25.5.2026 | Some 17,000 children and young people shared their views on issues such as safety and security, trust and wellbeing in a pilot project aimed at strengthening the inclusion of children and young people in society and taking into account their perspectives in preparation work at the state level.

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...

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...

Act on the Openness of Government Activities Brochure Which documents are governed by the Act? Public authorities whose documents are governed by the Act on the Openness of Government Activities include, for example state administrative authoritie...

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...

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...

The Government Programme states that preparation of a cross-administrative democracy programme shall be launched. The National Democracy Programme 2025 covers the numerous measures related to civil society and participation outlined in the Government Programme of Prime Minister Marin. It will function as an umbrella for democracy-related projects to be carried out by different ministries.

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...

International Legal Assistance In Criminal Matters International legal assistance in criminal matters encompasses cooperation between countries on account of crime. In a broad sense cooperation covers mutual legal assistance, extradition and trans...

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...

Legal protection The Ministry of Justice drafts the provisions which aim to ensure fair trials and good governance. The Ministry also prepares the laws relating to enforcement, bankruptcy and debt adjustment. The independent courts are responsible...

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...

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...

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 ...

Other languages People speaking some other language than Finnish or Swedish as their native language account for 4.5% of the total population of Finland. The largest language groups after Finnish and Swedish are Russian, Estonian, Arabian, Somali ...

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...

Criminal procedure The criminal procedure consists of several stages. If there is, on the basis of a report made to the police or otherwise, reason to suspect that an offence has been committed, the police or another criminal investigation authori...

Call for applications for organisations until 7 February 2025 A call for applications for organisations to become members of the Advisory Board for Ethnic Relations (ETNO) for the 2025–2029 term has ended. The member organisations for both the nat...

The Government Programme outlines the preparation of the CSO strategy and its implementation plan. The strategy was adopted as a government resolution in June 2024, and implementation will proceed as planned through legislative projects, reports and other development measures. Implementation will continue until April 2027.

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.