On 22 June, the Finnish Parliament approved strict amendments to the family reunification legislation. The Finnish Immigration Service now requires that asylum recipients and quota refugees prove they have a net income of 2,600 euros per month, for example, if they wish to have a spouse and two children join them in Finland. This net income requirement includes state benefits granted for children and housing, but precludes income support. The new income requirement also applies to refugee children who have arrived in Finland without a guardian.

University of Eastern Finland researcher Anna-Maria Tapaninen has strongly criticised the recent parliamentary decision to support the government’s tougher legislation on foreigners in Finland. She says previous amendments to Finland’s Aliens Act - 549/2010 and 449/2012 - were already strict, and that the new changes were unnecessary and panic-induced.

The income requirement is however not enforced for asylum recipients whose family members submit their family reunification applications within three months of the asylum decision. 

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