Finland Bans Real Estate Deals for Russians and Belarusians

From July 15, Finland has banned real estate transactions for citizens of Russia and Belarus. This was announced on July 15 by Finnish Defense Minister Antti Häkkänen. "The ban on real estate transactions by citizens of Russia and Belarus comes into force today, July 15," Häkkänen wrote on the social network X.

In April, the Finnish Parliament approved a bill prohibiting Russians from conducting real estate transactions. According to the bill, permission to acquire real estate will not be granted to a person whose country of citizenship could presumably pose a threat to Finland's national security. Later, the authorities also added Belarus to the list of countries whose citizens should be banned from real estate transactions in Finland.

In the Finnish legal system, real estate includes land plots, but apartments in multi-apartment buildings do not belong to this category. As the Ministry of Defense previously clarified, the ban on real estate transactions will also apply to persons who have a legal address in a state that "poses a threat" to Finland's security.