Projects and legislation Most of the preparation for the projects is carried out in Finnish, so the majority of the additional information is also in Finnish. Hidden

In accordance with the Language Act (423/2003), the Government submits a report to Parliament each parliamentary term on the application of language legislation and the realisation of linguistic rights as well as, where necessary, on other linguistic conditions. In addition to Finnish and Swedish, the report discusses at least the Sámi, Romani and sign languages.

New legislation on sexual offences The new legislation on sexual offences entered into force on 1 January 2023. The legislative reform strengthens everyone’s right to sexual self-determination and personal integrity. The key change is that the def...

Influencing the preparation of decisions and legislation Under Finnish legislation, authorities must act in an open and transparent manner. Citizens must be provided with opportunities to protect their rights and interests, receive information abo...

Monitoring and evaluation Monitoring refers to the continuous collection of information by Ministries on how legislation works after its entry into force. Evaluations, on the other hand, are one-off and more in-depth information collection project...

Enforcement of Civil Judgments This page contains general information on the enforcement of judgments in civil matters (such as judgments establishing a payment liability) in Finland. There are international treaties, EU legislation and national l...

Justice affairs in the EU EU affairs at the Ministry of Justice The Ministry of Justice is responsible for EU projects within its mandate and seeks to influence EU legislation proactively. The objective is to ensure that Finland’s interests are se...

Personnel search Department for Administration and Oversight Administrative Support Functions Mirja Al-Khafaji, Administrative Assistant Department for Administration and Oversight, Administrative Support Functions Phone number +358295150197 Email...

Nordic cooperation Judicial cooperation supports the Nordic countries in advancing the common basic principles laid down in Nordic legislation in accordance with the shared Nordic values. Nordic judicial cooperation helps politicians and public of...

Child Welfare In Cross-Border Situations This section contains information on the procedures, legislation and agreements related to cross-border situations concerning child welfare. Child welfare falls within the mandate of the Ministry of Social ...

8.6.2026 | The Ministry of the Interior has today sent out for comments a draft government proposal to supplement an earlier legislative proposal on criminal intelligence. The aim of the proposal is to ensure that the Police Act provides sufficient support for combating crime and that threat‑informed criminal intelligence can be used effectively to intervene in criminal activity such as serious gang crime and organised crime. The deadline for submitting comments is 3 August 2026.

Development of law drafting Development of law drafting aims at improving the quality of law drafting. The objective is legislation that is functioning, consistent and comprehensible. High-quality law drafting contributes to ensuring that Parliame...

Other Legal Assistance in Civil Matters Information on foreign law It is sometimes necessary to acquire information on the legislation of a foreign country in a matter pending in a court or before another judicial authority. In such a case, the au...

Fundamental rights » The Ministry of Justice prepares the fundamental provisions relating to the Constitution and the public administration. These include the laws regulating the competency of the President of the Republic, the Parliament and the ...

Linguistic rights The Ministry of Justice is responsible for promoting the realisation of linguistic rights by monitoring the implementation and application of the Language Act and by issuing recommendations. The Unit for Democracy, Language Affai...

Instructions for law drafting The Government applies instructions and recommendations, which aim at harmonising law drafting practices in different Ministries and ensuring that quality requirements for legislation are met. The following instructio...

Finnish and Swedish Linguistic rights are based on section 17 of the Constitution . The Language Act contains more detailed provisions on the linguistic rights laid down in the Constitution, and it applies to the Finnish and Swedish languages. Eve...

Policy of the Ministry of Justice for International and EU Activities The main responsibility of the Ministry of Justice is to ensure the operation of the rule of law. The Ministry’s international and EU activities support the achievement of its i...

Recognition And Enforcement Of Decisions On Child Custody And Right Of Access The enforcement of a decision on child custody and/or right of access in a foreign country requires usually the existence of an international treaty. If a decision canno...

Family Law Matters This section contains information on the international family law matters for which the Ministry of Justice is responsible in the capacity of the Central Authority under different international treaties. Such matters are, for ex...

