General Information on how to start a business with the Finnish Trade Register
Start-up notification online
File your start-up notification using our online filing service at ytj.fi, if possible. Please note that the service is available in Finnish and Swedish.
The following company types can file a start-up notification online:
- Housing company
- Limited liability company
- Mutual real estate limited company
- Private trader
- Public limited company
You can file notifications in the online service at ytj.fi if you meet all the following requirements:
- You are aged 18 or over.
- You have a Finnish personal identity code.
- You have personal internet banking codes, a mobile certificate or a certificate card.
Start-up notification using paper forms
File your start-upt notification using paper forms if online filing is not possible.
Notifications to the Trade Register have to be filed either in Finnish or in Swedish on official start-up notification forms. All forms are available in Finnish, Swedish and in English.
Please note: Fill in the forms either in Finnish or in Swedish. If you are using a set-up package in English for limited liability companies, fill in the forms in English. Read more: Set-up package in English
Using the same forms, you can also report a business to registers kept by the Tax Administration, which are the VAT Register, the Prepayment Register, the Employer Register, and the register of bodies liable for tax on insurance premiums. Read more about these notifications on the Tax Administration web site.Avautuu uuteen välilehteen
The forms include a basic section jointly used by both the Finnish Patent and Registration Office (PRH) and the Tax Administration, and a section only used by the Tax Administration. There are also appendix forms, specific for each type of business, for the use of the Trade Register. The details you write in the section used by the Tax Administration are not public, and they are not disclosed to third parties. The basic section and the Trade Register’s appendix forms are public documents as soon as they arrive at the authorities in question.
Instructions in English on how to fill in the basic section are available at the Business Information System website www.ytj.fiAvautuu uuteen välilehteen, whereas instructions on filling in the Trade Register’s appendix forms are printed on the forms themselves. Please enclose all required documents relating to the founding of the business.
You can file the start-up notification:
- by sending it by mail to
PRH - Tax Administration
Business Information System
P.O. Box 2000
FI-00231 Helsinki
Finland
by bringing it in person to the PRH’s Customer Service point.
Handling fee
The amount of the fee depends on the type of notification.
If you file online, you pay the handling fee in our online filing service.
If you file your start-up notification using paper forms, the handling fee must be paid in advance. It can be paid at an online bank, by using a payment ATM or over the counter at a bank. The receipt must be enclosed with the form. For further details, please read our payment instructions.
When the notification is delivered in person to the PRH customer service point in Helsinki, the fee can also be paid by card. See the payment methods and contact details of the service point. Please note that the fees cannot be paid to the tax offices.
Processing times
Monitor the processing status of your Trade Register notification in the information service Virre.Avautuu uuteen välilehteen
Check the the arrival dates of the notifications that are currently being processed in the Finnish Trade Register.
Business Identity Code (Business ID, "Y-tunnus ")
A Business ID (“
You can check any Business ID in the Company and organisation search at ytj.fi(please enter the company name as search key) approximately two working days after you have submitted the notification or posted it. Go to the Company and organisation search at ytj.fi.Avautuu uuteen välilehteen
Trade Register extract
As soon as the start-up notification has been entered in the Trade Register, the person or business who filed the notification receives a Trade Register extract free of charge. The extract contains the details entered in the Trade Register. The extract is usually sent by mail.
If the start-up notification has been filed by an organisation or changes have been made to the articles of partnership, articles of association or the by-laws of an organisation, a copy of these documents will also be sent to the customer along with the Trade Register extract.
You can also download a Trade Register extract free of charge in our Virre Information Service.Avautuu uuteen välilehteen
Business licences
For more information on licensed businesses and those subject to notification, please visit the web site Suomi.fiAvautuu uuteen välilehteen.
Anyone who runs a licensed business, either as a private trader or as an organisation, has to report a granted business licence for entry into the Trade Register. If no licence has been granted by the time of filing the start-up notification, it can be reported later by filing a notification of changes. Please send a copy of the granted licence along with the notification.