The Finnish Ministry of the Interior is moving forward with the development of a citizenship test which will mainly consist of multiple-choice and true-or-false questions. Originally a personal interview was going to be part of the process but those plans have mostly been dropped.
Published: 09/07/25 | 12:09
According to a draft bill the test will be offered digitally and available in Finland’s two official languages which are Finnish and Swedish. Additionally, applicants will be required to pay a fee to take the exam.
Ulla Vainikka, who is a specialist in the ministry’s immigration unit stated that there are currently no intentions to produce new learning materials for the exam and instead the test will draw from existing educational resources. One option under consideration is the use of multilingual social orientation materials that municipalities and employment offices have been obligated to provide to some immigrants since the start of this year.
These social orientation courses cover a wide range of topics such as rules of the workplace from both employer and employee viewpoints, the basics of Finland’s legal system and general child-rearing practices in the country.
An early ministry report released in February examined the pros and cons of different topics that could be included. Vainikka confirmed that the subject areas have remained mostly the same since then as the test will likely assess knowledge in areas such as Finnish society and laws, national history, cultural norms, basic and human rights, national values, public safety and digital competencies.
The idea of including a personal interview to evaluate an applicant’s views on values and security was considered but seems unlikely to be implemented at least not for every applicant.
Vainikka acknowledged that digital access could be an issue saying “We’ll also need to consider that some applicants may not be able to take the test online.”
The interior ministry is currently drafting legislation that will outline who is responsible for designing and administering the test. The selected body must have the necessary expertise to develop a fair and effective exam and ensure that the language proficiency required does not surpass what is already needed for citizenship.
The proposed legislation is expected to be completed by the end of the year. Afterwards it will be opened for public feedback and then submitted to Parliament for approval.
This citizenship test is just one component of the broader reform of Finland’s Citizenship Act initiated by Prime Minister Petteri Orpo’s government. The reform’s goal is to tighten requirements for citizenship including stricter rules around residency periods, income levels and personal conduct which mean applicants must maintain a clean record after arriving in Finland.
