1 General
These instructions explain the statutory requirements concerning identification and registration of animals for operators who own dogs, and provide practical instructions on how to comply with the requirements.
The microchipping and registration of dogs is based on the Act on the Identification and Registration of Animals (1069/2021) and on the Decree of the Ministry of Agriculture and Forestry on the identification and registration of dogs (68/2022). National legislation imposes a duty on every dog owner to microchip their animals and report the information of their dogs to the registry.
The Act on the Information Pool of the Finnish Food Administration (560/2021) regulates the use of the Dog Registry and disclosure of information. The Finnish Food Authority has declared that all personal information stored in the Dog Registry that describes dog keepership either directly or indirectly is confidential on the basis of Section 24.1(32) of the Act on the Openness of Government Activities. However, the information in the Dog Registry related to commercial dog keeping is not confidential. The disclosure of information in the Dog Registry is evaluated on a case-by-case basis in accordance with Finnish Food Authority’s normal disclosure practices.
1.1 Definitions
The terms used in these instructions are as follows:
- a dog refers to animals of the subspecies Canis lupus familiaris;
- a dog keeper refers to a natural or legal person who owns the dog or is in control of the dog. The keeper may be one person or multiple, jointly liable persons or parties, but only one of the keepers will be responsible for identification and entering the dog’s information in the registry.
- a microchip refers to an electronic radio frequency identification tag in accordance with the ISO 11784 standard;
- a microchip setter refers to a person competent to set a microchip and who has the qualifications referred to in the Animal Welfare Act (247/1996) for setting a microchip in a dog;
- an identification certificate refers to the certificate given by the microchip setter to the dog keeper the content of which is in accordance with the Decree 68/2022;
- a registry refers to the authority’s Dog Registry;
- breed refers to the breed reported to the registry by the dog keeper and based on the breed information in a breed association’s register or a separate certificate provided by the association.
2 Identification of dogs
Dog keepers are responsible for microchipping their dog with a chip including the dog’s unique ID code. The microchip is primarily set between the dog’s shoulder blades or secondarily in the dog’s neck. The microchipping can be done by a veterinarian or other person competent to set a microchip.
The chips used for microchipping dogs are in accordance with the ISO 11784 standard. Using microchips including a country code is possible only if the Finnish Food Authority grants the animal’s ID code included in the identifier. Microchips with country codes are currently not used for dogs in Finland. Dogs brought from abroad might have microchips with country codes.
A dog must be chipped and reported to the registry no later than three (3) months after birth or before being handed over to a new keeper if it is handed over before the age of three months.
Previously unchipped dogs born before 1 January 2023 must be microchipped and reported to the registry by the end of the year 2023.
A dog arriving in Finland from another country must be microchipped before its arrival. If an imported dog is not microchipped but has a tattoo that was made before 3 July 2011, the dog must be microchipped before reporting it to the registry, i.e. within four weeks after its arrival in the country.
A dog without a microchip must not be handed over.
Microchipping a dog is a business activity between the microchip setter and the dog keeper, and the microchip setter charges for the microchipping according to its own price list.
2.1 Replacing an inoperative microchip
An inoperative microchip must be replaced with a new chip without delay. The replacement of a microchip and the new microchip code are reported to the registry within one month.
3 Identification certificate
When a dog is microchipped, the microchip setter prepares an identification certificate for the dog with all the information required to register the dog.
The identification certificate can be provided as a form, in which case the dog keeper will record the details from the form to the registry or submits the identification certificate form with the dog keeper’s information to the customer service.
3.1. Contents of the identification certificate
The identification certificate must contain the following information:
- the dog keeper’s contact details (name, social security number, address, email and telephone number of the keeper)
- ID code of the microchip set in the dog
- the dog’s date of birth, or if not available, an estimate of the date of birth
- breed, or if not available, a description of the dog’s external characteristics
- gender
- colour
- dog’s name as reported by the dog keeper
- country of birth, if other than Finland
- name and address of the microchip setter
- date of setting the microchip.
4 Reporting a dog to the registry
The dog keeper is responsible for reporting the dog’s information to the Dog Registry. Deadlines for the report are the same as for microchipping a dog.
