perusrekisteriä

Perusrekisteri, or the basic register, is a centralized digital register used by Finnish public administration to store essential information about residents. Its purpose is to support public services by providing up-to-date, shared data to authorities and by enabling more efficient online services, such as pre-filled forms and streamlined identity verification.

The register typically contains core personal data, including a person’s official name, date of birth, gender, personal identity code, citizenship, addresses, and information about family relationships or residency status. The exact contents are defined by applicable legislation and are updated from official data sources, with data often drawn from the Population Information System and other public registers.

Uses of perusrekisteri include pre-filling information in e-services, verifying identities for online transactions, ensuring data consistency across authorities, and reducing the administrative burden on citizens and businesses by minimizing the number of data requests.

Management and access are governed by public authorities under data protection and privacy rules. Access is restricted to authorized public sector actors and, when appropriate, to service providers under defined data-sharing agreements. Data handling includes logging and the application of security measures to protect confidentiality and integrity.

The concept emerged as part of Finland’s digitalization efforts to create a “digital by default” public sector. By centralizing essential data, perusrekisteri aims to improve service delivery and reduce duplication across systems, while maintaining robust safeguards for privacy and data security.

Privacy considerations accompany centralization, raising concerns about potential misuse or breaches. Safeguards include purpose limitation, data minimization, limited retention, user rights, and oversight by data protection authorities.