The banks hold 700,000 share certificates as collateral for apartment loans. These share certificates will be converted into electronic owner entries in bulk, which is more cost-effective for the society, more convenient for the banks’ customers, and beneficial for the Property Information System’s coverage.
Property owners do not need to do anything yet
“If the owner of an apartment has given their share certificate to a bank as collateral for a loan, they stay calm and wait for instructions. However, if apartment changes owners, the new owner must register their ownership with the National Land Survey within two months of the change,” says the Director of Apartment Ownership Services Janne Murtoniemi at the National Land Survey.
The law on mass digitisation is expected to enter into force in early 2027. The National Land Survey of Finland and the banks are currently preparing digital solutions for transferring data on apartment share certificates from the banks to the National Land Survey of Finland.
According to a current assessment by cooperation group of the National Land Survey of Finland and the banks, mass digitisation of share certificates should begin in autumn 2027. When everything is ready, the National Land Survey and the banks will provide instructions to customers. What the owners will need to do is submit an application to the National Land Survey of Finland for an electronic registration of ownership. The other stages are handled by the bank and the National Land Survey.
Mass digitisation reduces the cost of digitising share certificates
On average, banks currently charge a fee of €350 for the digitisation of a share certificate used as collateral for a loan. Under the upcoming law, banks will not charge the customer a separate fee.
Owners will only have to pay the National Land Survey’s registration fee, which will be determined later by a decree of the Ministry of Agriculture and Forestry.
“At the moment, the cost of ownership registration is €92, which covers the National Land Survey’s cost of digitising the share certificate. We anticipate that the unit cost of mass digitisation will not be higher than that,” says Murtoniemi.
The Property Information System, maintained the National Land Survey of Finland, is being filled with apartment ownership information and the administrative data of housing companies, which are currently reported by housing companies. Various actors will have access to comparable, up-to-date and high-quality information on housing companies.
Residential and Commercial Property Information System:
• There are approximately 1.25 million share certificates in Finland, of which 700,000 are held by banks as collateral for loans.
• Currently, there is an electronic ownership entry in the Property Information System for 34 per cent of apartments. Electronic registration of ownership will replace paper share certificates in apartment transactions and as collateral for loan, accelerating the process of apartment transactions.
• By 30 June 2026, housing companies will report information on their renovations and loans to the system. There are 90,000 housing companies in Finland, approximately 95 per cent of which have transferred their lists of shares to the Property Information System.
• The Property Information System will become a public data register that will be used by real estate agents, property managers, creditors, public authorities and companies.
Further information
Janne Murtoniemi, Director, Registration Process, National Land Survey of Finland, +358 40 710 8862, etunimi.sukunimi@maanmittauslaitos.fi