Obtaining a tourist visa to Finland for Russians
What kind of visa do you need for Finland? How to get a Finnish visa and what documents are required for this? What are the terms and costs of obtaining a visa to Finland? Read on Tour-Calendar!
What kind of visa do you need for Finland
Some residents of Russia (for example, residents of the North-Western District) are within easy reach of Finland. And sometimes it even begins to seem that it is enough just to take a bus, train or ferry to get to this country, cozy in its own way and so close to us. But, entry for Russians to Finland is possible only after obtaining a Schengen visa.
A visa is issued on the basis of the same package of documents as in other Schengen countries, with its own characteristics. So, for example, a visa application form must be completed online, and the period of medical insurance for the duration of the trip must begin from the date of application for a visa.
Important! Since 2015, all applicants for a Schengen visa must submit biometric data, which will require attendance in person. The resulting biometrics is valid for five years and is available to all Schengen countries. After the expiration of the five-year period, the biometrics will have to be repeated. The rule on the mandatory submission of biometric data does not apply to children under 12 years of age.
Upon prior request and for a hefty fee, the Finnish Visa Application Centers provide a mobile biometrics service (delivery of biometric data outside the consulate and visa center).
Applying for a Finnish visa through a travel agency
To apply for a visa through a travel agency, you will have to transfer the following package of documents to the travel agent:
Questionnaire, documents, requirements for obtaining a visa to Finland
The questionnaire is filled out only in Latin (it is possible in Russian transliteration). Also, the questionnaire can be filled out in English, Finnish, Swedish.
Theoretically, the possibility of submitting only a paper application for a visa remains, but the embassy and visa centers strongly recommend for your convenience and to reduce the time for processing information (respectively, and receiving documents) to use the option of submitting an online application.
After filling out the questionnaire, it will need to be printed, signed and submitted to the embassy or one of the visa centers along with an identifier (a barcode that is printed along with the questionnaire) and other documents necessary for obtaining a visa. Only after that, and not after filling out an online application, will the Finnish representations begin to process your documents.
The questionnaire and password are valid for 14 days. If you do not submit your application within this timeframe, you will need to complete the application again and receive a new application ID.
- Two color photographs on a light background, without corners, frames, 3.6 cm by 4.7 cm in size, taken recently (not earlier than 6 months).
- international passport (there must be at least 2 blank pages in the passport, the validity of the passport must be at least three months from the end date of the trip). The date of issue of the passport must be no earlier than 10 years ago. A photocopy of the first spread of the passport is also provided. If the passport contains children who are also applying for a visa, the passport must additionally contain one page for gluing visas for each child. Other valid international passports (if any) must also be presented.
- Expired passport (if any).
- Copies of the pages of the internal Russian passport with personal data and registration.
- Medical insurance (provided the original and a copy of the policy).
With regard to health insurance, the Finns, in addition to the standard requirements for the amount of insurance compensation (at least 30,00 EURO) and validity throughout the Schengen area, have their own requirements for insurance organizations. Only insurance policies issued by insurance companies accredited by the Finnish embassy are accepted. You can get acquainted with the list of such insurers on the website of the representation of Finland.
In addition, consent to the processing of personal data from all persons, including children, as well as confirmation of payment of the consular fee is mandatory.
Financial guarantees when obtaining a visa to Finland
The standard for issuing a Schengen visa is to provide a certificate from the place of work (indicating the data of the employer and position, length of service, salary of the applicant, dates of vacation provided, date of issue of the certificate), or a sponsorship letter. The certificate must be signed by the head of the organization, it is certified by a seal and is valid for one month from the date of issue.
For individual entrepreneurs, a certificate of registration is required, for pensioners - a pension certificate, for students and schoolchildren, documents confirming their studies (certificate of an educational institution, student ID).
Documents confirming the full payment of the tour and its duration can also be presented.
Participation in a tour to Finland for a child under 18 years old
If children are traveling with you, or you are applying for a visa for a child to travel accompanied by third parties, then you must additionally provide:
- Original and copy of birth certificate.
