Bereavement help and advice

Frequently asked questions about an estate’s banking

What documents related to the estate do I need to provide to you?

We are obliged to identify the parties to the estate from the estate inventory deed and other relevant documents. The most common documents that are used to identify the parties to the estate are the following:

• estate inventory deed
• report on the deceased’s family relationships
• will and the service and acceptance of the will, if any, and notices of the compulsory legal portion
• pre-/post-nuptial agreement
• estate inventory deed of a previously deceased spouse
• notification of a waiver of succession rights
• permission from the guardianship authority (the Finnish Digital and Population Data Services Agency) for the partition and distribution of the estate.

What is the difference between a life certificate issued by a parish, a report on family relationships and a life certificate issued by the Digital and Population Data Services Agency?

Life certificate issued by a parish

A life certificate is used to prove that you are a party to an estate (an heir, a universal beneficiary or the surviving spouse).

Life certificate (virkatodistus) is a term used by parishes for the official certificates they issue. It can either be a more comprehensive report on the deceased’s family relationships or a brief certificate of life. If the deceased or the person for whom the certificate is needed was a member of an Evangelical Lutheran parish or Orthodox parish, you can order the life certificate from the local parish. Otherwise, the certificate must be ordered from the Digital and Population Data Services Agency.

Report on family relationships

A report on family relationships (sukuselvitys) is a more extensive report on the deceased from the age of 15 until their death. It is used to identify the heirs for the purpose of an estate inventory. In some cases, you may also need to order a report on the deceased’s marital spouses, deceased heirs and persons who have renounced their inheritance in order to identify the heirs.

A report on family relationships is a certificate issued on paper or digitally by a parish or the Digital and Population Data Services Agency for a specific purpose, such as an estate inventory. A report on family relationships usually includes the following:

• the person’s current and former names, personal identity number, place of birth, marital status (information about marriage) and municipality of residence  
• information about the person’s spouses and children and, if relevant, about their parents and siblings  
• information about when the person has moved abroad and back from abroad  
• the time period covered by the certificate.

Life certificate issued by the Digital and Population Data Services Agency

The Digital and Population Data Services Agency issues life certificates of persons who are registered in Finland. This form of life certificate (elossaolotodistus) only contains information about the person in question. The certificate includes the following:

• current and former names
• personal identity number
• information that the person is alive
• municipality of residence and permanent address.