The dog’s information must be reported to the registry no later than three (3) months after birth or before being handed over to a new keeper if the dog is handed over before the age of three months. If the dog was born before 1 January 2023, it should be reported to the registry by the end of the year 2023.
A dog arriving in Finland from another country for a permanent stay must be reported to the registry within four weeks after its arrival. A dog temporarily staying in Finland for more than three months must also be reported to the registry within the corresponding time limit.
4.1 Information and incidents reported
4.1.1 Reporting a dog to the registry
A dog is reported to the registry and information from the identification certificate given by the microchip setter (see Section 3.1.) is stored in the registry, either electronically in the Dog Registry or as a form.
Dogs born before 1 January 2023 or imported from another country do not have an identification certificate. For these dogs, their keeper stores their information in the registry based on the dog’s other possible documentation or to the best of their knowledge.
The keeper’s information
‘Dog keeper’ refers to a natural or legal person who owns the dog or is in control of the dog. The keeper may be one person or multiple, jointly liable persons or parties, but only one of the keepers will be responsible for identification and entering the dog’s information in the registry.
The keeper is identified either with their social security number or Business ID. When using the e-services, the keeper’s address information is automatically retrieved from the records of Digital and Population Data Services Agency and the Finnish Business Information System (YTJ). In addition, email and telephone number reported by the dog keeper are stored in the contact details.
Breed
If the dog has a separate certificate of the breed and pedigree provided by a breed association, the breed specified in the certificate is entered as the breed of the dog. The lists of breeds by the following breed associations are used for reporting breeds in the Dog Registry:
- FCI (Fédération Cynologique Internationale)
- The Finnish Kennel Club
- NKU (Nordic Kennel Union)
The breed information is based on the information reported by the keeper. The breed information recorded in the Dog Registry is intended only for the authorities to help with the supervision. It does not guarantee that the dog really represents the breed in question or that it has been entered into a register maintained by any breed association.
For example, ‘mixed’ can be entered as the dog’s breed. In this case, you will also describe the dog’s external characteristics and enter an estimate of the dog’s size. The estimated adult size is indicated in the size. Extra small: less than 25 cm, small: 25-39 cm, medium: 40-54 cm, large: 55-69 cm and extra large: 70 cm or more.
Colour
The colour of the dog is entered in accordance with the colour coding used in the Dog Registry. At least the dog’s main colour when fully grown should become evident. The colour codes used in the Dog Registry are as follows: brown, white/cream, grey/blue, black, red, yellow/gold.
Dog’s name
The name is stored in the registry as reported by the dog keeper. The name given by the dog’s breeder can also be entered in the registry.
Information of the microchip setter
Here, you will enter the name and address of the person who has set the microchip and the date of setting the chip.
A dog born before 1 January 2023 can be stored in the registry without details of the microchip setter. The same applies to imported dogs if no information is available.
4.1.2 Change in keepership
A change in keepership must be reported to the Dog Registry within one month. A temporary change of less than three months does not have to be reported.
Reporting using e-services
A change in keepership is always commenced by the previous dog keeper by reporting the handover of a dog to the registry. When reporting the handover in the electronic system, the previous keeper receives a verification of the change with which the next keeper can create their own report to the registry electronically. The previous keeper provides the new keeper with this verification of the change. When the new keeper uses the verification of the change in the Dog Registry’s e-services and pays the registration fee, the dog is transferred to the new keeper in the registry.
Reporting using a paper form
The change in keepership requires a report of the change by both the previous and the new keeper. The new and the previous keeper report the change in keepership by filling out a form of the change in keepership and sending it to the Dog Registry’s customer service.
Information required for a change in keepership:
- the next keeper’s contact details (name, social security number, address, email and telephone number of the keeper)
- the date of the change in keepership.
4.1.3 A change to a dog’s information
It is possible to update a dog’s information in the registry if necessary. All changes can be reported using e-services or a form.
If a dog dies, is euthanised or goes missing, the dog keeper must report the matter to the registry within a month after the incident at the latest. In these cases, a report of the incident and the date of the incident are given.
In the registry, it is also possible to report if a missing dog is found and if a dog transfers abroad. It is not necessary to report a temporary transfer abroad, if the dog is abroad for less than three months.
