Before you may start gold panning
Read the permit decision carefully
The decision contains various permit regulations that you must comply with. It also defines the collateral that must be provided before launching gold panning activities.
You may start gold panning when:
- The decision you received is legally valid, i.e. the appeal period has expired and the decision has not been appealed or any appeals have been processed by the Administrative Court and the permit has been found legally valid.
- You have provided the collateral specified in the decision.
- You have paid the annual landowner compensation to Metsähallitus’ bank account. Read more about landowner compensation on the Metsähallitus website.
- If your case concerns mechanical gold panning, you also need a legally valid environmental permit or notification under the Environmental Protection Act.
Collateral
Before you start gold panning, you must deposit sufficient collateral into a bank account. The purpose of the collateral is to ensure that after the end of gold panning, the area is restored as close as possible to its original condition. The collateral covers any environmental damage or other costs arising from the violation of the terms of the permit. The magnitude of the collateral depends on the scope of the activities.
The collateral for traditional gold panning, or a so-called shovel permit, is EUR 1,200. In addition, the following factors increase the amount of the collateral:
- If a building permit is granted for the area, EUR 1,000 will be added to the collateral.
- If the distance of the area to the nearest road is greater than 500 metres, EUR 200 will be added to the collateral.
The collateral for mechanical gold panning permits is determined based on the size of the area used in the excavation.
| Maximum area (ha) per excavation period | Collateral (EUR) |
|---|---|
| 0.1 | 3,000 |
| 0.5 | 4,000 |
| 1 | 5,000 |
| 1.5 | 7,500 |
| 2 | 10,000 |
| 2.5 | 12,500 |
| 3 | 15,000 |
| >3 | 25,000 |
The following factors also increase the amount of collateral in mechanical gold panning:
- If a building permit is granted for the area, EUR 1,000 will be added to the collateral.
- If the distance of the area to the nearest road is greater than 500 metres, EUR 500 will be added to the collateral.
As gold panning progresses
As gold panning progresses, you must take care of the following:
- Comply with the provisions of the gold panning permit and follow good gold panning practices in the area. For more information about good gold panning practices, see the guide of the Gold Prospectors Association of Finnish Lapland (available only in Finnish).
- Submit an annual report on gold panning to Tukes by the end of March.
- Make sure to always pay the landowner compensation to Metsähallitus by the end of March. Read more about landowner compensation on the Metsähallitus website.
- Take care of restoring the landscape’s integrity as the activities progress.
- Remember that the collateral may be higher if you do not ensure the landscape’s integrity.
- Maintain overall tidiness in the area. Remember, you are operating on land owned by someone else.
When you finish the gold panning activities
When you finish the gold panning activities, you must take care of the following:
- Removing any material not belonging to the area (e.g. machinery, equipment) from the area
- Removing buildings and structures
- Flattening pits with sharp edges
- Restoring the soil surface that has changed due to gold panning to allow for the vegetation to recover
Releasing the collateral
Tukes will release the collateral once the measures related to finishing the gold panning activities have been completed without fault and a terrain inspection has been carried out in the area. The terrain inspection may be carried out by Tukes, Metsähallitus or the ELY Centre for Lapland.