Previously provided in cooperation by the state and the municipalities of the Helsinki metropolitan area, InfoFinland is a national online service that provides information for people who are planning to move to Finland and those already living here in different life situations. The popular website has served newcomers in 12 languages and has also been an important tool for authorities, organisations and other parties working in the field of immigrant integration. The content that is available on the InfoFinland website is produced in cooperation with a number of different authorities.
The City of Helsinki has been developing the InfoFinland.fi website for more than two decades. The multilingual website was first launched in 2003. Just a couple of years earlier, Helsinki had hired its first multilingual advisers, who proceeded to compile their customers’ questions into an open online database available in their own language.
The online service expanded into a nationwide service in 2005 when the cities of Turku and Tampere and the central government got on board. They were eventually joined by the cities of Espoo, Vantaa and Kauniainen in 2009. Over the years, several other municipalities also joined in, and the online service came to be known as InfoFinland. Additionally, the Finnishcourses.fi website was launched for those looking for Finnish language courses.
Since the beginning of 2025, the KEHA Centre has been responsible at the national level for providing newcomers with basic information on Finnish society, as required by law. In response to the changing operating environment, the City of Helsinki decided to discontinue the administration of the national InfoFinland website as of 1 January 2026 and hand over the content of InfoFinland to the KEHA Centre.
The change made the multilingual content of InfoFinland available to the KEHA Centre for use in its multilingual communication and digital materials. The InfoFinland.fi URL has been transferred to the KEHA Centre, so immigrants can continue to access the multilingual integration website and its content at the familiar address.
Finnish and Swedish language courses can be found at Finnishcourses.fi
The Finnishcourses.fi website will continue to provide information on Finnish and Swedish language courses open for all. The responsibility for administering the website was transferred from the City of Helsinki City Executive Office’s communications department to Helsinki Employment Services on 1 January 2026. The change of administrator will not cause any changes to the site.
In addition to Helsinki, the cities of Espoo, Vantaa and Kauniainen also post information about their Finnish language courses on the website. The service also lists online courses.
Explore the available courses on Finnishcourses.fi(Link leads to external service) .
Helsinki strengthening communication and services for newcomers
The importance of multilingual communication will only increase in the coming years as Helsinki becomes a more diverse city in terms of languages and cultures. At present, one in five Helsinki residents speak a language other than Finnish, Swedish or Sami as their mother tongue.
In the coming decades, the proportion of Helsinki residents who speak other languages is expected to continue to grow, and, with it, their need for services.
The City will continue to support the integration of Helsinki residents by maintaining and developing services, counselling, websites and multilingual communication for people moving here from abroad, for example.
One of the key services is International House Helsinki, which supports those moving to the Helsinki metropolitan area from abroad with initial administrative arrangements and settling in. Furthermore, the integration services of Helsinki Employment Services help people who have recently moved to Finland to find employment and learn Finnish or Swedish, for example. Special services for immigrants, in turn, provide social services to support integration.
The City of Helsinki provides information in Finnish, Swedish and English and, where necessary, in other languages commonly spoken in the city on topics promoting integration and inclusion. The most notable other languages are Arabic, Somali, Ukrainian, Russian and Estonian.
Furthermore, Helsinki-info's general and immigration advice services provide information about the city and on how to access various other services. Helsinki-info’s services are available in several languages commonly spoken in Helsinki, with interpretation available where necessary.
The City’s services are continuously developed with the input of immigrants and the authorities providing integration services. Based on the customer insight we have gathered, we know that the life situations of people who move to Finland from abroad can differ considerably, which requires us to tailor our range of services and communications to suit individual needs. For example, the City organises open early childhood education for children aged 1–3 whose parents are participating in Finnish language courses.
“Integration is a two-way process in which the newcomer must learn the knowledge and skills needed to become part of Finnish society. At the same time, the City of Helsinki has a responsibility to support newcomers in settling in and promote integration so that all those who move to Helsinki can live a good life in their new home city, regardless of their background or country of origin,” says Director of Migration Affairs Glenn Gassen from the City of Helsinki.
Welcome to Helsinki website collects information in one place
Launched last year, the Welcome to Helsinki website provides guidance to people who have recently moved to Helsinki on how to access the abovementioned services and start a good life in the city. The website, aimed at newcomers in Helsinki, covers integration more broadly than statutory services. In addition to services, the site provides information on topics such as wellbeing and recreation, as doing things together and strengthening social relationships is known to increase a sense of inclusion and belonging to the city.
In addition to newcomers, the site also serves workers who provide guidance to newcomers.
It is also important for the City to reach those whose language skills are not yet sufficient to communicate in Finnish, Swedish or English. The City provides them with up-to-date information about its services on the front page of the hel.fi website and via the Helsinki news newsletter.
