Money collection always requires either a money collection permit or a small-scale money collection notice. So, if you plan to solicit gratuitous donations from the public, apply for a permit for the activity or file a small-scale money collection notice with the police. It is sufficient to make a small-scale money collection declaration if the collection lasts for a maximum of 3 months and the intention is to collect a maximum of EUR 10,000.

Small collections cannot take place more than twice in any one calendar year. If you are planning on an ongoing money collection, apply for a permit for the activity.

More information on money collection and money collection permits and other frequently asked questions in the Money collection Permits section  Frequently asked questions about money collections - Police (poliisi.fi)

Send a small-scale collection notice to a police department. Do not send a notice to the Gambling Administration state post. Preferably use e-mail or the Police’s online services. You can also send the notice by mail. However, please note that the five working day period for processing a small-scale money collection report does not start to run until the notice has been received by the police.

Contact information for the police departments

As accurately and practically as possible. The notification must indicate what the funds are actually used for. If the purpose is not clearly and concretely described, it is impossible to assess the legality of the purpose of collection.

There are no mandatory attachments, but you can use a separate attachment to indicate, for example, the details of the persons exercising decision-making power in money collection. Provide information on all people who decide on matters related to small-scale money collection.

The police station needs personal details in order to run background checks on the individuals identified as being involved in money collection and to assess their trustworthiness. This cannot be done without personal identity codes. You need to supply the names and personal identity codes of all the individuals who will be in charge of running money collection campaigns in your organisation. 

The easiest and safest way to supply the information to the National Police Board is via the Police’s online services, or you can use the Police’s secure email address at https://securemail.poliisi.fi/.
 

Small-scale money collections can be run by

• associations entered into the Finnish Register of Associations,
• foundations entered into the Finnish Register of Foundations,
• political parties entered into the Finnish Register of Political Parties,
• religious communities entered into the Finnish Register of Religious Communities,
• the Finnish Red Cross and local and regional units of the Finnish Red Cross,
• student unions and student nations within the meaning of the Finnish Universities Act,
• student bodies within the meaning of the Finnish Universities of Applied Sciences Act,
• parish unions and independent parishes of the Evangelical Lutheran Church of Finland,
• parishes of the Orthodox Church of Finland, and
• unregistered groups of at least three natural persons (see below for more information).

The list is exhaustive, and there are no exceptions. In other words, parties other than those listed above cannot run small-scale money collections in any circumstances.

Small-scale money collections can be run by unregistered groups consisting of at least three natural persons. At least one of the members of the group must be an adult, i.e. at least 18 years of age, and of full legal capacity (without a legal guardian). The other two members must be at least 15 years of age. All members of the group must be permanent residents of Finland.

You can, but there are certain restrictions and conditions that you must consider. For example, you cannot run a money collection on your own; small-scale money collections can only be run by groups of at least three individuals. There are also certain restrictions on the causes for which money can be raised. 

The local police department must be notified of all small-scale money collections. The money collection can be launched as soon as the police has issued a small-scale money collection number. Small-scale money collection notices are processed within five working days of receipt.
The small-scale money collection number must be quoted in all appeals for donations. 

Organisers of small-scale money collections have an obligation to keep track of the money that they raise and review the progress of their campaign at regular intervals. Small-scale money collections must be stopped immediately once the EUR 10,000 ceiling is reached. The police must be notified if a money collection is ended prematurely.

Organisers of small-scale money collections have an obligation to submit accounts of their proceeds. Accounts of small-scale money collections must be submitted to the local police within two months of the end of each money collection. Accounts can also be submitted earlier, as soon as the money collection has ended. Organisers should strive to submit their accounts as soon as possible, when the details are still fresh in their memory.

The local police must also be notified once the funds raised have been used. The notice can be included in the accounts or given separately. A separate notice must be given if the funds have not yet been used when the accounts are submitted.
 

Money collection is a means to raise money for non-profit causes, and the same basic rule also applies to small-scale money collections. In most cases, the funds raised through small-scale money collections are used to promote a non-profit cause.

However, small-scale money collections can also be run for other than non-profit purposes. Small-scale money collections provide a way to, for example, help individuals and families in need. Small-scale money collections can also be run to collect donations to fund, among other things, events and activities of neighbourhood associations and preservation societies.

Small-scale money collections cannot be used as a way to promote business or to increase the assets of legal persons, such as limited companies and associations.
 

You cannot. Proceeds from small-scale money collection campaigns can only be deposited in the bank account(s) informed to the police department. Please identify all the bank accounts that you intend to use for the small-scale money collection, i.e. the accounts into which you will ask the public to pay money, in your notice.

Yes. A collection account must always be used when organizing both money collections and small-scale money collections. This means that the collection funds must be credited to the collection account in one way or another before, for example, an account is made of the collection.

However, this requirement does not mean that various payment intermediation services or, for example, online crowdfunding platforms cannot also be used to organize collections. Again, donations must still be credited to the collection account through payment systems before final use.
 

The money collection account must be in a Finnish deposit bank or in a branch of a state-licensed deposit bank in Finland operating in the European Economic Area. In other words, only a bank account opened with a deposit bank can be accepted as a money collection account.

Thus, for example, a mere payment intermediation service cannot be designated as a money collection account, as otherwise the condition laid down by law that the account must be an explicitly a deposit bank account is not met.
 

There is no limit to the number of money collection accounts that can be used. You can therefore list as many bank accounts as you wish. However, your proceeds from money collection must always be kept separate from your other funds. Permit holders are required to report on the use of funds raised to the competent permit authority. This is why it is usually best to have a separate account or accounts for money collection purposes.

Try to choose your money collection account(s) so as to make it as easy as possible for yourself to keep track of the funds raised and report them. If you are using an account that is also used for other purposes, make sure that you are able to tell your money collection proceeds apart from other transactions by means of, for example, reference numbers. Only the bank account(s) specified in your permit can be used to deposit proceeds from money collection campaigns.
 

Yes. Small-scale money collections can also be run for these purposes. The normal rules of small-scale money collections apply; please follow the instructions provided on this website.

No, you cannot. Open a separate account in the bank for the small-scale money collection.

Yes, in principle, but a clear distinction must be made between the two. The maximum amount of money that can be raised through each small-scale money collection is EUR 10,000, and the duration of each campaign is limited to three months. 

It is important to note that small-scale money collections cannot be used as a way to increase the assets of legal persons. This restriction is designed to prevent parties that collect donations on an ongoing basis from, for example, circumventing the rules on administrative costs that apply to money collection permits.

Small-scale money collections must be stopped immediately once the EUR 10,000 ceiling is reached, and the police must be notified if a money collection is ended prematurely. All the funds raised must be used for the primary purpose stated in the small-scale money collection notice or, if this is not possible, for the secondary purpose. 

In other words, any funds raised above the EUR 10,000 ceiling do not need to be returned to donors. However, the excess proceeds cannot be spent arbitrarily but must be used to promote the cause of the campaign as intended by the donors.
 

Send a statement to the police department that approved the small-scale collection. Explain the use of funds as accurately as possible and taken to a practical level. The statement must show how the funds raised have actually been used. Also include a statement of account or other reliable statement of the use of the funds.

If parts of the funds are not used at the time of the settlement, make a final statement on the use of the funds later.