The Immigration Service of Finland has said that around 1,100 Russian citizens are currently waiting for a decision on their asylum application.
As revealed, of all those waiting for a decision on their application, around 630 are men, 250 are women, and 220 are children.
According to the Immigration Office, one of the most common justifications for the need for protection by Russians is business support, Yle explains.
The same notes that the number of Russians seeking asylum in the country continues to remain high, and for this reason, the authorities are now considering measures that could prevent other entries into the country from Russia.
According to Yle, the Immigration Service of Finland has not made any decision yet on the applications of Russians “who appealed to the business launch.” Moreover, tt has been explained that the authorities are waiting for the policy of the EU Asylum Agency on the matter, which is expected to be completed during the fall.
Commenting on the number of Russians waiting for a decision on their asylum application, Erna Bodström, an expert at the Migration Agency, said that before the authorities make a decision on granting or not granting asylum, they should consider their decision from different points of view.
“If the criteria for asylum are met, a place must be granted. On the other hand, you can also think about how smart it is to return a person who has completed military service to Russia, which is fighting a war in Ukraine,” the statement of Bodström reads.
Some of the Russians seeking asylum in Finland have publicly spoken about their situation, saying that they do not plan to turn to the country. They also stressed that they do not support the Russian war of aggression against Ukraine.
Previously, media outlets reported that a large number of Russians entered Finland despite the ongoing restrictions. Data provided by the Finnish Border Guard show that a total of 973,337 border crossings were registered at the easter border by the end of July of this year.
Half of the people crossing the border were arriving from Russia to Finland, and the other half were going in the opposite direction.
The large number of border crossings has been attributed to those who still hold valid Schengen visas. Figures show that around 120,000 Russians still hold valid Schengen visas issued by Finland. The number is expected to decrease by the end of the year as all of the visas that still are valid were issued more than two years ago.
