Finland’s Independence Day will be celebrated with a reception hosted by President Sauli Niinistö and Mrs. Jenni Haukio on Tuesday, December 6, 2022, at the Presidential Palace.

The last time, the reception was arranged in its traditional form was in 2019. In the years between, the coronavirus pandemic forced the president’s office to rethink and resort to pre-recorded segments and other tools to create a broadcast with performances and other entertainment for national TV.
A significant proportion of the guests this year are invited for the first time, whereas there will be fewer guests that are traditionally invited in their official capacity. Due to the coronavirus still roaming around, the number of guests at the reception is approximately a third lower than in years before the virus. Some 1,300 people from all over Finland are invited.
The theme of the reception is Finland as a nation that trusts in itself.
“Finland is today a stable country in an unstable world. We have always overcome challenging times by trusting ourselves and helping each other. This year we want to honor those who have worked for Finnish society and contributed to promote Finland’s strengths“, President Sauli Niinistö said in a statement.
The guests include healthcare professionals, people responsible for overall security, volunteers as well as experts working on the success factors of the future. Guests who were invited to the Independence Day reception 2021 are also on the guest list.
The presidential couple has invited Independence Day honorary guests, war veterans and members of the women’s voluntary civil defense organization Lotta Svärd, to a special ceremony the week before Independence Day.
In addition to the smaller number of guests than usual, health security will be taken into account also in other arrangements for the reception.