Finnish citizens' passport and other travel documents

Passports and identity cards are travel documents. In Finland they are applied from the Police(Link to another website.). A driving licence is not a travel document or an official identity card. When you need a passport abroad, you must apply for it in the Finnish mission in the country where you are staying. 

There is free movement of people between Finland, Sweden, Norway, Denmark and Iceland. As a Nordic citizen, you do not need a travel document when you are travelling in the other Nordic countries.(Link to another website.) (Opens New Window) However, if necessary, you must be able to prove your identity.

Border controls have been abolished between the Schengen countries. When you travel in the Schengen area, you must still hold an approved and valid travel document.

The Schengen States: Austria, Belgium, Czech Republic, Denmark, Estonia, Finland, France, Germany, Greece, Hungary, Iceland, Italy, Latvia, Liechtenstein, Lithuania, Luxembourg, Malta, Netherlands, Norway, Poland, Portugal, Slovakia, Slovenia, Spain, Sweden and Switzerland.

In some countries, Finnish citizens are required to present both a passport and a visa. You can ask about it from the authorities of the country of destination, for example from the country’s mission nearest to you.

• Diplomatic representation of foreign states in Finland / Helsinki Diplomatic List

Passport

As a Finnish citizen, you can use your passport as a travel document to all countries. The passport serves as proof of your identity, too.

 In the EU countries, a passport is a valid travel document until its date of expiry. As for other countries, you should check the passport's required validity after travel (usually 3 or 6 months) at the mission of the country of destination.

In Finland, you can apply for a passport by visiting any local police authority or using the online service of the Police. When abroad, you must apply for a new passport from the Finnish mission in the country where you are staying. In case there is not a Finnish mission, you can apply for an Emergency Travel Document from some other EU country mission.

• Online services of the Police(Link to another website.) (Opens New Window)

 Please, bear in mind the following:

• Passports is issued for a maximum of five (5) years.
• Only one person's data is included in a passport.
• Children must have their own passport.

Identity card

Finnish citizens travelling to the EU countries and to certain other European countries can use an identity card as their travel document instead of a passport.

In Finland an identity card is applied for from the Police, and abroad from Finnish missions that issue passports

An identity card is valid for five (5) years.

How to use the identity card

• An identity card is a document that you can use to prove your identity in different kinds of public services. It can also be used for travel to a limited extent, and it has a chip that allows you to security log into public services. 
• Finnish citizens travelling to the EU countries and to certain other European countries can use a standard identity card as their travel document instead of a passport.

• The Police: Applying for an identity (Link to another website.)
• The Police: How to use an identity card(Link to another website.)