Specialists’ and start-up entrepreneurs’ move to Finland to become quicker
Specialists’ and start-up entrepreneurs’ entry into the country will be easier. The fast track service currently under preparation will help professionals to start working in Finland more quickly. Customers will also be able to anticipate the processing of their application better than before.
The Finnish Immigration Service will process the residence permits of those coming to Finland via the fast track route in a maximum of two weeks. As professionals’ families often move to Finland, too, the fast track service is also aimed at specialists’ and start-up entrepreneurs’ family members.
The preparation of the fast track service is combined with a new type of permit, the national D visa, which is currently being reviewed by the Parliament. The aim is to have the national D visa and the fast track route for specialists and start-up entrepreneurs in use in June 2022.
The fast track service is also expected to facilitate the international recruitments of companies in Turku region.
– The two-week processing of the residence permit for specialists and startup entrepreneurs also meets the needs of companies in Turku region. It is particularly important that the accelerated process is also intended for family members. Through Turku Science Park Ltd. extensive support and advisory services for international expertise will be opened up to companies and also to experts settling in Turku region, says Lotta Kujanpää, Talent Turku expert at Turku Science Park Ltd..
National D visa – faster to move to Finland
In order to move to Finland via the fast track route, the customer must submit and pay for the application online. If the application contains all the required information and attachments, the application will become pending automatically, which means that the processing of the application starts immediately and proceeds quickly. Increased automation has been the most important way to accelerate permit processing. Particular attention has been paid to customer guidance to keep the two-week service promise.
The national D visa makes it possible to travel to Finland as soon as a residence permit has been granted. Before entering Finland, the applicants prove their identity abroad and have their fingerprints taken for the residence permit card. The residence permit card will be given to the customer in Finland. At present, customers must wait for their card abroad after being granted a positive decision.
The Ministry of the Interior has also appointed a legislative project investigating the possibility to expand the D visa to cover students and researchers as well. The Finnish Immigration Service is actively involved in the preparation of the project.
In the year 2021, specialists received a residence permit decision in 16 days (the average processing time). Specialists include, among others, IT experts and employees with a higher education degree, whose work in Finland requires expert knowledge. The processing time for start-up entrepreneurs’ permits was 24 days (the average processing time) in January-November 2021.