Visa to Finland: information for travelers

Finland is part of the Schengen area, so Russians can only visit it with a visa. If you are planning to visit this picturesque northern country, you will be interested to know how a visa to Finland is issued in 2021.

Types of visas

Entry to the territory of Finland for citizens of the Russian Federation without a visa is not allowed. Different types of visas are issued depending on the purpose of the trip:

• Tourist - if you are going to visit the country as a tourist.
• Guestbook - for visiting relatives or friends who live in Finland. To receive it, an invitation from the host is required.
• Transit - if you are crossing Finland heading to another country.
• Working - if you plan to work in this country. Not only employment, but also doing business in Finland without a work visa is prohibited.
• Academic - for students who are enrolled in Finnish educational institutions.

The visa can be single, double or multiple. But even if you are the holder of a multivisa, you can stay in the Schengen area for no more than 90 days within six months and no more than 180 days a year.

The rules for using visas must be strictly observed, otherwise, in the future, permission to enter Finland may not be obtained.

Long-term visas with the possibility of extension for 3 years are usually issued to students or those who officially work in Finland.

How to apply for a visa

If you are planning to visit Finland, then you should take care of obtaining a visa in advance. To apply for a visa yourself, you need:

• Select the type of visa.
• Collect the required package of documents. The package may differ depending on the type of visa.
• Choose a visa center that is most convenient for you to contact and make an appointment. Registration is made by phone, e-mail or on the website of the visa center.
• Arrive at the Visa Application Center at the appointed time to submit your documents. If you are traveling to the Schengen area for the first time, you will also need to submit your biometric data (fingerprints). Information about biometrics is stored in a common Schengen database for 5 years. In some cases, you will need to go through an interview.
• If your documents are accepted, you need to wait while the visa application is processed. You can clarify at what stage the consideration is on a special page on the website of the embassy or visa center using an individual registration number.
• When the registration is completed, you need to go to the consulate or visa center and pick up your passport with a visa. Issuance is carried out in the same center in which the documents were accepted.

Visa documents for minors are drawn up and submitted by parents or guardians. It is also allowed to submit documents to the visa center for relatives (if there are documents that confirm family ties).

If you go on a tourist trip, this can be done by a travel agency - provided that it has the appropriate accreditation. But for the delivery of biometric data, a personal visit to the visa center is required.

Documents required for obtaining a visa

To obtain a residence permit in Finland, you may need different types of documents. List of documents that are common for all types of visas:

• Application form.
• International passport.
• Photo of the visa format.
• Medical insurance policy.
• Proof of residence in Finland.
• Confirmation of the availability of funds to stay in Finland

The application form can be obtained from the visa center or downloaded from the embassy's website and printed. The application form is filled out in Latin letters and signed by the applicant personally.

The validity period of the passport must apply to the entire duration of the intended trip, plus at least three months after its completion.

The passport must have at least two blank pages for visa stamps. If the permit to visit the Schengen area was in your old expired passport, then you need to provide it as well.

Certain conditions must be met for photographs to be applied for a visa. Color photos of 3.6x4.7 cm are accepted, the head in the picture is a full face 2.5x3.5 cm, the background is one-color.

The use of dark glasses and hairstyles in which the hair covers a significant part of the face are not allowed. Photographing wearing a headdress is allowed if required by religious or national regulations.

The photo must be taken no earlier than 6 months before the application for a visa.

A medical policy must be obtained from an insurance company that is accredited by the Embassy of Finland. The amount of insurance must be at least EUR 30,000.

Confirmation of your place of residence in Finland can be a hotel reservation, a rental agreement, confirmation of consent to live on the host's living space (for a guest visa) or provision of a place in a hostel (for a student visa).

Confirmation of financial solvency will be a certificate of the state of the bank account, a certificate from the place of work or a sponsorship letter (if your accommodation is provided by the host party).

Depending on what type of visa you are applying for, you may need additional documents.

If you are traveling to Finland with children, you need to make separate child visas for them. To do this, you must provide:

• Application for the child (filled in and signed by the parents).
• Birth certificate.
• Children's passport (if any).
• Medical insurance policy.

