Finland to open Consulate General in Houston, Texas

On 25 April 2025, President Alexander Stubb approved an amendment to the Decree of the President of the Republic on the Locations of Finland’s Diplomatic Missions. The amendment will establish Finland’s Consulate General in Houston, Texas, in the United States as of 1 July 2025.

The Consulate General will begin its work in temporary premises with the help of administrative staff sent from Finland. The permanent premises will be ready by the end of 2025 or early 2026 at the latest. The US authorities are currently processing permits for the premises. The procedure for appointing the Consul General will be completed within a few months. The recruitment of other personnel for the Consulate General, including for trade promotion tasks, will begin soon.  

“I am pleased that we can concretely strengthen Finland’s presence in the US market, which is absolutely central to us. In the changing world situation, it is increasingly important for Finland to promote its commercial interests in the United States by raising its profile and making its voice heard. Texas is one of the strongest regions in the world economy, and there is demand for Finnish solutions,” says Minister for Foreign Affairs Elina Valtonen.

Minister for Foreign Trade and Development Ville Tavio emphasises that opening the Consulate General in Houston has significance for Finnish businesses. “The Consulate General in Houston will represent an important opening for Finnish exporters and enable deepening transatlantic relations. Covering nine southern and central states, the new Consulate General will give a boost to export promotion. Texas is, in itself, one of the ten largest economic regions in the world, and its profile is well in line with Finnish expertise in areas such as technology, space and energy.”

From the start, the Consulate General will provide services for people in distress and other urgent consular services requiring immediate attention on site. Other consular services will continue to be provided by Finland’s Consulate General in New York until the permanent premises in Houston have been completed.

The Decree of the President of the Republic also included some amendments to the provision of consular services by the existing missions.

The amendment concerning the provision of consular services in the Finnish missions will enter into force on 1 May 2025, when the Embassy of Finland in Beirut will start providing consular services in full.

Furthermore, the services of the Finnish Embassy in Doha will be expanded as of 1 October 2025. The Embassy will start providing residence permit services within its consular district, replace the Finnish Embassy in Abu Dhabi in the provision of consular services to Pakistani nationals, and complement the services of the Finnish Embassy in Ankara to provide residence permit services to Iraqi applicants.