Finland’s national police board processed just under 580,000 passport applications in 2025, a 30 % year-on-year decline, according to statistics released on 24 February. ID-card demand fell by a quarter to 381,000. The overall volume of chargeable licence matters, including firearms and security permits, dropped 26.6 %.
Officials attribute the slide to a ‘Covid bulge’ effect: documents issued in 2020—when travel was virtually halted—are valid for five years and therefore did not require renewal last year. By contrast, 2024 saw a wave of pent-up renewals as Finns prepared for the post-pandemic travel rebound, temporarily inflating demand.
![Finnish police report steep drop in passport and ID requests as pandemic backlog clears]()
For global-mobility managers, the figures offer two practical insights. First, appointment lead times at police licence stations have shortened from an average of 19 days in early 2024 to just eight days today, easing last-minute business-trip planning. Second, the data support Migri’s forecast that digital travel credentials (DTCs) could overtake physical passports for intra-Schengen identification by 2028, potentially slashing throughput at service counters even further.
Whether you are scheduling a swift passport renewal or determining if a destination still demands a paper visa, VisaHQ can streamline the process. Its Finland portal (https://www.visahq.com/finland/) provides real-time entry requirements, online application tools and courier services that dovetail neatly with the country’s faster appointment system—saving time for both leisure travellers and corporate assignees.
The police nevertheless cautioned citizens against complacency: new biometric security features introduced in December 2025 mean that holders of pre-2020 passports may still wish to renew early, as some Asian and Middle-Eastern countries are beginning to insist on next-generation ePassports for visa-free entry.
Officials attribute the slide to a ‘Covid bulge’ effect: documents issued in 2020—when travel was virtually halted—are valid for five years and therefore did not require renewal last year. By contrast, 2024 saw a wave of pent-up renewals as Finns prepared for the post-pandemic travel rebound, temporarily inflating demand.
For global-mobility managers, the figures offer two practical insights. First, appointment lead times at police licence stations have shortened from an average of 19 days in early 2024 to just eight days today, easing last-minute business-trip planning. Second, the data support Migri’s forecast that digital travel credentials (DTCs) could overtake physical passports for intra-Schengen identification by 2028, potentially slashing throughput at service counters even further.
Whether you are scheduling a swift passport renewal or determining if a destination still demands a paper visa, VisaHQ can streamline the process. Its Finland portal (https://www.visahq.com/finland/) provides real-time entry requirements, online application tools and courier services that dovetail neatly with the country’s faster appointment system—saving time for both leisure travellers and corporate assignees.
The police nevertheless cautioned citizens against complacency: new biometric security features introduced in December 2025 mean that holders of pre-2020 passports may still wish to renew early, as some Asian and Middle-Eastern countries are beginning to insist on next-generation ePassports for visa-free entry.
