First to Call-ups

The Finnish Defence Forces’ 12 regional offices will organize call-ups in accordance with the Conscription Act between 5 August and 14 December 2018. The regional offices will organise 469 call-ups in 249 cities and towns across Finland. This year approximately 35,000 men will attend a call-up. All male Finnish citizens born in 2000 are liable to attend call-ups as well as those who have received notice to appear in front of a call-up board again.

The call-up is for the purpose of assessing the fitness for military service of a person liable for military service, and based on this, deciding on the person's assignment to military or non-military (civil) service They will also tell you about your rights and responsibilities as a person liable for military service, as well as give you information on the different military units and branches you can serve in.

– Men liable for call-ups are considered to be liable for military service from the start of the year when they turn 18. The call ups are organized for Finnish men who turn 18 this year, says First Lieutenant Simo Penttilä from the Uusimaa Regional Office.

Conscripts can begin their military service in either the January or July contingent in the three years following the call-up (in 2019, 2020 and 2021). Most will begin their service in January 2020 in Army, Navy, Air Force or Border Guard units that train conscripts.

The call-up board will interview each man personally and decide the time and location for military service. You can tell the Call-up Board your wishes regarding military service. The board will decide on military service locations based on the quotas, First Lieutenant Penttilä describes the call-ups.

Information regarding the call-ups can be found in the call-up notices published by the regional offices at varusmies.fi/kutsunnat.

Prepare for Call-up in Advance

Before heading to the call-up it is good to familiarise yourself with the many different jobs available in military service. The best way to ensure you are assigned a job you like is to make your wishes know already in the call-ups.

The jobs and tasks vary according to brigade-level units. More information on the different service possibilities is available at varusmies.fi/en/service-titles. The length of service and assignment that a you are trained for is decided after entry into service in the brigade-level units - not at the call-up.

– As someone who is about to attend a call-up, we recommend that you read the Conscript booklet that you will receive in the post. It is important that you think in advance where and when you would like to do your military service Penttilä instructs.

You can take advantage of your civilian expertise during military service. Take a moment before the call-up and think what tasks would be good for you, so that you can use your civilian skills and what you might get out of military service.

You will not be assigned to Special Operations Forces, such as to the special border jaegers or divers in the call-up, but you need to apply to those duties separately. If you are applying for Special Operations Forces, you still need to attend the call-up. Application instructions and further information on Special Operations Forces can be found at varusmies.fi/en/task-that-require-applying-for-before-the-service.

You can apply for special duties during service, in the beginning of the basic training period. Special duties allow you to apply the skills you have from civilian life before military service and to give you valuable working experience. Read more about special duties varusmies.fi/erityistehtavat.

(Women can volunteer for military service in all of the services (Army, Navy, Air Force) and branches of the Finnish Defence Forces. The requirements for women’s voluntary military service are: Finnish citizenship, 18-29 years of age, a good state of health and personal suitability for military training. Period of application for women’s voluntary military service ends 1 March 2019. For more information, go to varusmies.fi/naisten-vapaaehtoinen-asepalvelus.

The regional offices, which are attached to the Army’s brigade-level units, are the point of contact in matters relating to military service and conscription both before and after military service. For more information on the regional offices, go to puolustusvoimat.fi/aluetoimistot. The Finnish Defence Forces' regional offices will answer your questions also on Facebook. Also check out the regional offices’ Q&A.

Call-up Vocabulary

• Person liable to attend a call-up= all male Finnish citizens who turn 18 years of age this year are liable to attend call-ups. Also liable to attend call-ups are men who have not attended previous call-ups, unless a decision about their fitness for military service has been done separately, and they have not or will not turn 30 that year.
• Military service orders= the call up board will determine where and when you will begin your military service and give you your military service orders. It will tell you when and at which brigade-level unit you must enter into service. Your orders are also your travel ticket, so don’t lose them.
• Call-up Board = the Call-up Board determines a conscript's fitness for service, and based on that, assigning them a service location and time or possible exemption from military service. Additionally, the board may decide that a person’s fitness must be re-evaluated later or they may approve the person’s application for non-military (civil) service. The call-up board consists of an officer who is the chairperson, another military member and a representative of the call-up locality.
• Call-up post = You will receive a call-up notice in the post well before the call-up date in the beginning of the call-up year. The notice will have your call-up date and location. At the same time you will receive the conscript service and medical questionnaires and instructions for a health examination, as well as te Conscript booklet. Do not lose the call-up notice so that you will remember your own call up date.