Finland

Penalties for drug offences in Finland, even for possession of small amounts, include heavy fines and jail terms of up to 10 years, and apply even when transiting through airports.

Up to 10 years imprisonment and heavy fines.

Verified Jul 24, 2026

Cannabis is illegal in Finland, and using it is itself a crime — not just selling or smuggling. Using any narcotic, or possessing or trying to obtain a small amount for your own use, is the offence of unlawful use of narcotics, punishable by a fine or up to six months in prison. Possession beyond that is a narcotics offence carrying a fine or up to two years, and aggravated cases carry one to ten years. Finland publishes no quantity threshold you can rely on to avoid arrest, and bringing cannabis or CBD products into the country is also illegal.

Unlawful use of narcotics (use, or possession/attempted acquisition of a small amount for own use): fine or imprisonment up to 6 months (Criminal Code ch. 50 § 2a). Narcotics offence (including possession, acquisition, import, sale, or cultivation for narcotic use): fine or imprisonment up to 2 years (ch. 50 § 1). Aggravated narcotics offence (very dangerous narcotic or large amount, among other grounds): imprisonment for at least 1 and at most 10 years (ch. 50 § 2). Prosecution or punishment may be waived in minor use cases or if the person enters approved treatment — discretionary, with no published quantity threshold (ch. 50 § 7). Driving with any narcotic active substance or metabolite in the blood is sentenced as driving while intoxicated unless it derives from a medicine the driver has the right to use (ch. 23 § 3).

Verified Aug 15, 2026

You may bring up to a 3-month personal supply of prescription medication into Finland with your prescription and a dated letter from your doctor; prescribed narcotics are limited to a 14-day supply and require a medical certificate.

Narcotics without proper documentation may be seized.

Verified Jul 24, 2026

Weapons and other dangerous articles cannot be brought into Finland without permission. Knuckledusters, flick knives, gas pistols, spring-loaded batons and concealed blades are classified as dangerous articles in Finland, and simply having one in your possession is a criminal offence. Competitive shooters and hunters are the narrow exception: apply for the necessary permits in your country of origin before you travel, and bring an invitation from the sporting event or hunt you are attending in Finland. Radar detectors are caught too — if you are found with one the police may fine you and confiscate the device, and it can affect your chances of qualifying for a visa.

Possession of a dangerous article — knuckleduster, flick knife, gas pistol, spring-loaded baton or concealed blade — is a criminal offence; the police page states no fine amount. For a radar detector, the police may fine you and confiscate the device, and it may affect your chances of qualifying for a visa.

Verified Sep 25, 2026

Declare EUR 10,000 or more (any currency) when traveling between Finland and a non-EU country; no declaration is needed to/from another EU country.

Failure to declare may result in seizure of funds.

Verified Jul 24, 2026

Finland gives you 16 liters of beer and 4 liters of still wine, plus EITHER 1 liter of spirits over 22% OR 2 liters of weaker drinks, splittable pro-rata. THE TRAP: if you live outside the EEA and arrive any way OTHER THAN BY AIR - a Tallinn or Stockholm ferry, or by road - you may bring in NO alcohol at all unless you are staying in Finland more than 72 hours. Once you land, supermarkets stop selling alcohol at 21:00 and cap out at 8% (fermented) or 5.5% (everything else); wine and spirits are Alko's monopoly, and you must be 20 for anything over 22%.

Above the allowance you must declare and pay tax and customs duty. Separately, strong alcoholic beverages over 22% brought from RUSSIA are outright PROHIBITED, including from tax-free shops - that is a ban, not a payable excess. Finnish Customs does not publish a monetary penalty figure on this page.

Verified Aug 30, 2026

Finland caps you at 10 millilitres of nicotine e-liquid — about one small bottle — and the cap is the same whether you arrive from inside or outside the EU. It must be for your own personal use: you may not bring nicotine liquid in for a family member or as a gift. Anyone under 18 may not import e-cigarettes or nicotine liquids at all, and even nicotine-free liquids and disposable devices filled with nicotine-free liquid are 18-plus. The devices themselves are usually not restricted and you can bring them with you.

Verified Sep 25, 2026

Flying into Finland from outside the EU, you can bring 200 cigarettes tax-free - or 50 cigars, 100 cigarillos (max 3 g each), or 250 g of roll-your-own, pipe or waterpipe tobacco, combinable up to 100% of one allowance. Critically, if the packs lack health warnings in FINNISH AND SWEDISH - which US-bought packs do - then 200 cigarettes is a hard ceiling you cannot exceed EVEN BY PAYING TAX. Personal use only, 18 or over; you may not bring it for family members or as a gift.

No fine is stated. Below the ceiling, exceeding the tax-free allowance simply means declaring the goods and paying import taxes - a TAX consequence, not a penalty. Above the Tobacco Act ceiling for packets without Finnish and Swedish health warnings, paying is not available at all: Finnish Customs states "You are not allowed to bring in any more products even if you were to pay tax."

Verified Aug 29, 2026

In Finland, cars and vans must use winter tyres (minimum 3.0mm tread) whenever weather or road conditions require during 1 November to 31 March, and the rule applies to foreign-registered vehicles too.

Fine for non-compliance.

Verified Jul 24, 2026

Headlights must always be on in Finland, even in daylight — a legal requirement for all vehicles.

Fine for non-compliance.

Verified Jul 24, 2026

The blood-alcohol limit for driving in Finland is 0.05%; over the limit you may be arrested.

Arrest for BAC above 0.05%.

Verified Jul 24, 2026

Under EU drone rules in Finland, operators of drones over 250 g or with a camera must register and in most cases pass an online exam before flying.

Unregistered operation of qualifying drones violates EU aviation regulation.

Verified Jul 24, 2026

Radio gear that is perfectly legal at home can be illegal to use in Finland because it sits on the wrong frequency. Traficom, the Finnish transport and communications regulator, names FRS and GMRS walkie-talkies, DECT cordless phones intended for the US market, 49 MHz and 72 MHz radio-controlled cars, drones and toys, and 1.2 GHz wireless cameras as equipment you cannot use in Finland. Some foreign online stores sell models with excessive radiated power, and importing, reselling and using such devices is prohibited in Finland — Traficom supervises frequency use and investigates interference. Everyday kit is fine without a licence, including WLAN routers, mobile phones, tablets, 2.4 GHz headphones, 446 MHz PMR446 radios and 433 MHz car key fobs; maritime VHF, VHF/UHF radiotelephones and FM transmitters do need a Traficom licence with an annual frequency fee.

Verified Sep 25, 2026

Being LGBTQ+ is fully legal in Finland and the law actively backs you up. Same-sex couples can marry, and the Non-Discrimination Act bans discrimination based on sexual orientation in both public and private settings - shops, hotels, restaurants, services and work. Refusing to serve you on that basis is a criminal offence, not just a civil wrong. You can take a complaint to the Non-Discrimination Ombudsman.

Penalties here fall on people who discriminate against you, not on you. Criminal Code 39/1889 ch.11 s.11: anyone who, in business, professional practice, service to the public, official duty, or when organising a public event, without acceptable grounds refuses to serve someone on generally applied terms, refuses them entry or removes them, or places them in a manifestly unequal position on grounds including sexual orientation, is punished by a fine or imprisonment up to 6 months. Ch.11 s.10 (public incitement against a group, sexual orientation included): fine or up to 2 years. Ch.47 s.3 (employment discrimination): fine or up to 6 months.

Verified Aug 31, 2026