Operating in Finland? Speak with a security consultant.
Ice closes more Helsinki itineraries than crime does. That is the first thing worth knowing about security planning in Finland, a country that the FCDO and US State Department both rate at their lowest advisory tiers, and where the practical risks for a visiting executive are environmental and, since 2023, cyber-adjacent rather than criminal in the conventional sense.
Private Security Services Act 1085/2015: the licensing backbone
Finland licenses its private security sector under the Private Security Services Act (1085/2015), under which the police license security businesses and approve their guards and personal protection officers. Confirming an operator’s licence before booking is a five-minute check worth doing. Our bodyguard hire coverage in Helsinki runs only through licensed partners.
Unarmed by practice, not just by rule
Finnish close protection for corporate and executive clients is delivered unarmed in the overwhelming majority of engagements. What replaces the weapon is disciplined route planning, current threat intelligence, and liaison with a licensed local partner, which our executive protection teams build into every Helsinki assignment.
NATO membership and the cyber dimension
Finland joined NATO in April 2023, ending decades of formal non-alignment. For most business travellers this changes nothing tangible. For executives in ICT, telecommunications, or defence-adjacent research, it changes quite a lot: Supo’s annual reports since accession document rising foreign intelligence interest in exactly those sectors. A cyber-hygiene briefing before travel is now a genuinely useful add-on for that specific client group, not a generic upsell.
Source: Private Security Services Act 1085/2015 (Finlex, checked 7 October 2026). FCDO Travel Advice: Finland (2026). Supo Annual Report (2025).
For the full threat, zone and regulatory briefing, see our Helsinki security guide. Finland’s Nordic neighbours carry a broadly similar licensing philosophy; see our Sweden security services page for the comparison.
Cities We Cover
Helsinki
Low riskFinland's capital and its only close protection deployment point on this network. Ice, not crime, is the dominant physical risk between October and March, and Finland's 2023 NATO accession has pushed cyber-threat awareness for ICT and defence-adjacent visitors above the European baseline, per Supo (Finnish Security Intelligence Service) annual reporting.
View city guide →Security Regulations
Firearms
Whether a private security guard or personal protection officer in Finland may carry a firearm, and on what terms, could not be confirmed against the text of the Private Security Services Act on 7 October 2026. A 2016 government bill on the Act says the National Police Board sets the curricula for weapons-user and refresher training. Our Helsinki cover is unarmed as standard.
Licensing
Private security services in Finland are governed by the Private Security Services Act (1085/2015). The police license security businesses and approve the individual security guards and personal protection officers who work for them, and the National Police Board can cancel those licences: Yle reported that it cancelled 753 licences for private security workers in 2022. Ask any provider for its licence and each officer's approval.
Foreign Operators
The rules for foreign security companies and foreign personnel in Finland could not be confirmed against a primary source on 7 October 2026. Work through a Finnish licensed security company, and take local legal advice before a foreign team carries out protective duties.
Sources, checked : Finlex, Act 588/2023 amending the Private Security Services Act (1085/2015); Government bill HE 42/2016 on amending the Private Security Services Act (Edilex); Yle, National Police Board cancelled 753 security licences in 2022 (10 January 2023).