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20.5.2021 | The Government has amended the decree restricting the activities of restaurants and other food and beverage service businesses due to the COVID-19 epidemic. The restrictions on opening and licensing hours will be tightened in the regions of Kanta-Häme and Central Ostrobothnia because of the worsened epidemiological situation in these regions. In the region of South Karelia, however, the situation has improved so the restrictions on opening and licensing hours will be eased.

8.6.2021 | The Government has amended the decree restricting the activities of restaurants and other food and beverage service businesses due to the COVID-19 epidemic. The restrictions will be eased as proposed by the Ministerial Working Group on Health and Social Services last week. In addition, Central Ostrobothnia will move from the community transmission phase to the acceleration phase.

3.6.2021 | The Government has amended the decree restricting the activities of restaurants and other food and beverage service businesses due to the COVID-19 epidemic. This means that the region of South Karelia and the Hospital District of Länsi-Pohja can now move from restrictions for the acceleration phase to baseline restrictions and the region of Southwest Finland can move from restrictions for the community transmission phase to acceleration phase restrictions.

25.8.2023 | The proposal of the Ministry of Finance for the 2024 budget and spending limits for 2024–2027 ensures implementation of the policies in the Government Programme. The budget proposal totals EUR 87.2 billion, and a deficit of EUR 10.1 billion is proposed. The budget total is EUR 3.7 billion higher than the total budgeted for 2023, including the first supplementary budget. The budget proposal will be published in full at budjetti.vm.fi on Monday 28 August.

27.5.2021 | The Government’s third supplementary budget proposal for 2021 includes an appropriation totalling EUR 111 million to alleviate the adverse impacts of the coronavirus on children and young adults.

5.3.2024 | On 4 March 2023, the EU Member States, European Parliament and Commission reached a provisional political agreement on a proposal for a regulation on packaging and packaging waste. Finland has taken an active part in the preparation of the regulation. The proposal that was agreed on can be evaluated in further detail only after its final content is available. The proposal is still pending formal adoption by the Member States and Parliament.

27.2.2024 | This year, the recipient of the Finnish State Award for Foreign Translators is Maima Grīnberga (b. 1969), who has been translating Finnish literature into Latvian with distinction. The prize, which has been awarded since 1975, is worth EUR 15,000. The Ministry of Education and Culture awards the prize annually based on a proposal by the Finnish Literature Exchange (FILI).

30.12.2021 | The Government has amended the decree restricting the activities of restaurants and other food and beverage service businesses due to the COVID-19 epidemic. The restrictions on food and beverage service businesses that are necessary to prevent the spread of the epidemic will be introduced across the region of South Savo and in the region of North Karelia.

5.1.2022 | The Government has amended the decree restricting the activities of restaurants and other food and beverage service businesses due to the COVID-19 epidemic. Restrictions on food and beverage service businesses that are necessary to prevent the spread of the epidemic will be introduced in Åland.

25.11.2021 | On 25 November, the Ministerial Working Group on Health and Social Services discussed the COVID-19 situation in Finland and the restrictions in place. The Ministerial Working Group proposes tighter restrictions on food and beverage service businesses. The Government will decide on the matter as soon as possible.

11.1.2022 | The Government has amended the decree that restricts the activities of food and beverage service businesses due to the COVID-19 epidemic. From now on, all food and beverage services businesses must close at 18.00. In addition, the restrictions on the use of the COVID-19 passport will be extended until the end of January. The decree on the opening hours of food and beverage service businesses will enter into force on 12 January 2022 at 00.00 and it will remain in force until 31 January 2022.

28.1.2022 | The Government has extended the validity of the decree restricting the activities of food and beverage service businesses due to the COVID-19 epidemic. The restrictions on the use of the COVID-19 passport will continue until mid-February and the restrictions on serving and opening hours of food and beverage service businesses will continue until the end of March. Restrictions on food and beverage service businesses will be eased for businesses serving food.

26.8.2021 | The Government has amended the decree restricting the activities of food and beverage service businesses due to the COVID-19 epidemic. The restrictions for the community transmission phase will be applied to food and beverage service businesses in Ostrobothnia.

19.8.2021 | The Government has amended the decree restricting the activities of food and beverage service businesses due to the COVID-19 epidemic. The restrictions for the community transmission phase will enter into force in the entire Uusimaa region and South Karelia. The Hospital District of South Savo is moving to the acceleration phase of the epidemic.

13.8.2021 | The Government has amended the decree that restricts the activities of food and beverage service businesses due to the COVID-19 epidemic. Satakunta moves to COVID-19 community transmission phase.

12.8.2021 | The Government has amended the decree that restricts the activities of food and beverage service businesses due to the COVID-19 epidemic. The regions of Central Ostrobothnia and North Ostrobothnia and the city of Rovaniemi are moving to the acceleration phase of the epidemic.

9.9.2021 | The Government has amended the decree restricting the activities of food and beverage service businesses due to the COVID-19 epidemic. Separate restrictions on the number of customers or the opening and licensing hours of food and beverage service businesses will be removed in Central Finland as the region returns to the baseline restrictions.

5.8.2021 | The Government has amended the decree that restricts the activities of food and beverage service businesses due to the COVID-19 epidemic. The regions of Southwest Finland, Pirkanmaa, Kymenlaakso and the cities of the Greater Helsinki area are moving to the community transmission phase of the epidemic. The regions of South Ostrobothnia, South Karelia and Ostrobothnia are moving to the acceleration phase of the epidemic.

5.9.2021 | The Government has amended the decree restricting the activities of food and beverage service businesses due to the COVID-19 epidemic. The restrictions for the acceleration phase of the epidemic will be introduced in Satakunta and the baseline restrictions in the city of Rovaniemi.

2.9.2021 | The Government has amended the decree restricting the activities of food and beverage service businesses due to the COVID-19 epidemic. The restrictions for the acceleration phase of the epidemic will be introduced in the entire region of South Savo and the restrictions for the community transmission phase in the region of South Ostrobothnia. The restrictions on opening and licensing hours will no longer apply in Åland.