Valvira and LVV: Doctor Licence in Finland 2026

For years, international doctors heading to Finland were told to "apply to Valvira". That advice is now out of date. Valvira, the National Supervisory Authority for Welfare and Health, ended its operations on 31 December 2025. Since 1 January 2026, licences for health and social care professionals are handled by the new nationwide Finnish Supervisory Agency (Lupa- ja valvontavirasto, LVV), which also took over tasks from the regional state administrative agencies.

The licensing route itself has not been rebuilt from scratch, so much of the guidance you will find under the Valvira name still describes the steps. What changed is who decides, where you apply and which website holds the current rules.

Key facts

What the agency does for doctors

The Finnish Supervisory Agency:

• recognises foreign medical qualifications;
• grants the right to practise as a licensed physician, including limited licences during the examination route;
• keeps the register of health professionals;
• supervises professionals once licensed.

Employers such as HUS Helsinki University Hospital point applicants to the agency's pages for the steps, interviews and language rules, and note that the agency charges a fee for each licensing decision.

Doctors educated in the EU/EEA

If your qualification is covered by the EU recognition rules, you apply for recognition and the right to practise without going through the examination series. Finnish employers will still assess your Finnish or Swedish in recruitment, and patient work depends on it.

The route for doctors trained outside the EU/EEA

Finland uses a staged route: you gain limited rights step by step while you pass examinations. Regional hospital organisations that recruit international doctors describe it like this:

The exact order, the conditions attached to each limited licence and the examination details are set by the agency, so check its current guidance before you plan.

The internship

The six-month internship comes before the first examination. You apply for internship places through the public recruitment channels of the wellbeing services counties (for example Kuntarekry), usually in Finnish. You need Finnish at least at B1 level and a residence permit that allows work.

Language rules

Applicants who are not EU/EEA nationals must show Finnish or Swedish skills with an official certificate, such as the National Language Proficiency Test or the State Administration Language Examination. The agency can recognise your qualification before you have the certificate, but it cannot grant the right to practise without it.

Examinations and attempts

The examinations are organised with Finnish medical faculties. Universities including Helsinki, Eastern Finland and Tampere run preparation courses for the later parts. Each examination has a maximum number of attempts and a mandatory break after repeated failures, so treat every sitting seriously.

Fees (as of October 2026)

The agency charges a fee for each decision, and you pay examination and course costs yourself. The current fee list is published by the Finnish Supervisory Agency; we do not repeat Valvira-era amounts because they may have changed with the transfer.

How long it takes

Processing a first application from a doctor trained outside the EU has historically taken several months, and the full route with internship, language levels and examinations usually takes years. Language progress is the main factor you control.

Checklist before you apply

• Right authority. Apply to the Finnish Supervisory Agency, not to old Valvira addresses.
• Finnish or Swedish at B1 before the internship, with a plan to reach B2.
• Residence permit that allows the internship.
• Exam preparation course considered, especially for the later clinical examinations.
• Fee list checked on the agency's site.

Typical mistakes

• Following outdated Valvira instructions without checking what moved to the new agency.
• Leaving language to the end. Certificates are needed at two different stages.
• Applying for internships in English. Applications are normally expected in Finnish.
• Treating a limited licence as full rights. It restricts where and how you may work.
• Using up attempts. Repeated failures trigger waiting periods.

Preparing for the examinations

The clinical examinations test broad medical knowledge and patient management. Daily question practice in the MediFlow Exam Prep app keeps your clinical knowledge sharp while you study Finnish or Swedish.

What the change from Valvira means for you

If you started the process before 2026, your case moved to the Finnish Supervisory Agency automatically; you do not need to apply again simply because the authority changed. A few practical consequences:

• New address and online services. Send new applications, documents and questions to the Finnish Supervisory Agency, using its current e-services.
• Old service descriptions. Some public portals kept Valvira-era service descriptions for a while. Kela, for example, announced it would not update its descriptions during the transfer. Always check the agency's own site.
• Same register. Licensed professionals remain on the national register, now kept by the new agency.
• Fees may differ. Decision fees are set by the new agency, so do not rely on older price lists.

A realistic planning sequence

1. Before moving: start Finnish or Swedish and collect certified degree documents.
2. Recognition: apply to the agency and use the waiting time to reach B1.
3. Internship: apply through the counties' recruitment channels; plan your residence permit around the start date.
4. Examinations: take them in order, using each limited licence to gain paid experience.
5. B2 and final exam: finish the higher language certificate and the practical patient care examination, then apply for the full licence.

Next steps

1. Check the Finnish Supervisory Agency's pages for doctors trained outside the EU/EEA.
2. Start Finnish or Swedish lessons with the national certificate in mind.
3. Compare the other Nordic routes: Sweden, Norway, Denmark.
4. Read working as a doctor in Finland.

Contact and official links

• Website: lvv.fi (Finnish Supervisory Agency)

Contact details are listed on the agency's website.