- Notarized power of attorney (consent) of the parents to leave the child (when traveling with one of the parents - permission from the second parent, when traveling accompanied by third parties - permission from both parents). In the absence of one of the parents, it is necessary to confirm the relevant circumstances (provide a death certificate, deprivation of parental rights, a missing person's certificate from the police).
If the child does not have a foreign passport, the visa is pasted into the parent's passport (which requires an additional blank page).
Consent will not be required when applying for a visa if the parents sign the application directly in front of the receiving officer, or the application is submitted simultaneously with the application of both parents.
Also, when applying for a visa, the Finnish missions ask the child to provide copies of the Schengen visas of the parents (if any).
Do not forget that in any case, permission to leave the child will be required when crossing the border of the Russian Federation in case of traveling without one / both parents.
How to get a visa to Finland on your own
If you are traveling on your own, you will additionally need:
- Confirmation of hotel reservations, or confirming agreements on the lease / ownership of real estate (copies of relevant agreements).
- Tickets (or confirmation of their reservation) for travel to and from the country.
In the case of a trip at the invitation of friends (relatives), an invitation is presented with the personal and passport data of the inviting person, indicating the dates and purposes of the trip. In the case of an invitation from relatives, documents confirming the degree of kinship must be submitted. Submission of a fax or electronic version of the invitation is not prohibited.
The Embassy reserves the right to demand additional documents from the applicant, to call him for an interview.
Important! The Embassy does not accept handwritten documents.
Finland pays special attention to people traveling by car to comply with the country's requirements for vehicles, as well as compliance with traffic rules. You can learn more about the recommendations of the Finnish side on the website of the Finnish Embassy.
Finland visa fee
One of the conditions for consideration of your visa application is the payment of the visa fee (35 EURO). The same fee is charged from citizens of Moldova, Georgia, Armenia, Azerbaijan.
An urgent visa for Russians is issued within three days, the visa fee is 70 EURO.
When submitting documents through the visa center, the fee is paid at the center's cash desk. The service fee for the services of the center is EUR 26.75 (as of November 2017).
When applying directly to the Embassy or the Consulate General, the consular fee can be paid by receipt at Nordea Bank ATMs
The following are exempted from paying the visa fee: children, provided that they are included in the parents' passport; schoolchildren, students going to study, as well as teachers accompanying them; close relatives of EU citizens, or persons legally residing in Finland.
Visa requirements for Finland
The standard term for consideration of documents by representative offices of Finland is 6-10 business days. The Moscow Visa Application Center recommends submitting an application at least two weeks before the planned trip.
How to apply for a Finnish visa
It is preferable to submit the application in person and in person if the Schengen countries do not have your biometric data.
Also, your application can be submitted by one of the family members who applied for a visa, with the provision of a document confirming kinship, the employer (if there is a power of attorney), a travel agency accredited by the embassy, or the Consulate General of Finland.
You can apply for a visa directly to the Embassy of Finland in Moscow (by appointment only) or to one of the Finnish Visa Application Centers (by appointment only).
Since October 2017, an additional visa application center has been opened for personal visa applications at the address: Mytnaya Street, 66, Moscow.
If you personally apply to the embassy and live in the territory served by it at a distance of more than 500 km from the capital, then your application will, if possible, be considered within two working days.
Russians living in the Kaliningrad region can apply for a Finnish visa to the Consulate General of Lithuania in Kaliningrad (personal appearance of the applicant is required).
Information about visa centers and consulates that process Finnish visas
Embassy of Finland in Moscow
Ekaterinburg: st. Kuibysheva 44
Irkutsk: st. Sverdlova, house 10 (2nd floor)
Kazan: st. Paris Commune, 8
Kaliningrad: st. 1812, building 126
Krasnodar: st. Academician Pavlova, 64
Krasnoyarsk: st. Maerchaka, 16
Nizhny Novgorod: st. Shcherbakova 15
Novosibirsk: Chelyuskintsev Street, 15
Omsk: st. Frunze, d.1, building 4, office 713
Permian: st. Chernyshevsky 28
Rostov-on-Don: st. Trolleybusnaya, d. 24/2v, bldg. 1
Samara: st. Michurina, 78, office 2
Ufa: st. Chernyshevsky, house 82, 3rd floor, office No. 301
