The Finnish Ministry of Foreign Affairs has decided to extend the current travel restrictions for citizens of the Russian Federation.
In a statement issued yesterday, July 6, the Ministry said that non-essential travel by Russian citizens to Finland and transit through Finland to other Schengen countries will remain restricted for the foreseeable future.
In addition, the Ministry said that the restrictions have also tightened for business travellers, property owners, and students. These measures aim to regulate further and monitor the movement of individuals falling into these categories.
“The non-essential travel of Russian citizens to Finland and through Finland to the rest of the Schengen area will continue to be restricted for the time being. At the same time, restrictions are tightened for business travellers, property owners and students,” the statement of the Ministry reads.
In the future, business travellers will be restricted from transiting through Finland to other countries; their travel will be limited exclusively to Finland. Meanwhile, business travellers will be required to have a valid and necessary reason to conduct in-person business activities in Finland.
Similarly, property owners will also need a valid basis for their presence in the country. Furthermore, from now on, only students participating in degree programmes or studies directly related to a degree, such as exchange studies, will be allowed entry to the country, whereas attending courses at folk colleges, for example, may no longer be permitted.
Stricter rules will also continue to apply to Russian citizens when applying for a visa, the authorities stressed.
Last month, the Finnish Government also said that it plans further to tighten the current entry restrictions for Russian travellers. The same said that the aim of the tightened measures is to effectively eliminate any loopholes in the existing restrictions, making it impossible for these travellers to exploit them.
Moreover, in response to the recent events unfolding in the Russian Federation, Finnish authorities and other European Union Member States bordering Russia have swiftly taken necessary measures to strengthen security within their respective territories.
Despite the travel restrictions implemented in Finland for Russian citizens since September 29 of the previous year, Finland has emerged as one of the top three countries granting a significant number of Schengen visas to Russian passport holders.
Finland is one of many countries that took the decision to prolong travel restrictions on Russian citizens. Latvia has already extended its entry ban on Russians until March 2024, surpassing the previously scheduled expiration date of June 30.
