Do I really have to learn finnish to apply for citizenship?

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Ema
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Do I really have to learn finnish to apply for citizenship?

Post by Ema » Mon Feb 28, 2005 11:05 am

hi, dear all

I moved to Finland two years ago and now I have a perment residence permit. I am planning to apply citizenship next year, but I have read from some websites that one has to speak fluent finnish. My god, finnish is so difficult language, and I think that I will never learn it.



Do I really have to learn finnish to apply for citizenship?

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Hank W.
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Post by Hank W. » Mon Feb 28, 2005 11:11 am

You have to show proficency in one of the official languages; Finnish or Swedish. Usually you can show this with a national proficiency test.
Cheers, Hank W.
sitting here like a lemon looking for a gin.

Ema
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Post by Ema » Mon Feb 28, 2005 11:33 am

Thanks a lot, I did not expect to get answers so soon. :lol:

Have you attended the test already? If I may ask!

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khu
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Post by khu » Mon Feb 28, 2005 11:47 am

Hank's Finnish, so attending the test would only make clear that he didnt study Finnish very well at school :P :P

There's a thread about this in the 'language school' (kielikoulu) section of the forum which may interest you.

bb/viewtopic.php?t=7680
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PeterF
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Post by PeterF » Mon Feb 28, 2005 11:55 am

khu wrote:Hank's Finnish, so attending the test would only make clear that he didnt study Finnish very well at school :P :P
If they had heard what Hank said to the door man at Toppari on Saturday night when he claimed that Hank was "liian kännissä" they would ask where he learnt such eloquent expression about the door man's parents! :oops:

Ema
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Post by Ema » Mon Feb 28, 2005 12:04 pm

ok, good to know that Hank is a Finn, I was going to ask hank how long has he been in Finalnd. Thank god that I am a slow typist.

khu, thanks for the info. I just joined here today and I am trying to read as many news as I can to catch up.

I will be much more professional next time :wink:

otyikondo
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Post by otyikondo » Mon Feb 28, 2005 1:27 pm

Can one apply these days after only three years? They ARE getting generous. Perhaps they're hoping to net some ambitious and careless males as cannon fodder.

But what in all seriousness would be the point of taking citizenship of a country where one cannot communicate with 99% of the population? It strikes me as singularly logical that naturalised members of the society should be expected to speak the lingo. You no like-a da heat, you staya outa da kitchen.

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Hank W.
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Post by Hank W. » Mon Feb 28, 2005 1:41 pm

Ema wrote: I was going to ask hank how long has he been in Finalnd.
Answer is, as always "too long".
Cheers, Hank W.
sitting here like a lemon looking for a gin.

dreamer
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Post by dreamer » Mon Feb 28, 2005 1:48 pm

otyikondo wrote:Can one apply these days after only three years? They ARE getting generous.
Could be so in married to a Finn cases, else it's after 6 years nowdays. Or maybe it's possible to apply sooner, but to actually get it only after 6 years? I also think language skills are a must for both cases, to be proven by some official certificate.

Ema
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Post by Ema » Mon Feb 28, 2005 1:59 pm

hello otyikondo,

Yup, I know that 3 years are bit short to apply but people told me that I can apply already, it takes really long to get it and probably by the time I get it, I have already been in Finland more than 4 years or something like that.

I planned to appy the citizenship was because I didn't take the language test seriously, I thought that it is not a big part of the qualification. Well, now, I guess I need 2 or 3 years more to be able to pass that test.

Well I have found that my life has been quite comfort in Finland though I don't really speak finnish. I communicated with people at work in English and when I go shopping, most of the time I can use English too and people are really kind. That is one thing I have been very greatful.

I know that I will need to learn finnish sooner or later, But........!

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Hank W.
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Post by Hank W. » Mon Feb 28, 2005 2:06 pm

See now, the "old farts" here had to go personally to be interviewed by the secret police in the "good old days" so getting citizenship wasn't anything to be taken lightly... :wink:
Cheers, Hank W.
sitting here like a lemon looking for a gin.

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sayx
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Post by sayx » Mon Feb 28, 2005 2:29 pm

You do not have to have basic knowledge of the Finnish or Swedish language to get Finnish citizenship. You have to prove that the person is unable to have a basic grasp on medical grounds, good example is dyslexia.
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otyikondo
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Post by otyikondo » Mon Feb 28, 2005 3:18 pm

Hank W. wrote:See now, the "old farts" here had to go personally to be interviewed by the secret police in the "good old days" so getting citizenship wasn't anything to be taken lightly... :wink:

Phhhhaaaaaaaarppppp! :)

PeterF
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Post by PeterF » Mon Feb 28, 2005 3:45 pm

otyikondo wrote:
Hank W. wrote:See now, the "old farts" here had to go personally to be interviewed by the secret police in the "good old days" so getting citizenship wasn't anything to be taken lightly... :wink:

Phhhhaaaaaaaarppppp! :)
What was her name .??
Ministry of the Interior residents application vetting....Gestapo trained :wink: so I was lead to believe.
I heard so many stories when I first came here from the "old Farts" about how "she" checked if one was going to be "of use in Finland".. :shock:
I also had strict instruction never to smile in her presence, or she would suspect that you were offering sex as a bribe to get the residents permit! :roll:

otyikondo
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Post by otyikondo » Mon Feb 28, 2005 3:50 pm

Eila. Eila Kännö. Yep, one smile in Eila's direction and she'd have you up against the filing cabinets with a letter-opener to your throat.

She wrote an autobiography afterwards and came across as a pussy cat who was only doing her masters' bidding.


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