Government proposal
Reading digital mail from public authorities will be more flexible in future

It will soon be possible to receive mail from public authorities using commercially available digital mailbox services. The plan is for this option to be available in the autumn of 2026.

A legislative amendment entered into force in April according to which mail from public authorities will in future be primarily sent electronically to adult users wherever possible. People who do not use electronic services will continue to receive official mail by post. 

In the second phase of the reform, people will be given the option of using commercially available digital mailbox services to read mail sent by public authorities. Commercial services will have to meet the data security and privacy requirements set in legislation and in service agreements.

“The reform will make reading mail from public authorities even more flexible. Commercial digital mailbox services will become available alongside the Suomi.fi Messages service, which will allow people to choose what service they want to use,” said Minister of Local and Regional Government Anna-Kaisa Ikonen.

Users will be able choose one or more services

The reform means that people using the Suomi.fi Messages service will be able to choose to use a commercially available digital mailbox service to read digital mail sent by public authorities. People will be able to choose more than one service. 

It will always be possible to read mail from public authorities using the Suomi.fi Messages service. This ensures that people will have access to official mail even in case of disruptions to commercial services.

Legislative amendments to be followed by technical development work

The legislative amendments for the reform are scheduled to enter into force on 1 July. The technical development work required to implement the reform will continue after this date. It is estimated that it will be possible to use commercially available digital mailbox services to read messages in the autumn of 2026. The schedule also depends on implementation work by providers of commercial services.

Inquiries:

Sami Aalto, Senior Ministerial Adviser, tel. +358 295 530 336, sami.j.aalto(at)gov.fi 
Henriikka Kokkola, Senior Specialist, tel. +358 295 530 213, henriikka.kokkola(at)gov.fi
Katja Väänänen, Senior Ministerial Advisor, Head of Unit, tel. +358 295 530 245, katja.vaananen(at)gov.fi