If the child has his own passport, then a separate visa is issued for him. If not, then a special sticker is made, which is glued into the parents' passport. If several children are leaving, an individual questionnaire is filled out for each.

If a child is sent abroad with one of the parents, it is necessary to have a notary-certified permission to take it out from the other parent. When a young traveler travels accompanied by persons who are not his parents, you need a notarized consent to leave from both parents. The original permit will need to be presented when crossing the border of the country.

Children under 12 do not need to pass biometric control, so they are not fingerprinted.

To find out what documents are required to apply for different types of visas, refer to the official website of the Embassy of Finland in the Russian Federation.

An old or new international passport (containing an electronic data carrier), as well as a passport for a child, is issued by the Unified Document Center.

Embassy and visa centers of Finland in the Russian Federation

The Finnish Embassy is in Moscow, the Consulate General is in St. Petersburg. In addition, the Northwestern District has consular branches in Petrozavodsk and Murmansk. There are Finland visa centers in other cities of Russia.

Cost, terms of registration and validity of visas

The price and terms of issuing a visa depend on the age and citizenship of the traveler. For citizens of the Russian Federation (adults or children over 6 years old), when applying for a visa to Finland, the consular fee is 35 euros. In addition, a service charge of € 26.75 is payable.

For children under 6 years old and for disabled persons of the 2nd group, the visa is issued free of charge.

A visa is issued within 14 days, the approximate period of readiness is usually reported when accepting documents.

An urgent visa can be issued within 3 working days, the consular fee for it is 70 euros.

Fees and government services are paid in rubles at the exchange rate in effect on the day of application, in cash or using bank cards. If the visa is denied, the money will not be returned.

You can get a residence permit in Finland for 1 month, half a year, 1 or 2 years.

A single visa gives the right to a single entry into the country, a multivisa - for several visits. For citizens of Kazakhstan and Belarusians who are on the territory of the Russian Federation and apply for a visa to enter Finland from Russia, the consular fee is 60 euros.

For citizens of the Russian Federation with a residence permit in any country of the European Union and citizens of Ukraine with biometric passports, there is a visa-free regime.

Refusal to issue a visa

When applying for a visa to Finland for citizens of the Russian Federation, refusals to issue it are rare. The most common reasons for refusal:

• Not all the required documents have been submitted or some of them are incorrect.
• During his previous stay in Finland, the applicant committed an unlawful act on its territory, violated the rules of stay in the country or the rules for visiting other countries of the Schengen area.
• Failure to show up for an appointment.
• Inaccurate explanation of the purpose of the visit to Finland.

If the visa documents are rejected, a stamp is put in the passport.

For visas of category C (tourist visa), the designation "1-C" is a sign of "visa quarantine", which is assigned in case of violation of migration legislation or for other reasons. In this case, documents for applying for a visa before the expiration of the quarantine period will not be accepted.

"2-C" means that you are invited for a personal conversation, and the issue of a visa can be resolved positively based on its results.

"3-C" means that inaccuracies were found when submitting documents. The visa center will tell you how to eliminate errors or what documents are missing.

"4-C" is a sign of indefinite refusal.

Traveling to Finland by car

If you want to travel to Finland by car, for this, in addition to a visa, you must also have a registration certificate for the car, an international driver's license and a Green card, which provides for civil liability insurance of the car owner abroad.

To travel abroad by car, the car must comply with the registration certificate and not have tuning that is not reflected in the documents.

The number is required in standard alphanumeric form, cars with personal numbers are not allowed to leave. The car must have a fire extinguisher and a first aid kit that meets European standards.

The card can be issued for a period of 15 days to 1 year. The cost for a passenger car in 2021 for Russians:

• 2450 rubles for 15 days,
• 4670 rubles for 1 month,
• 17 790 rubles for 6 months,
• 22 240 rubles for 1 year.

One or more people are allowed to enter as a driver, provided they have an international driving license.

FAQ

Visa processing raises many questions for novice travelers. The answers to the most common of them can be found below.

How to find out the degree of readiness of the visa

You can find out at what stage the visa processing is with the help of the "Online readiness check" service, which is provided on the website or on the Internet resources of the service centers.

The information is provided confidentially. To identify the identity of the applicant, tracking is used by the registration number, which you receive when applying for a visa.