In accordance with the Government Programme of Prime Minister Sanna Marin, an act on a transparency register will be enacted in Finland on the basis of parliamentary preparation and in consultation with civil society. The purpose of the act is to improve the transparency of decision-making and, by doing this, to prevent undue influence and reinforce public confidence.

Management Support and Core Services The Management Support and Core Services is responsible for developing the strategic preparation carried out by the Ministry’s senior management and for developing law drafting within the government. The Manage...

Organising and securing the exercise of rights of access under the hague convention on international child abduction A child has the right to keep in touch and spend time with the parent with whom he or she does not reside also when the parent res...

The project providing Whistleblower Act (1171/2022) training aims to increase awareness of this Act, which will transpose the Whistleblower Directive (2019/1937/EU) into national legislation, among private and public sector organisations and among employees and citizens. The project will disseminate information through communications and training.

Department for Democracy and Public Law The Department for Democracy and Public Law is responsible for tasks related to fundamental rights policy, legislation in the field of public law, and implementation of electoral and other participatory righ...

Criminal law Criminal law is the body of law that regulates questions related to criminal liability. Crime and punishment are the basic concepts of criminal law. A crime is an act or a failure to act that has been criminalised under the law. By cr...

The Ministry of Justice has appointed a cooperation group for the development of law drafting for the term from 15 October 2019 to 30 September 2023.

Taking of evidence Taking of evidence through international legal assistance is required when a witness to be heard or a document to be used as evidence in judicial proceedings is located abroad. As a rule, courts have three options if they wish t...

Transfer of Sentenced Persons General The purpose of transferring sentenced persons to their home countries is advancing their rehabilitation into society. Accordingly, a sentenced person is offered a possibility to continue serving his sentence i...

In accordance with the programme of Prime Minister Sanna Marin’s Government, the Government will draw up a revised Strategy for the National Languages of Finland to ensure that everyone has the right to receive services in the national languages and to improve the language climate. This project is aimed at improving the language climate.

International child abduction A case usually concerns international child abduction if the following criteria are met: A child is taken to or retained in a foreign country without the consent of the person who has custody of the child , the child ...

Respective responsibilities of joint controllers When the Ministry of Justice processes personal data in the Government's shared information systems, the Ministry of Justice and the Prime Minister's Office are joint controllers. The Ministry of Ju...

Female genital mutilation will be more explicitly criminalised in the Criminal Code. Taking a minor girl abroad to undergo female genital mutilation will also be criminalised. In the same context, Chapter 21, section 4 of the Criminal Code (infanticide) will be repealed as unnecessary.

Crime and punishment The Ministry of Justice is responsible for drafting the Criminal Code and the legislation concerning the enforcement of punishments. The Ministry steers the enforcement of punishments, is responsible for developing the prosecu...

International Recovery Of Maintenance The EU legislation and several international treaties binding on Finland contain provisions on the international aspects of maintenance obligations and payments. Within the framework of these arrangements, it ...

Service of Documents In connection with judicial proceedings, courts sometimes need to serve documents, such as summonses and invitations to appear in court, on persons residing or companies located in another country. When the service of document...

The aim of the working group is to propose legislative amendments required for the independence of the judiciary, in particular by ensuring constitutional guarantees for the independence of the judiciary. The working group is set up by a working group appointed by the Ministry of Justice in 2023 to examine the development of the judicial system and operates in connection with it.

International Legal Assistance These pages contain information on international legal assistance in all its aspects, the relevant legislation and treaties and their ratification as well as links, addresses and instructions. This is only a general ...

Rights of the Sámi people Ministry of Justice safeguards the rights of the Sámi people The Ministry of Justice supports the development of Sámi cultural autonomy and coordinates the handling of Sámi rights across the ministries. The Ministry of Ju...

Right of initiative The Constitution lays down provisions on the right of individuals to participate in and influence the development of society and their living conditions. Pursuant to the Constitution, the public authorities shall promote the op...

