Application and supervision fee
The Board on Trial Counsel charges an application fee for the processing of an application, regardless of whether it is accepted or rejected. The application fee was EUR 445 in 2024 (Decree of the Ministry of Justice 988/2022). The application fee from 1.1.2025 onwards is EUR 473 (Decree of the Ministry of Justice 646/2024).
Licensed trial counsel must also pay a supervision fee. The supervision fee must be paid for the year in which the licensed trial counsel is granted the licence, and for each calendar year at the beginning of which their licence is valid. The supervision fee was EUR 433 in 2024 (Decision of the Ministry of Justice VN/32274/2023). The Ministry of Justice revises the amount of the supervision fee annually according to the increase in the cost-of-living index. The supervision fee from 1.1.2025 onwards is EUR 437 (Decision of the Ministry of Justice VN/32216/2024). The Board on Trial Counsel remits 2/3 of the supervision fees paid each year to the Finnish Bar Association. This sum is used to cover the costs of the activities of the Disciplinary Board and the supervision unit.
The application fee and supervision fee are directly enforceable. The Government proposal (318/2010 vp) to Parliament for a licensed Trial Counsel Act states that the supervision fee should be considered a tax from the perspective of constitutional law. Therefore, the amount of the supervision fee and the grounds for changing it are provided for in section 24, subsection 2 of the licensed Trial Counsel Act. According to the government proposal, the regulations do not leave the Board on Trial Counsel any room for discretion in levying the fee or assessing its amount.
The supervision fees are used to fund the supervision of licensed trial counsel. According to the government proposal. The supervision fee must be considered comparable to a tax. The obligation to pay it arises when the trial counsel is granted a licence. Whether or not the licensed trial counsel has actually undertaken any legal action after the granting of the licence is irrelevant in this regard.
The Board can issue a certificate of a valid licence to a licensed trial counsel upon request. A certificate fee of EUR 32 is charged for the certificate in 2024 and EUR 34 in 2025.
Fee invoicing
The application fee is invoiced from the applicant after their application has been processed and resolved at the meeting of the Board. If the applicant was granted a licence, the annual supervision fee is invoiced in connection with the application fee. In future, an invoice for the annual supervision fee will be sent to the licensed trial counsel in March or April of each year, provided that their licence was valid at the beginning of the year.
The Board on Trial Counsel only addresses invoices personally to the trial counsel who applied for / was granted the licence, and the invoices are delivered by post to their home address. The trial counsel who applied for / was granted the licence is personally liable for the payments, which are directly enforceable. The licensed trial counsel is responsible for providing the Board with up-to-date address and contact information. The Board must be notified of changes in address and contact information in writing, for example by email to the Board’s office email address: (oikeudenkayntiavustajaltk(at)oikeus.fi). When sending e-mail, replace (at) with @.
The invoices can also be sent electronically. The e-invoicing agreement must be made in your online bank.
If the trial counsel who applied for / was granted the licence is using the Suomi.fi Messages or OmaPosti service, the sales invoices sent by the Board on Trial Counsel and payment reminders for them will be sent through these invoicing channels.
The priority of sales invoicing channels for private customers is the following:
- E-invoice
- Suomi.fi Messages service
- OmaPosti
- Printed paper invoice
Sales invoices will not be sent through the e-invoice, Suomi.fi Messages or OmaPosti channels if the customer has not specifically ordered the invoices through the service in question. The customer receives an email notification when a sales invoice is sent to the Suomi.fi Messages service. If the customer has not registered with one of these services and given permission for sending sales invoices through them, the sales invoice will be printed out and delivered to the customer by post.
Request for rectification
If the recipient of the invoice considers that they are not liable to pay the application of supervision fee, they have the right to file a request for rectification to the Board (The licensed Trial Counsel Act, section 26).
The request for rectification must be made in writing and delivered to the Board on Trial Counsel by post or email (oikeudenkayntiavustajaltk(at)oikeus.fi). When sending e-mail, replace (at) with @.