Is it possible to extend a tourist visa

Extension of a tourist visa is allowed only if some unforeseen circumstances arise during the foreigner's stay in Finland. These are force majeure situations (illness, accident, etc.) or serious personal reasons.

In Helsinki, to extend a visa, you need to contact the Bureau for Foreigners, which is located at the central police station (Helsinkin Poliisilaitos) at the address: Punanotkonkatu, 2a.

Reception hours 9.00-17.00 on weekdays. In other cities, you need to contact the police.

When submitting an application, a state fee is charged - 25 euros. Even if the visa extension is denied, this amount is not refundable.

You will need to provide a passport, an application of the established form, a valid visa and documents that confirm a good reason for the delay in the country. But even if the visa is extended, the total period of stay in the Schengen territory cannot be more than 90 days.

Can an unemployed person get a Schengen visa

The lack of a certificate from the official place of work will not be an obstacle to travel, if the applicant provides a bank card on which there is a sufficient amount for accommodation during the trip at the rate of 50 euros per day.

It is also necessary to have a booked hotel room (it is better if it is the original extract of the hotel, which was sent by fax) and provide a travel plan.

In addition, you will need to provide evidence that you intend to return: a return train, plane or bus ticket, documents for real estate in Russia.

The likelihood of issuing a visa to an unemployed increases if he was issued a permit to enter Finland earlier and there were no complaints about his stay in this country.

If an unemployed person applies for a visitor visa by invitation, a sponsorship letter may be attached to the documents. The inviting party must confirm that it provides the guest with accommodation and meals, and pays all his expenses.

Pensioners need to present a pension certificate, a sponsorship letter or a bank statement on the availability of funds for travel.

Students who do not work and are dependent on their parents will need documents from the educational institution and a certificate of the parents' ability to pay to travel.

For children under 18 years old, you need a notarized permission from the parents to leave, a certificate of the financial situation of the parents and a sponsorship letter with their consent to finance the trip.

Can a visa be canceled

A Finnish Schengen visa can be canceled if the trip is canceled, or you are going to visit not only Finland, but also another Schengen country, where your stay will be longer than in Finland. In this case, the Finnish visa should be canceled. It is not difficult to do this, you just need to apply to the consular department with an application. Visa cancellation documents are accepted without a queue.

Cancellation of a visa, if it is done at your request, does not prevent you from obtaining permission to enter Finland later.

Visa cancellation can be made at the initiative of the Finnish side in the event that you have committed an offense on the territory of the country. The entry visa is canceled and a separate exit visa is issued at the request of the law enforcement service, with which you can leave the country.

A Finnish visa can be canceled at the border if it turns out that you have submitted false information about the purpose of the trip.

Is it possible to apply for a multiple entry visa when traveling to Finland for the first time

If you have not visited not only Finland, but also other Schengen countries before, then the likelihood that you will be issued a multiple-entry visa is small. The possibility of obtaining a multiple entry visa increases if you are traveling to Finland at the invitation of close relatives or for health improvement, own real estate in Finland, go to the country for professional reasons or for business contacts with Finnish partners.

A multivisa can be issued to participants in cultural, sports, scientific, social events, representatives of official delegations.

The likelihood of getting a multiple entry visa also depends on where you live. In the past, residents of the Northwest region could travel to Finland for 72 hours without a visa. Currently, this rule has been canceled, and a visa is required, even if the trip is one day.

But in the North-West region, at the first application, you can get a visa for six months with 30 days of permission to stay in the Schengen countries. Thanks to this, residents of Karelia and St. Petersburg can travel to Finland on a regular basis. A short-term holiday or shopping trip to Finland is a popular weekend getaway for the region's residents.

In Moscow, single-entry visas are usually issued for a limited number of days. To get a multivisa there, you need to have a good visa history, that is, to visit Finland and the Schengen countries many times on single-entry visas.

Conclusion

Citizens of the Russian Federation can visit Finland only with a visa. However, applying for a visa to this country is not a very difficult process, and the number of refusals in issuance is relatively small. You can get a visa even if you do not have an official source of income. Finland Visa Application Centers are located in all regions of Russia.