Building permits: documentation of statistics

A building refers to any independent structure permanently constructed or erected on its site. It has its own entrance and contains covered space intended for different purposes, usually enclosed within outer walls or walls separating it from other structures (buildings).

Caves and other subterranean spaces which are mainly enclosed within rock or similar walls and/or which do not contain structures comparable to the interior structures of buildings proper, such as underground oil tanks, are not buildings.

Buildings do not include light-structured stalls, kiosks and the like, which do not include spaces separated by closed walls, or transportable caravans, ships and so on.

The building data derive from the building information system maintained by the Finnish Environment Institute Syke.

The building stock statistics of Statistics Finland do not include:

- liquid storage buildings
- buildings used only in agricultural production
- sauna buildings belonging to residential buildings
- outhouses of residential buildings
- buildings entirely controlled by foreign missions
- buildings of the Finnish Defence Forces,
- air raid shelters

except where the above-mentioned buildings are occupied or have commercial properties.


The data on new production of buildings do not include:

- buildings entirely controlled by foreign missions
- buildings of the Finnish Defence Forces
- air raid shelters

The building material refers to the material from which the vertical supporting structures of the building are mainly made. The classification is as follows:
- concrete, light concrete
- brick
- steel
- wood
- other, unknown.

A building permit is a licence to build which is issued in accordance with the Land Use Act and the Planning and Construction Act and is granted by the municipal building control or environmental control authority dependent on the size of the building project. A notification must be made of all building projects subject to a building permit, and statistics on building and dwelling production are compiled from the information in these notifications.

Projects subject to a building permit comprise construction of a new building, construction of an annex, repairs and alterations comparable to the construction of a new building, extension of a building or increase of the space included in its floor area, and essential change of the purpose of use of a building or part of a building.

Building production refers to the production of buildings subject to a building permit as a result of which buildings are created for different purposes of use.

The cubic capacity of a building is the space limited by the exterior surfaces of outer walls, the lower surface of the base floor (the base of the building’s lowest space with thermal insulation) and the upper surface of the roof (the building part limiting the building's uppermost heated space from above including thermal insulation and protection).

The cubic capacity of a building is calculated in accordance with the Finnish Standards Association's standard SFS 2460, RT 120.12.

A dwelling refers to a room or a suite of rooms which is intended for year-round habitation; is furnished with a kitchen, kitchenette or cooking area; and has a floor area of at least 7 square metres. Every dwelling must have its own entrance. A single-family house may be entered through an enclosed porch or veranda. If a dwelling is entered through the premises of another dwelling, it is not regarded as a separate dwelling but instead those two constitute one dwelling.

Dwelling production refers to building construction subject to a building permit as an outcome of which dwellings, or residential apartments are produced. A dwelling refers to a room or suite of rooms which is intended for year-round habitation, is furnished with a kitchen, kitchenette or cooking area and has a floor area of at least 7 square metres. A dwelling also has its own, direct entrance.

Method of construction is determined by the main method of construction used for the building frame:

Buildings in which over half of load bearing structures or certain parts of load bearing structures, such as externals walls, are mass produced are referred to as having a prefabricated structure.

Buildings for which load bearing structures are built on site are deemed to have been produced in-situ. Only heating and ventilation ducts, flights of stairs, balconies and bathrooms may be factory-made in a building constructed in-situ.

Newbuilding includes construction of new buildings subject to building permits, expansion of buildings and alterations comparable to rebuilding. Newbuilding produces new space either entirely in the form of new building construction, extensions made to existing buildings or reconstructed buildings.

A house with at least three dwellings of which at least two are on top of each other.

Single-family houses refer to detached houses, semi-detached houses or two-storey houses with two dwellings.

Dwellings are classified according to the type of building as follows:

- one to two-dwelling houses: one to two-dwelling houses and permanently occupied free-time residences
- terraced houses: detached houses with at least three adjoining dwellings and where the spaces belonging to different dwellings are not on top of each other.
- blocks of flats: residential buildings of at least three dwellings in which at least two dwellings are located on top of each other and which do not belong to the categories above
- other buildings: also buildings whose type of building is unknown.