Who runs local government in Finland?
Finland's municipalities (just over 300) are self-governing and levy income tax, but since 2023 health, social and rescue services have moved to 21 new elected wellbeing services counties. Åland is an autonomous, Swedish-speaking region with its own parliament. The Sámi Parliament has cultural self-government in the Sámi homeland area in the north.
Republic of Finland · Unitary parliamentary republic (with the autonomous Åland Islands) · Northern Europe
The levels of government below the nation
| Level | How it is chosen | What it does |
|---|---|---|
| Åland Islands (autonomous region) | Elected Lagting (parliament) and government | Own laws on education, health, local government and more; 16 municipalities of its own. |
| Wellbeing services counties (hyvinvointialueet, 21) plus the City of Helsinki | Regional councils elected (first in 2022, then 2025) | Health care, social services and rescue services since January 2023; funded mainly by the state. |
| Regional councils (maakuntien liitot, 18) | Joint authorities of municipalities; members nominated by municipal councils | Regional planning and development. |
| Municipalities (kunnat, 309 in 2022) | Municipal council elected every four years; council appoints a municipal manager or, rarely, a mayor (pormestari) | Schools, early education, culture, land-use planning, employment services, water and environment. They levy income tax. |
Three questions about local power in Finland
Are local leaders elected?
Municipal councils and wellbeing services county councils are elected (both last in April 2025). Municipal managers are appointed. Sámi Parliament members are elected by Sámi.
Which laws set up local government?
Self-government is in the Constitution (section 121), the Local Government Act 410/2015 and the Wellbeing Services Counties Act. Village associations are informal.
Who are local leaders accountable to?
Voters; residents can appeal municipal decisions to administrative courts; Regional State Administrative Agencies and the Chancellor of Justice oversee legality; the state funds the wellbeing services counties.
Traditional and customary authority
The Sámi Parliament (Saamelaiskäräjät), elected by Sámi voters, is guaranteed by the Constitution (section 121): in the Sámi homeland, Sámi have linguistic and cultural self-government, and authorities must negotiate with the Sámi Parliament on matters affecting them. Skolt Sámi have a traditional village meeting (sääʹmsobbar) recognised in law. Reindeer herding is organised in herding co-operatives (paliskunnat). The Evangelical Lutheran Church of Finland's parishes are legal public bodies with elected councils and the right to collect church tax alongside municipal tax; parishes were the basis of rural local government until municipalities were split off in 1865.
Community and neighbourhood power
Village associations (kyläyhdistykset) are voluntary bodies in rural areas that run village halls and development projects and are often consulted. Some municipalities set up local or area committees after mergers to give former municipalities a voice.
Points to know
- The 2023 reform moved most health and social care out of municipalities, cutting their budgets roughly in half.
- Wellbeing services counties cannot levy their own tax; they depend on state funding.
- Åland's autonomy dates from a 1921 League of Nations decision and is protected by its own Autonomy Act.
- Who counts as Sámi for the Sámi Parliament's electoral roll has been disputed in courts and in Parliament for years.
Local terms
- Hyvinvointialue
- Wellbeing services county, a regional body that runs health, social and rescue services.
- Saamelaiskäräjät
- The Sámi Parliament of Finland.
- Kyläyhdistys
- A village association, a voluntary local development group.
Sources
- Constitution of Finland (1999, rev. 2011), Constitute Project, checked 14 October 2026
- Kuntalaki 410/2015 (Local Government Act), Finlex (Ministry of Justice), checked 14 October 2026
- Saamelaiskäräjät – Sámi Parliament of Finland, Sámediggi (Finland), checked 14 October 2026
- Evangelical Lutheran Church of Finland, Evangelical Lutheran Church of Finland, checked 14 October 2026
- Finland: country profile (territorial organisation, responsibilities, finance), OECD–UCLG World Observatory on Subnational Government Finance and Investment (SNG-WOFI), checked 14 October 2026
- Finland: monitoring of the European Charter of Local Self-Government (Recommendation (2024)), Council of Europe Congress of Local and Regional Authorities (CARTA-MONITOR), checked 14 October 2026
See also: Finland's official statistics and leaders · the 10 levels of power.