Hunting in Finland

Hunting in Finland is regulated by legislation, prepared by the Ministry of Agriculture and Forestry of Finland (mmm.fi). The national authority responsible for implementing wildlife and hunting policies is the Finnish Wildlife Agency (riista.fi).

To hunt in Finland, you need to have

• A valid game management permit (i.e. national hunting license/card)
• The right to hunt in a specific area (for state-owned areas, this hunting permit is issued by Metsähallitus)
• Hunting license or a derogation for certain game species, such as moose, brown bear and white-tailed deer
• The right to keep and maintain firearms
• Shooting test certificate if hunting moose, deer species, brown bear or wild boar with a rifled firearm; or white-tailed deer, roe deer and wild boar with bow and arrow

The Finnish Wildlife Agency has published comprehensive information packages about hunting in Finland:

• Instructions for hunters (riista.fi)
• What a Foreign Guest Needs to Be Able to Hunt in Finland (riista.fi)

It is highly recommended that you have a local host when planning a visit to hunt in Finland. The host can assist you with the rules, regulations and local/regional hunting practices, and of course, in obtaining the required licenses and permits.

Wildlife Service Finland (Metsähallitus) does not organize hunts, but instead sells small game hunting permits for the state-owned hunting areas.

If you are prepared for a hunt with all the necessary licenses, it is possible to purchase a Metsähallitus hunting permit. Once you know in which area you wish to hunt, what game species you are planning to hunt and when, our customer service can assist you in buying the permit. The permits are also available from our webshop (in Finnish and in Swedish). Please note that game species may only be hunted during their assigned hunting seasons.