Police of Finland

The police are a professional organisation with more than 10,000 employees carrying out a wide variety of duties all around Finland. The tasks of the police include upholding social order and the judicial system, safeguarding law and order, preventing and investigating crime and referring investigated offences to a prosecutor for consideration of charges. The police also manage several security-related licensing administration duties.

The police are a highly respected actor in our society. Citizens trust the police, as has been found in both Finnish and international surveys. The Finnish police are also popular in the social media.

Police operations are directed and guided by the National Police Board, under which there are local police units (11 police departments) and national units (the National Bureau of Investigation, the Finnish Security Intelligence Service and the Police University College).

The police perform a wide variety of duties, and in addition to actual police work there are many diverse and challenging jobs for civilian personnel within police administration. About 80% of the personnel of the police departments are police officers, and more than half of the personnel of the National Bureau of Investigation and the Finnish Security Intelligence Service are police officers. By contrast, the majority of the personnel of the Police University College and the National Police Board are civilians.