Enforcement of national penalties - conditions of imprisonment

Finland

Finland - Criminal Code 1894 (2015) EN

Chapter 6 – Sentencing

Deductions to be made from the punishment imposed

Section 13 – Deduction of period of loss of liberty

(1) If a sentence of imprisonment for a fixed period is imposed for an act for which the offender has been deprived of his or her liberty for a continuous period of at least one day, the court shall deduct from the punishment a period corresponding to this loss of liberty, or deem this loss of liberty to be full service of the punishment.

(2) The same shall be done if the loss of liberty was due to the defendant having been taken into custody due to charges or a criminal investigation relating to the same matter or due to a court order to the effect that the defendant was to be brought before the court.

(3) If the punishment imposed is a fine, the loss of liberty shall be taken into account to a reasonable amount, but nonetheless at least to an amount corresponding to the loss of liberty, or shall be deemed to be full service of the punishment.

Chapter 6 – Sentencing

Deductions to be made from the punishment imposed

Section 14 – Deduction of punishment imposed abroad

If a person is sentenced in Finland for an offence for which he or she has already served a sanction imposed abroad in full or in part, a reasonable amount shall be deducted from the sentence to be imposed. If the sanction that has been served has been a custodial sentence, the court shall deduct from the sentence the time corresponding to the loss of liberty. The court may also note that the sanction that has been served is to be deemed a sufficient sanction for the offence.

Chapter 7 - Joint punishment

Section 1 - Sentencing to a joint punishment of imprisonment (755/2010)

(1) If a person is to be sentenced to imprisonment for two or more offences at the same time, he or she shall be sentenced to a joint punishment of imprisonment, unless otherwise provided elsewhere in law.

(2) In cases where one offence would be punishable by imprisonment and one or more of the other offences would be punishable by a fine or a summary penal fee, the court may pass a joint sentence of imprisonment for all the offences. The court may also impose a joint sentence of imprisonment for some of the offences and, in addition, a fine or summary penal fine for the other offences, but not both a fine and a summary penal fine.

(3) If one offence would be punishable by life imprisonment, a sentence of life imprisonment shall be passed as a joint punishment for all the offences.

Rome Statute

Article 103 Role of States in enforcement of sentences of imprisonment

1.

(a) A sentence of imprisonment shall be served in a State designated by the Court from a list of States which have indicated to the Court their willingness to accept sentenced persons.

(b) At the time of declaring its willingness to accept sentenced persons, a State may attach conditions to its acceptance as agreed by the Court and in accordance with this Part.

(c) A State designated in a particular case shall promptly inform the Court whether it accepts the Court's designation.

2.

(a) The State of enforcement shall notify the Court of any circumstances, including the exercise of any conditions agreed under paragraph 1, which could materially affect the terms or extent of the imprisonment. The Court shall be given at least 45 days' notice of any such known or foreseeable circumstances. During this period, the State of enforcement shall take no action that might prejudice its obligations under article 110.

(b) Where the Court cannot agree to the circumstances referred to in subparagraph (a), it shall notify the State of enforcement and proceed in accordance with article 104, paragraph 1.

3. In exercising its discretion to make a designation under paragraph 1, the Court shall take into account the following:

(a) The principle that States Parties should share the responsibility for enforcing sentences of imprisonment, in accordance with principles of equitable distribution, as provided in the Rules of Procedure and Evidence;

(b) The application of widely accepted international treaty standards governing the treatment of prisoners;

(c) The views of the sentenced person;

(d) The nationality of the sentenced person;

(e) Such other factors regarding the circumstances of the crime or the person sentenced, or the effective enforcement of the sentence, as may be appropriate in designating the State of enforcement.

4. If no State is designated under paragraph 1, the sentence of imprisonment shall be served in a prison facility made available by the host State, in accordance with the conditions set out in the headquarters agreement referred to in article 3, paragraph 2. In such a case, the costs arising out of the enforcement of a sentence of imprisonment shall be borne by the Court.