Licencing hours and extended licencing hours
As a rule, alcoholic beverages exceeding 2.8 percent can be served from 09:00 am to 01:30 am. Customers can consume alcoholic beverages for one hour after the licensing hours have ended. The licensed premises do not need to be closed when this period ends. However, alcoholic beverages must be collected.
The licensing authority may shorten a location’s licensing hours if, for example, the serving of alcohol causes disturbances in the immediate vicinity of the licenced premises or if public safety so requires.
The municipality has the right to prohibit the continued serving of alcoholic beverages or restrict it in a specific area if the safety of residents so requires. Please also note that, for example, a housing company or landlord may restrict the licensing hours.
Extension of licencing hour
You may continue serving alcohol until 03:00 am without a separate notification or application
- the eve of Independence Day
- New Year's Eve
- on the eve of May Day
- on Midsummer Eve.
A notification of extended licensing hours indoors must be submitted in the Alcohol Trade Register’s e-service by entering the desired licensing hours for each licensed area separately. You can submit a notification on the extension of licensing hours in a licensed premises until no later than 04:00 am. The change will take effect no earlier than three weeks after we have received your notification.
The extension of licensing hours for serving alcohol in outdoor areas requires a licence from the Finnish Supervisory Agency. Before granting an extension of licencing hours, we must, where necessary, provide local residents the opportunity to comment on the extension application and request a statement from the police and the health protection authority.
After 01.30, it is your responsibility to ensure that there is one security steward on the licensed premises for each 100 customers or part thereof. The task of the security steward is to enforce order and security at the licensed premises and in its immediate vicinity. Public order must be maintained until the consumption of alcoholic beverages ends.
With an application, serving of alcohol may begin at the earliest at 07:00 if the Finnish Supervisory Agency has granted a licence for serving alcohol in connection with breakfast at the licence holder’s accommodation.
Transitions to summer and winter time
Switching to summer time affects licensing hours if you have submitted a notification of extended licencing hours. On the night that clocks are turned to summer time, you must stop serving alcoholic beverages in accordance with your notification, but no later than 04:00 summer time, i.e. 03:00 winter time. After this, consumption of alcoholic beverages is permitted for one hour, i.e. no later than 05:00 summer time. Even so, you do not need to close the licensed premises.
On the night that clocks are switched to winter time, you can continue serving alcoholic beverages until 4:00 winter time, i.e. until 05:00 summer time.
Fees for licences and notifications of extended licensing hours
A processing fee in accordance with the price list will be charged for a notification of extended licensing hours (serving alcoholic beverages indoors) and an application for extended licensing hours (serving alcoholic beverages outdoors). An enforcement fee in accordance with the agency’s price list will be charged annually for extended licensing hours.
Processing and enforcement fees are fixed and binding. They are enforceable without a separate decision or judgement. The payments will be invoiced by the Government Shared Services Centre for Finance and HR.
If you initiate a permit application by means other than our electronic service system, the fee will be increased by 20 percent. The increased fee will not be charged if it is not possible to initiate the application electronically.
The processing of a notification on extended licencing hours (indoors) costs EUR 430, if the notification has been initiated in the e-service.
A decision on a licence for extended licencing hours (outdoors) costs EUR 640, if the application has been initiated in the e-service.
Please note that the fee will only be charged for a licence for extended licensing hours if you submit both an application for a licence for extended licensing hours and a notification of extended licencing hours for the same location at the same time.
The processing of an application for changing the requirement for security stewards concerning the extended licensing hours submitted either at the same time as a notification of or application for extended licencing hours or separately costs EUR 430 if the application has been initiated in the e-service.
The annual fee for enforcement of extended licensing hours is EUR 760 if the serving of alcohol is extended to 04:00 on more than 180 days a year. Otherwise, the fee is EUR 380.
Remember to notify the agency of the termination of the extended licensing hours in order to avoid undue enforcement fees. Please note that a licence cannot be terminated retroactively. The Finnish Supervisory Agency will charge a fee for the enforcement fees for extended licensing hours on the basis of the whether extended licensing hours are valid.
Contact information
Customer service for health and social affairs
Service form
E-mail: [email protected]
Telephone: +358 295 256 930 (Monday–Friday 9:00–15:00)