FYI New Rules when applying for Finnish passport in US

[mrshourula]

New Finnish passports issued after August 21 will have biometric identifiers http://www.finland.org/en/

Finland will introduce the new biometric passport system on August 21. Passports issued before the introduction of this new system will remain valid until their expiration date.

As of August 21, 2006, when applying for a passport in the United States, each applicant including children must apply in person at the Embassy of Finland in Washington, D.C. or at the Consulates General of Finland in New York or Los Angeles. The Honorary Consuls cannot accept biometric passport applications. You can also apply for the new passport at a local police office while visiting Finland.

An application for the current type of passport must be filed at the Honorary Consulates no later than August 11, 2006 or at the above-mentioned Finnish missions no later than August 18, 2006. Applications that arrive later cannot be processed with the old system.