Summary of comments published on report discussing ban on real estate transactions – contributors agree with objectives

Summary of comments published on report discussing ban on real estate transactions - contributors agree with objectives

A working group appointed by Minister of Defence Antti Häkkänen proposed in its report that no permit to buy real estate should be granted to persons whose country of nationality has been found by the European Union to be in violation of the territorial integrity, sovereignty and independence of another country and whose country of nationality may be a threat to Finland's national security. Further provisions on such countries would be issued by government decree.

The Ministry of Defence compiled a summary of the comments received on the report discussing the ban on real estate transactions. In general, those who issued comments recognised well the objectives of the proposal and considered it important in the current security situation that there are provisions designed to protect Finland's national security. The Defence Command, the Finnish Security and Intelligence Service and the National Bureau of Investigation deemed that the proposal would have positive effects on national security.

Some of those who issued comments were concerned of the increasing use of dummy purchasers. During further drafting, the Ministry of Defence intends to examine more efficient ways to prevent the use of dummy purchasers. Issues of equal treatment and the proposal's potentially discriminative nature were also mentioned in the comments. However, contributors agreed that national security is a generally accepted reason for restricting fundamental rights.

"Our aim with this law amendment is to prevent hostile state actors from destabilising Finland by means of real estate transactions. The security authorities considered the project important. Besides this legislative package, we will revise our permit procedures against risks posed by completed real estate transactions. We will also address other gaps identified in the legislation concerning the supervision of real estate ownership," Minister of Defence Antti Häkkänen says.

The legislative proposal is scheduled to be submitted to Parliament in January 2025.

The summary of opinions is available in the Gateway to Information on Government Projects (in Finnish).

Inquiries: Kosti Honkanen, Senior Specialist for Legal Affairs, Chair of the legislative project, Ministry of Defence, tel. +359 295 140 607, kosti.honkanen(at)gov.fi, and Joonas Laito, Specialist, Vice-Chair, Ministry of Defence, tel. +358 295 140 071, joonas.laito(at)gov.fi

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