The agreements made on municipal placements help refugees to have a managed transition to municipalities and a smoother start to integration. In order to provide placements, a municipality will sign an agreement with a Centre for Economic Development, Transport and the Environment on placement allocation and on promoting the integration of refugees. When a municipality offers a municipal placement, it undertakes to find a home for the person assigned to the municipality. Quota refugees and asylum seekers who have been granted a residence permit are assigned municipal placements in co-operation with the municipality, the Centres for Economic Development, Transport and the Environment and reception centres.
The municipality and the Centre usually sign a multiannual agreement on refugee allocation that is reviewed once a year. The municipality needs the agreement in order to receive State compensation for hosting refugees. The municipality that has signed a refugee hosting agreement may also have a plan to promote the integration of persons in need of special support. The plan is included in the municipality's integration programme.
Centres for Economic Development, Transport and the Environment co-ordinate the allocations in the municipalities of their area
Nationally, the Ministry of Economic Affairs and Employment is responsible for coordinating refugee placements. Regional coordination is the responsibility of the Centres for Economic Development, Transport and the Environment. The Centres also co-operate with other operators in their area, such as civil society organisations working with refugees and asylum seekers.
Municipalities should contact their local Centre about refugee placements.
Quota refugees arrive directly in municipalities after they have been allocated placement
Quota refugees arrive directly in the municipalities where they have been allocated placement. The Centres for Economic Development, Transport and the Environment assign refugees to the municipalities. The Finnish Immigration Service is responsible for the operation of the placement process.
The municipal placements are reported to the Finnish Immigration Service using the electronic Kuntapaikat tool in the case management system for immigration matters (UMA). The Finnish Immigration Service also maintains a quota refugee placement page in the Tiimeri workspace, which contains up-to-date information on hosting. Municipalities hosting quota refugees should contact the Finnish Immigration Service to request user IDs for the municipal placement tool (Kuntapaikat) and the quota refugee placement page (Kiintiöpakolaisten kuntaansijoitus) in Tiimeri.
Those who have been granted a residence permit through the asylum procedure can receive a municipal placement or move to a municipality independently or with the assistance of the reception centre
The reception centre can apply for a municipal placement through the asylum procedure for those who have received a residence permit. The reception centre submits an application for municipal placement to a Centre for Economic Development, Transport and the Environment. When a hosting municipality is found, the Centre assigns the placement to the applicant. The municipality finds a home for the refugee and ensures that they have access to the municipal services.
Many refugees who have been granted a residence permit through the asylum procedure move from the reception centre to a municipality independently instead of applying for placement. Reception centres also help those who have been granted a residence permit with arranging housing and moving.
For internationally protected persons, moving to the municipality of their reception centre or to a neighbouring municipality is often a good option, as they may have become familiar with the area and have contacts there. A timely transition from the reception centre to a municipality will benefit not only the internationally protected person, but also society as a whole, as integration will begin more quickly.
Municipalities receive information on persons assigned a municipal placement
Municipalities receive information on the people who have been assigned a placement for the purpose of arranging the services and homes they need. For that reason, the hosting municipality must consider the service needs and training and employment opportunities of the person moving to the municipality when planning the transition.
More information:
User ID requests for the case management system for immigration matters (UMA): atk(at)migri.fi
User ID requests for the quota refugee placement page (Kiintiöpakolaisten kuntaansijoitus) in Tiimeri workspace: tupa.kuntasijoitushanke(at)migri.fi
Planning the hosting
