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Privacy policy: State matters regarding inheritances and last wills

13 May 2019 

1. Controller

Name: State Treasury
Address: Sörnäisten rantatie 13, P.O. Box 14, FI-00054 State Treasury
Other contact details: tel. +358 (0)295 50 2000, registry@statetreasury.fi

2. Contact person for filing system-related matters

Name: Marjukka Vallioniemi
Address: Services for citizens, P.O. Box 14, FI-00054 State Treasury
Other contact details: registry@statetreasury.fi

3. Data protection officer

dpo@statetreasury.fi

4. Legal basis and purpose for processing of personal data

The State Treasury supervises the government’s entitlement to the estates of people who die without heirs. The register contains information on persons who have died without heirs and whose property has been claimed by the State as per Chapter 5, Section 1 of the Code of Inheritance or who have prepared their last will which has been provided for information to the State, which has been deemed as the heir in accordance with Chapter 14, Section 2 of the Code of Inheritance.

The register is used to

  • manage estates claimed by the State and make decisions on the distribution of property inherited by the State among the various parties.
  • make decisions on the approval of last wills provided to the State Treasury for information or on the institution of a possible action of annulment.

 

The register is used to form statistics that contain information on the amount and distribution of the property encompassed by estates.

The processing is based on the Act on the Implementation of the Code of Inheritance (41/1965) and the Code of Inheritance (40/1965).

5. Information content of the register

Deceased person’s name, personal identity code, date of death and last place of residence, and savings in estate property.

 

Inheritance matters:

  • Notifier’s name, address, e-mail address and telephone number
  • Name, address, e-mail address, telephone number and date of birth of the estate administrator authorised by the State Treasury
  • Property claimant’s name, address, e-mail address, telephone number, year of birth, relation to the deceased person
  • Name, address, e-mail address and telephone number of the witnesses for the application
  • When the claimant is a municipality, the name, position, e-mail address and telephone number of the contact person
  • Decision on the estate property: information on the distribution of the property among the various parties in euros.

Last will matters: preparation date of the last will, date of the State Treasury approving the last will, and the name, address, e-mail address and telephone number of the notifier.

The register is used to archive all documents related to the matter, including notifications of persons who have died without an heir, estate administration proxy, estate inventory deed, powers to sell, decisions, the last will in question, trial documents.

6. Normal data sources

Notifications of persons who have died without an heir are submitted by social workers, legal aid offices, police departments and private persons, for example. Information can also be obtained from property claimants (private persons and organisations).

Last wills are submitted for information by private persons and organisations.

7. Regular disclosures of data

Data contained by the register is disclosed to interested parties. Decisions on estate property are provided to the tax authority for information. Anyone can receive information on the decision on request.

Information on decisions made on estate property (including distributions in euros) and inventory deed values are provided to the Ministry of Finance on an annual basis.

8. Regular disclosures of personal data or transfer of data outside the EU or the EEA

Data is not disclosed or transferred to recipients outside the EU or EEA.

9.  Principles for filing system protection

Information on the total financial assets encompassed by an estate is regarded as confidential information (Act on the Openness of Government Activities, Chapter 6, Section 24(23). Claims for the property encompassed by an estate may contain confidential information (Act on the Openness of Government Activities, Chapter 6, Section 24(25)).

Only individuals authorised by the controller, who are under obligation of secrecy, have access to the data processed within the information system. Access rights are kept up-to-date by regular inspection, and unnecessary access rights are removed. The information network and terminals containing the register are protected using technical measures. The application servers are located in the operating service provider’s protected facilities. The actions of the data system users and the authorisation of data access are monitored by means of collecting log data.

Manual data content is stored in a locked room which is only accessible by individuals who have been authorised by the controller and are bound by an obligation of secrecy. Unnecessary manual materials are destroyed in a data secure manner.

10. Data storage period / criteria for determining storage period

The stipulations of the Archives Act 831/1994 are observed with regard to the storage of documents.

  • Estate inventory deeds, notification documents related to the last will and documents pertaining to property claims, decisions on the property and appeals are retained permanently.
  • Documents related to invoices and the rendering of accounts are retained for six years.
  • Other documents are kept for 50 years.

The retaining period for documents is calculated from the resolution of the matter.

11. Information about automatic decision-making and information about the logic of data processing and its impacts on the data subject

The processing of the data does not entail automated decision-making.

12. Right of access

The data subject has the right to access their data in the register. Requests should be sent to the registry office.

In the event that the data subject has exercised their right of access less than one year ago, the controller may collect a fee based on the administrative costs caused by the provision of the data.

13. Rectification of data

Data subjects are entitled to request corrections to any incorrect information the register may contain on them. Requests should be sent to the registry office.

14. The right to object to processing of personal data

The State Treasury processes personal data in order to carry out its statutory duties, and the data subject does not have the right to object to the processing of their personal data.

15. Right to restriction of processing

The data subject has the right to restrict the processing of their personal data as specified in Article 18 of the GDPR.

16. Right to erasure

The State Treasury processes personal data in order to carry out its statutory duties, and the data subject does not have the right to have their personal data removed.

17. Right to lodge a complaint

The data subject has the right to lodge a complaint with a supervisory authority if the data subject believes that their rights have been infringed by the actions of the controller.

18. Other rights

Personal data is neither used nor disclosed for the purpose of direct advertising, distance marketing or other direct marketing, market and opinion research, registers of individuals, or genealogies.

19. Use of cookies

The data system does not use cookies.

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