A guardian or another person who has the right to receive information about a child’s affairs can use MyKanta on behalf of a child under the age of 18. This is called acting on behalf of a minor. The right to manage another person’s affairs is verified with the Population Information System.
How to act on behalf of a minor in MyKanta
Log in to MyKanta at kanta.fi. You can identify yourself using online banking codes or a mobile certificate, for instance.
Go to the section ‘Toisen puolesta asiointi’ (Acting on behalf of another person).
Select the child whose affairs you wish to manage.
If the child has a means of digital identification, they can also use MyKanta themselves.
- View your child’s prescriptions and health information
- View the child’s client data stored in social welfare services, which will gradually be displayed in MyKanta
- Request a prescription renewal for the child
- Confirm receipt of the information about the Kanta Services and grant consent to data sharing.
- Submit denials of consent to sharing of the child’s data
- Submit or view the child’s living will and organ donation testament
- Check the disclosure of the child’s health information
Managing these affairs on behalf of a minor requires that a social welfare or health care professional assesses the child’s decision-making capacity. Such matters can only be handled in person with a professional.
Visibility of information in MyKanta to guardians
There are regional differences in how a child’s social welfare and health care data are shown to their guardian. The visibility of the data is also affected by an assessment of the child’s capacity to make decisions independently. A child with decision-making capacity has the right to decide whether their data are visible to their guardian.
As a rule, the guardian can view the patient data of their minor child in MyKanta. An exception to this is data to which access has been specifically prohibited by a child who has been assessed as having the capacity to make this decision independently.
Some of the child’s old patient data might not be visible to the guardians. This applies to data recorded on a child over the age of 10 before it has been possible for health care to record an assessment of the child’s decision-making capacity. The recording of these assessments has been introduced in health care in stages. The assessment cannot be added to the data afterwards.
If necessary, the guardian can ask the health care unit that cared for the child for detailed information on the start date from which data on their child aged 10-17 will be visible to the guardian.
As a rule, the guardian can see the prescriptions prescribed to their minor child in MyKanta. The exception to this will be prescriptions that are not visible to the guardian because a child assessed as having the capacity to make a decision on the matter has specifically prohibited their guardian’s access to the data.
You can use MyKanta to view the child’s social welfare client data that a social welfare professional has saved in Kanta. The social welfare services data will become available in MyKanta in stages over the period of 2023–2026.
As a rule, a guardian of a child under the age of 18 can view all of the information recorded about the child in MyKanta. The same information is also visible to the child.
A professional may, at their discretion or at the child’s justified request, limit the amount of data visible to the guardian in MyKanta. However, restrictions that apply to only one guardian cannot be made.
Why can’t I see my child’s data or prescriptions in MyKanta?
If your child's data or prescriptions are not shown in MyKanta, it may be due to one of the following reasons:
- There is a delay in showing the data, i.e. the professional has decided that the information will not appear in MyKanta until later.
- No assessment of the child’s decision-making capacity has been recorded in the child’s prescription or health information.
- The visibility of prescriptions or data to the guardian has been prohibited, i.e. a child with decision-making capacity has requested that the data are not disclosed to their guardian.
- The social welfare service unit does not yet store client data in Kanta.
Prescriptions and health data recorded before 1 August 2016 are not shown in MyKanta.
Acting on behalf of a minor in MyKanta
In general, both parents can act on behalf of their child. However, information about various life situations may have been recorded in the Population Information System and this information may affect the use of services on behalf of the child in MyKanta.
If you are unable to use MyKanta, you can ask the Digital and Population Data Services Agency’s customer service (dvv.fi)(opens new window) for more information about the situation.
If a minor has a non-disclosure for personal safety reasons, neither guardian can act on behalf of the minor in MyKanta. In this case, the guardians may apply for authority to act on their child’s behalf by submitting an authorisation application to the Digital and Population Data Services Agency. The reason for the child’s non-disclosure is checked when the authorisation application is processed, and if the reason is the guardian’s occupation, for example, authorisation can be granted.
If both guardians have a non-disclosure for personal safety reasons, neither guardian can automatically act on behalf of the child. In this case, the guardians may jointly authorise one or both of the guardians to act on behalf of the minor.
If only one guardian has a non-disclosure for personal safety reasons, only the guardian with the non-disclosure can act on the minor’s behalf. If they wish, one of the guardians may also authorise the other guardian to act on the child’s behalf.
Instructions for the mutual authorisation of guardians in non-disclosure situations can be found on the Suomi.fi online service (suomi.fi)(opens new window). In MyKanta, you need a Suomi.fi authorisation to manage health-related affairs Managing matters related to health care (suomi.fi)(opens new window) and the authorisation for Managing matters related to social welfare services (suomi.fi)(opens new window) to manage affairs related to social welfare client data.
If a custody agreement or order has been made or issued concerning a child, the guardian can use MyKanta on behalf of the child in accordance with the agreement or order. A parent or guardian who does not have the right to make decisions on social welfare or healthcare matters can always access their dependent’s information, but cannot, for example, issue consent to data sharing or request a prescription renewal on behalf of the child.
If a person has the right to information, they may only view the child's information in MyKanta. Examples of a person with a right to information include a parent or other party who does not have custody of or the right to make decisions for the child. The right to information is recorded in the population information system on the basis of an agreement made by the parents or a court decision.