• Title of the law: Act on Assisted Fertility Treatments (laki hedelmöityshoidoista; 1237/2006)
• Date of adoption and entry into force: 22/12/2006; 1 September 2007
• Title: Decree of the Ministry of Social Affairs and Health on Assisted Fertility Treatments (Sosiaali- ja terveysministeriön asetus hedelmöityshoidoista; 825/2007)
• Date of adoption and entry into force: 29/8/2007; 1 September 2007
• Published in: Statute Book of Finland (Suomen säädöskokoelma)

1. Is access to medically assisted procreation (MAP)

a. restricted to heterosexual couples? No

b. possible for women not living in a heterosexual couple? Yes

The national legislation is based on the concepts of a “couple” (that is, a woman and a man living together in marriage or in a relationship comparable to marriage or two women living together in marriage, registered partnership or in a relationship comparable to marriage) and a “person receiving treatment” (a couple or a woman not living in a marriage, registered partnership or a relationship comparable to marriage). The provisions in certain sections of the Act vary depending on whether the treatment is provided to a couple or to a single woman.

Clinics in the public sector have declined to provide MAP to female couples and single women, on the grounds that these services are provided only on the basis of medical indications. Female couples and single women have for this reason sought services from the private sector.

16. Is donation of sperm/oocytes/embryos anonymous? No. 

Donations are coded. The competent authority keeps a donation register on the donations of gametes and embryos for the purposes of MAP.

If a child born using MAP wishes to know the donor’s identity, he or she will have access to the information after having turned 18 years of age.

17. Is it possible to obtain information about the biological origin of a child born after gametes of embryo donation? 

i. For the child him or herself Yes; ii. For the parents Yes; iii. For a court No

If a child born using MAP wishes to know the donor’s identity, he or she will have access to the information after having turned 18 years of age.

When MAP has been provided for a woman not living in marriage or in a relationship comparable to marriage with a partner of the opposite sex (after 1 April 2019: a woman not living in marriage, registered partnership or in a relationship comparable to them, regardless of whether the partner is same sex or opposite sex) and the donor has given his consent to being confirmed as the father of the child, the mother and the child are entitled to learn from the service provider the donor’s code and, by providing the donation register with the code, the identity of the donor. According to the Code of Judicial Procedure, the court does not have access to sensitive health care data unless the person in whose benefit the secrecy obligation has been provided consents to it or he or she is deceased and if very important reasons require it. Exception to this rule is a case where the prosecutor has brought charges for an offence for which the maximum sentence is imprisonment for at least six years.

a. Identity of the donor(s)

i. For the child him or herself Yes; ii. For the parents Yes; iii. For a court No. See answer to previous question.

b. Certain health information concerning the donor(s)

i. For the child him or herself No; ii. For the parents No; iii. For a court No

c. Other information

i. For the child him or herself No; ii. For the parents No; iii. For a court No. Only limited information may be registered. Donors undergo a health examination in order to rule out serious diseases that may constitute a health risk to a future child. No specific health information concerning the donor is recorded.

18. Is it possible to contest maternity and paternity of children born utilising MAP and under which conditions? Yes. According to Paternity Act (isyyslaki; 11/2015) the man having consented to MAP will be the father of the child born through MAP. According to Maternity Act (entering into force 1 April 2019) the same applies to a woman in a female couple concerning her maternity. If sperm is used to provide MAP to a single mother, the donor can consent to potentially be declared as the father of a future child. If the sperm donor has consented only to fertility treatments and not to paternity, he cannot be declared the father of the child.

6. Is donation of sperm/oocytes/embryos permitted in your country? Yes

7. Are there specific compensation arrangements for donations of sperm/oocytes/embryos? Yes. The expenses borne by the patient, a possible loss of income and any other inconvenience caused by the MAP may be compensated. For ovum donation, a maximum amount of 250 euros may be reimbursed due to inconvenience. Other types of remunerations and payments are forbidden.

8. Are there specific criteria for donation of sperm/oocytes/embryos? Yes. 

Sperm and oocytes - Act on Assisted Fertility Treatments (laki hedelmöityshoidoista; 1237/2006) requires the donor to be 18 years old. In medical practice, maximum age limits have been set up by clinics and may vary between them. Donation of gametes should not pose a health hazard to the donor and donors should have no serious hereditary diseases or any communicable diseases, which may cause a serious illness to the woman receiving assisted fertility treatment or to the child. This is ensured by means of a health examination of the donor. Informed consent is required. A donor may specifically consent to the use of sperm for MAP of single women.

