Business travellers and expatriates renewing Finnish travel documents will soon have to use a fully digital authorisation system. In press releases on 5–6 December, and confirmed by a 9 December VisaHQ briefing, the Finnish Police announced that paper powers-of-attorney will no longer be accepted when collecting newly issued passports or national ID cards. From 1 January 2026 documents will be released only to: (1) the holder, (2) a legal guardian, or (3) a representative designated electronically at the time of application.
The reform is driven by updated EU technical specifications for second-generation biometric documents, which require an auditable digital chain of custody. Applicants can now grant – and revoke – an e-mandate directly in the police e-service portal while fingerprints are taken, removing a long-standing loophole that allowed forged paper authorisations to circulate.
For mobility programme managers the change means adapting internal document-pickup procedures. Multinational firms that routinely send assistants or relocation agents to collect bundles of passports must ensure those representatives are named in the e-portal before an application is submitted. Failure to do so will force the employee to appear in person, potentially delaying travel.
![Finnish Police to scrap paper powers-of-attorney for passport and ID collection from 1 January 2026]()
VisaHQ, a global visa and passport facilitation service, can streamline this new process for corporate mobility teams and individual travellers alike. Through its Finland resource centre (https://www.visahq.com/finland/) the company offers guidance on setting up e-mandates in the police portal and can monitor applications to ensure each designated representative is correctly recorded, reducing the risk of last-minute airport surprises.
The police will run an information campaign throughout 2025. During the transition period, paper authorisations will continue to be honoured for documents applied for before 31 December 2025, but staff at passport desks have been told to advise customers of the new policy. Finnish missions abroad will implement the same rules on the same timetable, ensuring global consistency.
Although the move adds an extra digital step, authorities stress that it will speed up counter service because officers no longer need to verify signatures against registries. Travellers are advised to log in to the police portal and check that the correct representative is listed well before planning international trips in early 2026.
The reform is driven by updated EU technical specifications for second-generation biometric documents, which require an auditable digital chain of custody. Applicants can now grant – and revoke – an e-mandate directly in the police e-service portal while fingerprints are taken, removing a long-standing loophole that allowed forged paper authorisations to circulate.
For mobility programme managers the change means adapting internal document-pickup procedures. Multinational firms that routinely send assistants or relocation agents to collect bundles of passports must ensure those representatives are named in the e-portal before an application is submitted. Failure to do so will force the employee to appear in person, potentially delaying travel.
VisaHQ, a global visa and passport facilitation service, can streamline this new process for corporate mobility teams and individual travellers alike. Through its Finland resource centre (https://www.visahq.com/finland/) the company offers guidance on setting up e-mandates in the police portal and can monitor applications to ensure each designated representative is correctly recorded, reducing the risk of last-minute airport surprises.
The police will run an information campaign throughout 2025. During the transition period, paper authorisations will continue to be honoured for documents applied for before 31 December 2025, but staff at passport desks have been told to advise customers of the new policy. Finnish missions abroad will implement the same rules on the same timetable, ensuring global consistency.
Although the move adds an extra digital step, authorities stress that it will speed up counter service because officers no longer need to verify signatures against registries. Travellers are advised to log in to the police portal and check that the correct representative is listed well before planning international trips in early 2026.
