Finland Simplifies the Procedure for Confiscating Property Owned by Russians

The Finnish government will streamline the confiscation of real estate owned by Russians due to their increasing disregard for their legal obligations, including non-payment of utility bills, taxes, and fees.

This information was reported by Yle, citing the words of the country's Minister of Justice, Lina Meri.

Russians do not pay bills for utilities, as well as other taxes and fees required for property owners in Finland. According to Finnish law enforcement agencies, cases of debt recovery from Russian property owners are accumulating.

Local authorities and management companies are trying to collect unpaid debts from Russian property owners through property confiscation. In some cases, housing associations also have the legal right to confiscate property for the benefit of the company and rent it out to repay the debt.

However, the legal procedure requires mandatory notification of the property owner about the application of confiscation.

Until 2022, when Finland began to impose sanctions against Russia following its invasion of Ukraine's territory, there was an agreement between the countries under which, in the case of property confiscation from Russian citizens, they were informed about it through "official means," usually a written notice at the place of property registration.

However, this instrument is now ineffective due to the prolonged physical absence of Russian property owners in Finland and their disregard for all other means of notification.

"We cannot remain in a perpetual blind alley," said Meri, emphasizing that the government has no other viable options to address the issue of problematic property whose owners are not in contact.

According to Minister Meri, the new law should allow sending an official notification to the owner electronically, which will significantly simplify the property confiscation process.

It is expected that the law will be revised and adopted by the middle of the next year, 2024. At the same time, according to the minister, if similar situations with Russian real estate become even more widespread, the consideration of the bill should be expedited.

Recall that in early July 2023, Finland tightened entry requirements for Russian property owners. After that, the movement of Russian citizens from Russia to Finland on the eastern border almost stopped.

Last month, Finland announced a ban on the entry of passenger cars with Russian registration. Thus, the Finnish government joined the joint actions of EU countries, which also resorted to similar bans to prevent Russian citizens from circumventing sanctions.