The Government of Finland has proposed a total of EUR 1.155 billion in appropriations for the Ministry for Foreign Affairs and its branch of government for 2026. This represents a reduction of EUR 66 million compared to the 2025 Budget, largely due to EUR 46 million in adjustments outlined in the spring 2025 measures. The overall budget reflects Finland’s ongoing foreign and security policy goals, which focus on safeguarding the country’s independence, avoiding military conflict, and enhancing the security and wellbeing of its citizens amidst a complex and unpredictable global environment.
For operating expenses, the Government has allocated EUR 245 million to the Ministry for Foreign Affairs, with an additional saving of EUR 6.4 million. These savings will primarily be achieved by limiting backfill recruitment in Finland, improving operational efficiency, and targeting reductions across all expenditure types. A systematic review of Finland’s 90 diplomatic and consular missions is planned to optimize the network, noting that two offices are temporarily closed.
As part of the Team Finland reform, the foreign functions of Business Finland will be fully integrated into the Foreign Service by January 2026. This integration will centralize services for companies, with EUR 25 million allocated for export promotion initiatives to support Finnish businesses abroad.
In development cooperation, the Government prioritizes initiatives that enhance the rights and wellbeing of women and girls, including sexual and reproductive health, education, and climate measures. Finland will continue to engage with EU development policies, international development finance institutions, and UN organizations, while promoting Finnish company participation in EU Global Gateway-funded projects. A total of EUR 475 million is proposed for official development assistance (ODA), with EUR 164 million in mandate commitments extending beyond 2026. Savings measures will increase the ODA impact by EUR 73 million, including prior and newly approved reductions of EUR 50 million and EUR 20 million respectively. However, these savings will not affect Finnish civil society organizations. The budget also consolidates the support for democracy and rule of law within the exclusive ODA budget item to centralize discretionary grants.
Additional development cooperation funding includes EUR 70 million for loans and investments, with EUR 5 million proposed to increase Finnfund’s capital. Humanitarian assistance to Ukraine is allocated EUR 57 million, with mandate commitments of EUR 40 million, totaling approximately EUR 67 million in 2026, making Ukraine the largest beneficiary of Finland’s development assistance during the current government term. Overall, Finland’s public development cooperation expenditure is estimated at EUR 1.034 billion, corresponding to roughly 0.35% of gross national income (GNI).
Other appropriations include EUR 53 million for material and administrative costs of crisis management contingents, EUR 17.5 million for civilian crisis management, and EUR 3.9 million for mediation efforts, consistent with the 2025 budget. Membership fees and contributions to international organizations are proposed at EUR 152 million, subject to a non-recurring reduction of EUR 10 million. The EU accounts for the largest portion of this appropriation at EUR 64 million, followed by EUR 33 million for UN contributions and EUR 11 million for NATO.
This 2026 budget proposal reflects Finland’s commitment to maintaining robust foreign and security policies, supporting sustainable development, strengthening international partnerships, and ensuring efficient and targeted use of resources across its Foreign Ministry and associated government functions.
