In the case of divorce, the parents may enter into child custody and visiting agreement which determines who shall have custody of the children and where the children reside. If the parents are unable to enter into such agreement the court having jurisdiction of the divorce proceedings also determines who shall have custody of children.

The custodian of the children can be either one of the parents or the custody can also be joint custody. As a general rule one can say that a joint custody is usually preferred by the courts in Finland. Custody of children is trusted to one parent only in cases where the parents are unable to cooperate.

In Finland the issue of custody and of which parent the child will reside with is determined in accordance with the best interests of the child standard.

When a question of child custody is agreed or decided by a court it is in most cases necessary to settle the questions of child support and visiting rights at the same time. The child support amount can be set by agreement or by court order, which can be made by consent, if parents agree on the amount. If parents cannot agree, a court of law will decide.

Children have the right to keep up a relationship with the parent that the child does not reside with. This right will be practised by granting visiting rights to the parent.

Family law proceedings which involve issues of child custody, visiting rights and child support often generate the most difficult disputes. While it is possible and recommendable to agree between divorcing parents and many parents cooperate when it comes to sharing their children, not all parents do.