Law and permits
Two separate permits are needed here.
LVV permit
§ 24 of the Burial Act: a buried body or ashes may be moved to another grave for especially weighty reasons and with a permit from Lupa- ja valvontavirasto. Previously, this function was performed by the Regional State Administrative Agencies (aluehallintovirasto, AVI). Processing the application is subject to a fee; we check the exact amount with LVV before submitting.
What "especially weighty reasons" means. The explanatory memorandum to the Act (HE 204/2002) states: Finnish tradition considers a grave to be a place of eternal rest. A weighty reason arises mostly when a person could not be buried right away where they and their family wanted. The state authority gave the following examples on its website:
- for some reason, the person could not be buried where they or the family wanted;
- the person lived in Finland as a refugee or asylum seeker, and circumstances in their country have changed so that the remains can be moved to their homeland;
- there are exceptional reasons related to health protection or land use.
Each case is assessed individually. In decision KHO 2024:59, the Supreme Administrative Court refused parents who wanted to move their child from a shared grave, even though it recognized their reasons as weighty: finding the remains would have meant disturbing the remains of other children. Conclusion: if other people are buried in the same grave, the chances are lower.
An LVV decision can be appealed to the Administrative Court (hallinto-oikeus).
Health permit
The Health Protection Decree (Terveydensuojeluasetus 1280/1994, § 42) requires a separate application to the municipal health protection authority. It must include:
- details of the deceased;
- an official document stating the cause and time of death;
- details of the current grave;
- confirmation of the new burial place.
The authority requests a statement from the cemetery owner, may refuse or set conditions, and sets a deadline by which the transfer must be completed.
