they will have to ask you again to send the missing information to them.

So it is to your own advantage if you ensure that all required documents are complete and the information you are providing are correct. This will help them process your application effectively. You can read more about the Processing times on this Link.

Once the decision has been made, you will be notified via email, text message, or letter, depending on the application format you used. If you applied via the electronic service, you can also follow your application on your Enter Finland page and you will see it there once the decision has been made.

7. Apply for the Finnish Passport: If the decision says that you have been granted the Finnish citizenship, you can then apply for the Finnish passport any the local police station. This process is simple and does not take a long time compared to the Finnish citizenship application. Applying for the passport takes 5 stages and I will be sharing this with you guys in my next Blog post. So stay tuned!

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