Daily life The Ministry of Justice prepares the central legislation concerning the legal position of individuals and communities. For instance family and inheritance law, contract law, law of damages, consumer protection and company law belong to ...

Mutual Legal Assistance Whenever evidence is available in a foreign country or a party to criminal proceedings or witness is located there, mutual legal assistance is required. The most important categories of mutual legal assistance are procuring...

Cooperative working group for improving law drafting The cooperative working group for improving law drafting continues cross-administrative cooperation between Ministries to develop law drafting. The working group monitors the implementation of t...

Rights of the Sámi people Ministry of Justice safeguards the rights of the Sámi people The Ministry of Justice supports the development of Sámi cultural autonomy and coordinates the handling of Sámi rights across the ministries. The Ministry of Ju...

Departments and units There are four departments at the Ministry of Justice: Department for Democracy and Public Law, Department for Administration and Oversight, Department for Criminal Policy and Criminal Law, and Department for Private Law and ...

Finland – a state governed by the rule of law Finnish democracy is built on the rule of law. The rule of law and respect for fundamental rights are key principles enshrined in the Constitution of Finland. Finland is also committed to these princip...

Constitution In Finland the Constitution is the basis of all legislation and exercise of government power. It details the fundamental rules, values and principles of Finnish democracy. The Constitution specifies the foundations of the relationship...

OM028:00/2015 Development This can only be partial information. If you want all project information, please open the page in Finnish or Swedish. Basic information Completed Project number OM028:00/2015 Case numbers OM 24/021/2015, VN/868/2018 , VN...

The aim of the Well Planned project is to combat structural discrimination and racism in Finland by boosting practical and professional skills of equality planning. The project is co-funded by the European Union’s Citizens, Equality, Rights and Values programme (CERV).

The rule of law and legal protection Ministry of Justice’s main responsibility is to ensure the operation of the rule of law in Finland. The Ministry drafts also the provisions which aim to ensure fair trials and good governance. The Ministry also...

Equality and non-discrimination Equality is a fundamental right, and guaranteeing equality plays a key role in the implementation of fundamental and human rights. Under the Constitution, everyone is equal before the law, and no one shall, without ...

Accessibility statement for the website of the Ministry of Justice, oikeusministerio.fi The Act on the Provision of Digital Services applies to the website of the Ministry of Justice. Under the Act, public online services must be accessible, which...

Elections and voting The Ministry of Justice is the highest election authority in Finland. The Ministry bears the overall responsibility for conducting general elections, coordinates the preparatory work for elections, and provides guidance to oth...

Department for Criminal Policy and Criminal Law The Department for Criminal Policy and Criminal Law is responsible for planning and developing criminal policy, crime prevention and the criminal sanctions system. The Department drafts legislation i...

Impact assessment in law drafting Impact assessments support decision-making by producing as reliable assessments as possible of the essential impacts of law proposals. Impact assessments are an integral part of the ministries’ law drafting proces...

International cooperation The Ministry of Justice aims to promote a stable rule of law in Finland and especially in its neighbouring areas. International cooperation seeks to reinforce cross-border legal protection, and it also brings new angles t...

Processing of personal data in the services of the Ministry of Justice The Ministry of Justice processes personal data in order to comply with a legal obligation or, in certain situations, to perform a task carried out in the public interest or ba...

Democracy and voting Under the Constitution, the powers of the State in Finland are vested in the people, who are represented by the Parliament. Democracy entails the right of the individual to participate in and influence the development of socie...

Criminal policy In its widest sense, criminal policy refers to all actions that have an effect on criminality. Criminal policy includes, for example, decision-making concerning which acts constitute punishable offences, what kind of punishments ar...

About the website The website of the Ministry of Justice, www.ministryofjustice.fi, provides information on, i.a., the Ministry, its work and duties and on ongoing legislation and development projects at the Ministry. Finnish and Swedish pages are...