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Finland's FDI regime is administered entirely by the Ministry of Economic Affairs and Employment (TEM), which serves both as screening authority under domestic law and as the Finnish national contact point under EU Regulation 2019/452. The structure has four operative pillars after the 2020 reform:
1. Mandatory notification — defence, dual-use, security. A non-EU/EEA acquirer (or an EU/EEA entity in which a foreign person holds ≥10% of voting rights or comparable influence) must apply for prior confirmation from TEM before acquiring at least 10%, one-third, or 50% of voting rights, or comparable actual influence, in a Finnish company that: - is part of the Finnish defence-equipment industry under the Act on the Export of Defence Materiel; or - produces or supplies dual-use goods covered by EU Regulation 2021/821; or - produces or supplies products or services critical to the statutory duties of Finnish authorities that are essential to the security of society (a category that captures e.g. critical IT infrastructure, energy security, and certain telecoms/software). 2. Voluntary notification — functions vital to society. For any other Finnish company "considered to be critical from the viewpoint of securing functions vital to society" (huoltovarmuus + yhteiskunnan elintärkeät toiminnot), a non-EU/EEA acquirer of ≥10% / 1/3 / 50% of voting rights may seek confirmation voluntarily. TEM publishes guidance on what falls in this perimeter (energy, finance, health, food/water supply, logistics, communications). The voluntary regime grants legal certainty: a confirmed transaction cannot be re-opened. 3. TEM decision and Government referral. TEM must confirm the transaction unless it would "endanger a key national interest" (defined as military national defence, functions vital to society, national security and foreign-and-security-policy objectives, and public order/security under TFEU Articles 52 and 65, where there is a "genuine and sufficiently serious threat to a fundamental interest of society"). If endangerment is found, TEM refers the matter to a plenary session of the Government (Valtioneuvoston yleisistunto), which decides whether to prohibit, condition, or approve. 4. Forced-divestment sanction. Where confirmation is refused or conditions are breached, the foreign owner must, within a period set by the decision, dispose of the shares in the Finnish entity. For limited-liability targets the obligation is enforceable directly under the Act.
The 2020 amendment (Act 682/2020) bolted Finland into the EU FDI cooperation mechanism: TEM is the contact point for inbound opinions from other Member States and the Commission, and Finland must respect the 35-working-day timeline for cooperation comments.
armoured-vehicle and missile-system producer; minority Norwegian Kongsberg ownership), Nammo Lapua (ammunition), and Sako (small arms) sit squarely in the mandatory-notification perimeter. Cross-border M&A in Finnish defence has been quiet since 2020.
Kemi mine — the only EU-domestic chromium source), Terrafame (cobalt-nickel-zinc multi-metal mine, 50% state-owned), and Talvivaara legacy assets fall under the "functions vital to society" voluntary regime, and any non-EU acquisition with national-security read-across (Russian, Chinese, or otherwise) would be expected to trigger TEM consultation.
caught by both the dual-use limb (Reg 2021/821 cryptographic goods) and the security-of-society limb (national 5G perimeter).
Golden Power, and Denmark's Investeringsscreeningsloven — all of which screen intra-EU FDI as well — Finland follows the DE / FR / NL / ES / CZ pattern of screening only non-EU/EEA acquirers for the mandatory regime. This leaves intra-EU consolidation of Finnish targets relatively friction-free, a deliberate political choice by the Sanna Marin government to preserve Nordic-EU deal flow.
widen scope and tighten timelines from 2026 onward — likely amendments hook for this action.
detailed FDI-screening statistics analogous to Sweden's ISP).
DLA Piper will widen the mandatory perimeter to include critical raw materials extraction, energy-grid operators, and AI/quantum research entities currently sitting only in the voluntary regime.
agreement reached December 2025, already in the register) which is expected to mandate harmonised triggers across member states.
Suomen Huoltovarmuusneuvottelukunta strategic-stockpiling reform will pull additional sectors into the security-of-society limb.