Government bills6
- HE 152/2026 vpIn progress
Electronic voting register for church elections
An electronic voting register will replace paper voting lists in parish elections and vicar elections. The change will speed up the conduct of elections, reduce errors and make advance voting smoother.
10 Sep 2026 · no votes yet - HE 60/2025 vpPassed with amendments
Bringing church co-operation into law
Co-operation of personnel within the Evangelical Lutheran Church will be governed by a separate act instead of the current system based on collective agreements. The reform would strengthen church employees' access to information, opportunities to exert influence and legal protection in situations of change.
9 Oct 2025 · passed without a vote - HE 19/2019 vpWithdrawn
Church Act reform and streamlining administration
The legislation governing the Evangelical Lutheran Church of Finland will be comprehensively overhauled and the church's administration will be streamlined. The reform will enable electronic decision-making, among other things, and increase parishioners' opportunities to have an influence.
7 Sep 2022 · no votes - HE 108/2022 vpPassed with amendments
Reforming church administration and decision-making
The legislation governing the Evangelical Lutheran Church will be reformed and the church's internal administration will be streamlined. The independent decision-making powers of parishes will be increased and the maintenance of membership registers will be transferred to regional central registers.
17 Mar 2023 · passed without a vote - HE 104/2017 vpPassed with amendments
Reforming forename and surname legislation
Finnish name legislation will be reformed by increasing freedom of choice in selecting names and moving the processing of name matters online. An individual will be able to have four forenames, a combination of two surnames, and additional time will be granted for notifying the name of a newborn child.
11 Dec 2017 · passed without a vote - HE 47/2016 vpPassed
Reforming Church personnel and employee rights
Church employers will no longer be required to maintain a statutory service register for their staff. In addition, church officeholders will gain the right to paid leave to seek employment in redundancy situations and clearer leave entitlements for holding municipal positions of trust.
12 May 2016 · passed without a vote