The act on the establishment of the criminal background of persons working with children came into force from the beginning of 2003.
The act being in force, a special extract can be issued from the criminal records: extract on criminal background.
MINISTRY OF JUSTICE INFORMS, December 2011:
The extract on criminal background, which is required of people working with children and can be obtained from the Legal Register Centre, becomes subject to a charge. From the beginning of the next year, the extract will be subject to a charge in accordance with the Act on Criteria for Charges Payable to the State, which means that the size of the charge corresponds to the actual costs incurred from issuing the extract. The charge will be 13.40 euros. An invoice will be sent separately.
From the beginning of the year 2012, an extract on criminal background is also required of students for on-the-job learning or training that is carried out with children. Students will obtain the extract free of charge.
The extract from the criminal records ordered by a private person for any other purpose, such as for a foreign work or residence permit, is already nowadays subject to a charge.
Further information:
Legal Register Centre, Customer Service tel. 029 56 65662
An extract on criminal background is only granted to the person concerned. The person cannot authorize e.g. his/her employer to order the extract.
The extract is merely intended to be presented to an employer or an approving authority for inspection. The employer or the authority must not gather or store the data of the extract on criminal background. The employer can only make a note in his documents of the extract having been presented and in this connection write down the identifying data of the extract, those being the name of the person in question and the date of the extract.
The Ministry of Labour has issued more detailed instructions on the employer's obligation to demand the extract on criminal background for inspection, as well as on other related matters. The instructions are available (in Finnish) on the web pages of the Ministry of Labour.
Ordering the extract
When ordering the extract, you must state for which employer and job you order it. If the applicant for a job, within the above-mentioned six months' period of validity, has to present his/her register data yet to another employer than for whom the extract was ordered, he/she can use the previously ordered extract. The procedure of checking the criminal background is not applied to employment relationships or civil service relationships that last the maximum period of three months.
The extract on criminal background is sent to that address which is valid in the population register.
Time of the delivery is about 7 working days. Read also page News.
The extract can be ordered with a free-form application in writing or by using the form or e-service designed for the purpose. The application can be sent by mail, telefax,e-mail or e-service. You can also fetch the extract personally from the Legal Register Centre, in which case you have to be prepared to prove your identity. The extract can not be ordered by phone. You had better sign the application. An application without signature sent by e-mail can be accepted if it contains the applicant's contact data and there is no reason to suspect its authenticity or integrity.
Address: Legal Register Centre, PL 157, 13101 Hämeenlinna
E-mail: oikeusrekisterikeskus(a)om.fi Use @ instead of (a) when sending
Fax: +358 29 56 65783
Information: from 9.00 to 16.15, tel. +358 29 56 65662
Contents of an Application
A free-form application must contain:
Data of the Extract
The employer or some authorities must demand the extract on criminal background for inspection if the duties essentially involve working with children on a permanent basis. Only the data in the criminal records that are considered to have special significance when a person works with children are entered in the extract on criminal background. Accordingly, the data regarding a decision on a person having been sentenced for any of the following offences are included in the extract:
1. Offences against children:
2. Sexual offences:
3. Violent offences:
4. Narcotics offences:
If a person has not committed any of the above offences, the extract on criminal background contains evidence of that. Accordingly, it does not appear in the extract on criminal background whether the criminal records contain data on other than the offences listed above.
The extract on criminal background must not be older than six months when presented to an employer or authorities.
Updated 18.1.2012