Quality Management System in Finland
Self-Monitoring, Licences and Permits for Businesses
When starting a business in Finland, it is important to determine in advance how the company will ensure the quality and safety of its products or services, identify and control risks associated with its activities, and comply with the requirements applicable to its specific field of business. Depending on the sector, this may include internal control, self-monitoring (omavalvonta), obtaining permits or licences, special registration for certain types of activities and meeting professional qualification requirements.
These requirements vary depending on the nature of the business. Therefore, it is important for an entrepreneur to find out before starting operations which obligations apply specifically to their business. This information should also be taken into account when preparing a business plan in order to identify the procedures, resources and actions needed to start and operate the business.
Quality Management and Self-Monitoring — omavalvonta
Quality management is the systematic organisation of a company's operations aimed at ensuring and maintaining the required level of quality of its products or services. It is an ongoing process that includes defining quality requirements, monitoring compliance with them, identifying problems and taking measures to eliminate and prevent them. Depending on the type of business, quality requirements may be determined by legislation, standards, the company's operating conditions and customer expectations.
Internal control is part of quality management and helps a company identify errors, deviations from established requirements and other problems in a timely manner and take measures to address them. Control may cover not only finished products or services, but also work processes, equipment, documentation, employees' activities and the work of external suppliers. This provides timely information about the state of processes and supports informed decision-making.
An internal control system can be used by a company of any size and does not necessarily have to be complex. For a small company, it is important first of all to identify the main processes and responsibilities, establish the necessary control procedures and define what should be done when problems are detected. The scope of control and documentation should correspond to the size, nature and risks of the particular business.
Self-monitoring (omavalvonta) can be understood as company-organised control of its own activities and the risks associated with them. In some regulated sectors, specific requirements apply to self-monitoring, defining which risks must be identified and controlled, which procedures should be followed and how the results should be documented.
If a particular activity requires a self-monitoring plan (omavalvontasuunnitelma), it describes how the company organises such monitoring in practice. Depending on the sector, the plan may include the processes and risks being monitored, responsible persons, necessary procedures and instructions, documentation of monitoring results, as well as the actions to be taken when deviations are identified.
The requirements for omavalvonta and omavalvontasuunnitelma vary by sector. For example, in the food sector, self-monitoring is part of the system for managing food safety risks. The Finnish Food Authority (Ruokavirasto) publishes current requirements and guidance on organising self-monitoring: Starting a food business and self-monitoring.
Self-monitoring is also important in regulated social and healthcare services, where the requirements for organising it depend on the nature of the services provided.
For a small company, the internal control and self-monitoring system does not necessarily have to be complex. Its scope, procedures and documentation should correspond to the nature, scale and risks of the particular business. The entrepreneur should first of all determine which risks need to be controlled, who is responsible for the control, how it is carried out and what should be done when a problem is detected.
Licences, Permits and Notifications
A separate question is whether the company is legally entitled to carry out the chosen activity and which obligations must be fulfilled before starting operations.
In Finland, some types of business activity require a permit or licence. In other cases, it is sufficient to notify the relevant authority or register the activity. Some obligations may also have to be fulfilled on a regular basis, while certain permits must be renewed periodically.
Whether a permit is required depends on the specific type of activity. Such requirements may, for example, apply to the sale or serving of alcohol, certain types of transport activities, social and healthcare services, construction, certain types of production and other regulated sectors.
Therefore, it should not be assumed that a licence is required to start a business or, conversely, that no licence is required. The requirements must be checked for the specific activity and, in some cases, also for the particular municipality.
Up-to-date information on permits, notifications, registrations and other obligations can be found on Suomi.fi. For a number of regulated sectors, permits and supervision are handled by the Finnish Supervisory Agency (Lupa- ja valvontavirasto, LVV) — a new national authority that began operating on 1 January 2026. It carries out permit, supervision and registration tasks that were previously handled, among others, by Valvira and the regional state administrative agencies.
Professional Qualifications
In addition to requirements applicable to the company itself, some types of business activity are subject to qualification requirements for the people carrying out the work.
In regulated professions, legislation may set requirements concerning education, professional training or work experience. If a qualification was obtained in another country, its official recognition in Finland may be required, depending on the profession.
You can start by checking the website of the Finnish National Agency for Education (Opetushallitus), which provides a list of regulated professions in Finland and indicates which competent authority is responsible for recognising the qualification for each of them.
You can also check the requirements for professional qualifications in different sectors and their recognition on Suomi.fi.
Thus, an entrepreneur should check two separate issues: whether a permit or registration is required for the activity itself and whether there are professional qualification requirements for the people carrying out that activity.
What Should Be Included in the Business Plan?
Information about quality, self-monitoring, permits and professional requirements is important not only for organising the business after it has started operating. It should already be taken into account at the planning stage, because meeting these requirements may affect the scope of the business, the resources required, costs, staffing and the way the company's operations are organised.
When preparing a business plan, it is useful to answer the following questions in advance:
What quality requirements apply to my products or services?
Determine what quality requirements apply to your products or services and how the company will ensure compliance with them.
Does my business need a self-monitoring system (omavalvonta)?
Check whether specific self-monitoring requirements apply to the chosen sector and whether the relevant documentation or plan is required.
What licences, permits or notifications are required?
Determine whether the chosen activity requires a permit or licence, or whether you need to submit a notification or complete a special registration.
Are special professional qualifications required?
Check whether legislation sets requirements concerning the education, qualifications or professional right to practise of the entrepreneur and employees.
What additional requirements need to be considered?
Check requirements related, for example, to premises, equipment, safety, the environment or other specific aspects of the particular activity.
How will the company monitor compliance with these requirements?
Determine who is responsible, which control procedures and documentation are needed, and what actions should be taken when non-compliance or risks are identified.
Before starting operations, an entrepreneur must not only obtain the necessary permits and fulfil formal requirements, but also understand how these requirements will be met in the company's day-to-day work. The quality and safety of products or services, risk control, employee responsibilities and compliance with mandatory requirements should all be part of the organised operation of the business from the beginning.
As a result, the business plan should reflect not only what the company intends to do, but also how it will do so safely, with the required level of quality and in compliance with applicable requirements.
Last updated: 3 October 2026
