Current affairs

All Finnish missions abroad responsible for entry matters accept visa applications submitted by representatives of defined special groups. Representatives of such special groups include, for example, persons applying for a visa on the basis of family ties or an established relationship. The conditions for issuing a visa under the Schengen Visa Code must also be met.

The year 2020 has been like no other year in recent memory. Anytime humanity faces difficult challenges, children have even more questions and concerns than usual about what is happening in the world. The coronavirus has affected the lives of just about everyone on the planet, regardless of age.

In the podcast, Ninaroze Maoz interviews Roni Smolar, a Finnish author, journalist and former Head of the Jewish Community in Helsinki. Smolar has been through his career privileged to follow closely the relations and cooperation between Finland and Israel. The podcast takes listeners for a historical trip, starting from Rony's childhood memories through the state visits, historic events and developments from the 1950s to the present day.

The COVID-19 pandemic continues to influence the entry permit services of the Finnish diplomatic missions abroad. All missions are not able to provide these services in the same way and to the same extent as in normal circumstances before the pandemic. The missions have been able to serve customers in questions related to entry matters in the countries where this has been possible taking into account health security and local official regulations. In this fall, the missions have been reopening their services as far as possible, and currently entry services are provided in most countries at least to a limited extent.

This year marks the 70th anniversary of the diplomatic relations between Finland and Israel. To celebrate this special occasion, we are calling singers to join a Virtual Choir to perform together the Finnish and Israeli national anthems.

According to the Government decision made in September, restrictions on entry may be lifted for traffic between Finland and those EU and Schengen countries and the counties on the green list specified by the Council of the EU where the incidence of COVID-19 has not exceeded 25 new cases per 100,000 persons in the previous 14 days. The Government assesses the situation in different countries once a week. This news article will be updated with changes to the guidance and restrictions.

Embassy’s customer service will resume its services by appointment only on 2nd of November 2020.

This year has been full of changes and many events of our original plan have changed into virtual programs. Attached you can find information about the Embassy's upcoming events. More details on each event will be published on our social media channels. Stay healthy and safe!