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Permit extensions

Applications for extensions to residence permits are submitted to the police in the municipality of residence in Finland prior to the expiry of the existing residence permit. In exceptional circumstances a permit extension may be applied for abroad, when it should be submitted to the appropriate Finnish mission. If the application is submitted to the Finnish mission after expiry of the existing permit, the application will be considered as a first application for residence permit.

As a rule, the police will decide upon the granting of extensions to permits, irrespective of where the application was submitted.

Which forms should I use?

The permit extension is applied for using the same form as for the first residence permit application, providing the reason is

• adoption
• study
• employment (including special experts, researchers, athletes/coaches and interns)
• self-employment
• different family ties as in the existing permit
• other reason

The permit extension is applied using a separate form, if the existing permit was issued on the basis of any of the following

• same family ties as in the existing permit
• remigration
• Finnish origin
• international protection (residence permit granted on the basis of refugee status, subsidiary protection or humanitarian protection)

If the existing residence permit was issued on some other basis than family ties (for example employment), but the permit extension is being applied for on the basis of family ties, the form used is that for a first residence permit on the basis of family ties.

The forms can be printed from the Finnish Immigration Service website under application forms.

More detailed information from the police

More detailed information relating to permit extensions, for example, the processing times, may be obtained from the police in the municipality of residence. If necessary, the police in your municipality of residence can also provide paper forms. The necessary appendices to the application for a permit extension are explained in Section E of either form. Contact details for police departments can be found at www.poliisi.fi.

The handling of permit issues in the police departments of some of the larger Finnish cities has been concentrated at a separate department for immigration affairs. For example, all residence permit applications in Helsinki are submitted to the Immigration Police at Malmi.

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