4.1.4 A change to keeper’s information
While logging in the Dog Registry, system retrieves keepers’ address information automatically from the Digital and Population Data Services Agency’s systems. An keeper’s contact details cannot be changed or updated in the Dog Registry. Instead, the information should always be updated directly in the Digital and Population Data Services Agency’s records. Additional information: https://dvv.fi/en/check-your-own-personal-details
If you don’t use the e-service, report address changes to customer service using the form.
Telephone numbers are not stored in the Digital and Population Data Services Agency’s records, so possible changes to the telephone number must be reported directly to the Dog Registry if necessary. If an email is missing from the Digital and Population Data Services Agency’s records, it can be directly added to the Dog Registry.
4.1.5 A change to microchip information
If a dog’s microchip stops working, a new microchip must be set. The replacement of a microchip and the new microchip code are reported to the registry within one month.
The following information is stored in the registry:
- ID code of the new microchip
- name and address of the microchip setter
- date of setting the microchip.
4.2 Reporting channels
Dogs are reported to the registry and possible changes to reported information are made using the following reporting channels:
- The Finnish Food Authority’s Dog Registry is available at https://koirarekisteri.ruokavirasto.fi
- Customer service (recording reports made in paper forms, advice, special situations)
- +358 (0)20690500, opening hours from 8.15 am to 4 pm
- email: koirarekisteri@ruokavirasto.fi
- address: Koirarekisteri, P.O box 120, 78201 Varkaus
- Forms can be printed from the Finnish Food Authority’s website at ruokavirasto.fi > Tietoa meistä > Asiointi > Oppaat ja lomakkeet > Viljelijät > Eläinten pito > Eläinten merkitseminen ja rekisteröinti.
4.3. Registration fee
The costs of the Dog Registry are covered with a registration fee, i.e. the price of the registration is cost-reflective and based on the actual costs of maintaining the registry and related services. The price of the registration is in accordance with the Decree of the Ministry of Agriculture and Forestry on charges payable to the Finnish Food Authority. The up-to-date price list is available at the Finnish Food Authority’s website at Ruokavirasto.fi > Tietoa meistä > Asiointi > Hinnasto.
Dogs’ registration fees are collected as keeper-specific registration and reporting fees. Every new dog keeper pays the registration fee for their part. The first registration fee of a dog is paid by the keeper to whom the dog was born or who brings the dog to Finland. If the dog was born before 1 January 2023, the registration is paid by the dog keeper at the time of registration. If a dog keeper changes, the new keeper will pay the registration fee for the dog. When using the e-service, the registration fee is paid directly during the registration. If the form is used for reporting, the Finnish Food Authority sends an invoice afterwards. Registration fees are as follows: electronic registration €10 and registration using the form €19.
All other reports made to the registry of changes to information (changes to microchips, removal from an keeper, reporting a missing, euthanised or dead dog) are free of charge.
5 Supervision of identification and registration
Compliance with the provisions on the identification and registration of dogs and other animals is supervised by the competent authorities, provisions on which have been laid down in the Act on Animal Identification and Registration. The authorities overseeing the identification of dogs are the municipal control veterinarians and other municipal veterinarians and the veterinarians of the Regional State Administrative agencies. When animals are moved between the Member States, the inspectors of the Centres for Economic Development, Transport and the Environment (ELY Centres) and Finnish Customs also have the right to supervision. In spaces used for permanent housing, in other words, within the so-called domiciliary peace, the identification and registration of animals can be supervised only when the strict conditions separately laid down in legislation are met. For example, the kennel buildings or outdoor kennels are as a rule not considered to be covered by domestic peace. In practice, the identification and registration of dogs will be mainly supervised in connection with other supervision, such as animal welfare inspections.
Non-compliance with the legislation concerning identification and registration can result in administrative consequences for the animal keepers. Defects detected during supervision must be corrected to the level required by legislation.
A coercive measure in accordance with the Act on Animal Identification and Registration is, for example, an order to remove the defect. The order can be enhanced with a conditional fine or a threat of performance at the defaulter’s expense. Failing to microchip a dog may result in imposing a penalty for animal identification and registration supervision.