Embryos - Only surplus embryos resulting from MAP may be donated with informed consent from both donors.

9. Are there specific non-medical criteria for selection of gametes/embryos to be used for MAP? Yes. When using donated gametes, Section 5 of Act on Assisted Fertility Treatments (laki hedelmöityshoidoista; 1237/2006) requires the attending physician to select gametes whose donor resembles in appearance the parent of the child to be born, unless otherwise requested by the person receiving treatment.

10. Are there special measures for the prevention of consanguinity? Yes. When the gametes of a donor have provided progeny to five MAP recipients, gametes donated by the said donor may no longer be used in MAP provided to others.

11. In a homosexual couple, is a legal relationship possible between a child and the partner of the legal parent? Yes. If partners living in a same-sex relationship are married or have registered their partnership, a partner may adopt the other partner’s child. According to the new Maternity Act which entered into force on 1 April 2019, the maternity of a partner in a female same sex couple can be recognised on the basis of valid consent to fertility treatments.

3. Are MAP procedures covered by the social security system? Yes. Public health services include MAP procedures. Pursuant to the Health Insurance Act (sairausvakuutuslaki; 1224/2004), health insurance covers the cost of necessary medical care when infertility is caused by an illness. Infertility is in addition paralleled to illness in cases of permanent relationships where the pregnancy does not start within one year. Also men are covered.

4. Are there specific criteria for such coverage?  Yes. Pursuant to the practice instructions of the Socio-medical Advisory Board of the Social Insurance Institution of Finland, MAP-procedures are available within the public health care to women until the age of 40. Also women over 40 years are treated if the prognosis is good. The costs are reimbursed by the health insurance scheme until the age of 43 years. In case of older women, the health insurance coverage is assessed on a case-by-case basis in the light of the medical data of the woman concerned.

5. Is the financial coverage limited to a number of MAP procedures? Yes. 

The financial coverage has not been limited by law. The number of MAP procedures has however been limited to three attempts in the practice of the Social Insurance Institution of Finland, because according to statistics, the prospect of a successful procedure is known to decrease thereafter. 

Infertility related to a decrease in the amount of gametes caused by aging is not considered an illness and is thus not covered as necessary medical care by the health insurance. MAP procedures are usually not covered after sterilization either. Possible costs borne by a cell donor are not covered, because they are unrelated to the treatment of the donor’s disease. 

The insurance coverage of MAP procedures for an applicant over 43-years of age is decided upon on a case-by-case basis. An application for reimbursement is made with the Social Insurance Institution of Finland for both the medicines and the procedure itself. A statement by the doctor providing treatment must be attached to the application.

2. Are there specific criteria for access to MAP? 

Medical reasons:

a. Infertility:

For a heterosexual couple? Yes/No; For women not living in a heterosexual couple? Yes/No

Medical grounds are used as the criteria for accessing MAP in the public health care. In practice however the reasons for infertility are not always known and this has not prevented public sector clinics from providing treatment in particular to heterosexual couples (i.e., provision of treatment has not always been based on a diagnosed medical condition).   Another reason for not providing MAP for same-sex female couples and single women has been the lack of available donated gametes. These criteria are, however, not provided for in the legislation.

b. Risk of transmission of a disease

For a heterosexual couple? Yes; For women not living in a heterosexual couple? Yes

MAP cannot be provided if the pregnancy would pose a substantial risk to the health of the woman or of the child due to the age or health of the woman. The donor cannot donate gametes if he has a serious hereditary disease or any communicable disease that may cause a serious illness to the woman receiving assisted fertility treatment or to the child who may be born as a result of the assisted fertility treatment.

c. Other NA

19. Is there an important current debate in your country on these or related issues? Yes. Surrogacy-related issues are debated every now and then.

20. Delegations are invited to provide information, in this section, on particular cases encountered in their country, and especially their case-law.

Paternity Act (isyyslaki; 11/2015): unofficial English translation available at: <http://www.finlex.fi/en/laki/kaannokset/2015/en20150011.pdf>.

Act on Assisted Fertility Treatments (laki hedelmöityshoidosta; 1237/2006) unofficial English translation available at:

<http://www.finlex.fi/fi/laki/kaannokset/2006/en20061237.pdf> NB: This translation does not include the latest updates.

Maternity Act (äitiyslaki; 253/2018): unofficial English translation available at: <https://www.finlex.fi/en/laki/kaannokset/2018/20180253>