Current affairs

The United States has suspended entry for most non-U.S. citizens coming from China, Brazil, Iran, and several European countries, Finland included, with some exceptions depending on your reason for travel and visa status.

Krista Mikkonen, Finland’s Minister of the Environment and Climate Change, discusses cooperation with U.S. States at a virtual High-Level event on October 27th with leading Finnish bioeconomy companies to showcase innovative circular economy solutions.

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.

The ancestors and grave items, which are estimated to date back to the 13th century and were part of the National Museum of Finland’s Mesa Verde collection, have been repatriated to the Hopi Tribe, the Pueblo of Acoma, the Pueblo of Zia, and the Pueblo of Zuni, indigenous tribes of the United States, to be reburied on Saturday 12 September 2020. This repatriation respects the 2007 United Nations Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples and its Article 12 on indigenous peoples’ right to the repatriation of their human remains. This repatriation is the first to return grave findings of the indigenous peoples in the Mesa Verde region from abroad to the representatives of the descendants. The National Museum of Finland and representatives of the indigenous peoples of the Mesa Verde region carried out the return, in cooperation with the Finnish and United States authorities. The four-year repatriation process also came up in the meeting between President of the Republic of Finland Sauli Niinistö and President of the United States Donald Trump in October 2019.

On 11 September, the Government adopted a decision on restrictions on border traffic, which will enter into force on 19 September. Restrictions on entry will be lifted for traffic between Finland and Cyprus, Germany, Iceland, Norway, Poland and Sweden, as well as for residents of Australia, Canada and Japan who are travelling from their home country to Finland. Restrictions on entry into the country will be reintroduced between Finland and Hungary and Italy.

We have put together frequently asked questions with answers about travel and coronavirus.

COVID-19 pandemic has forced teachers to move to virtual classrooms. New York teachers now receive support from their colleagues across the Atlantic – Finland, where online learning has long been used in school environments. The online teacher coaching sessions take place from August to October. Finnish EdTech companies offer teachers free extended access to their virtual learning services.

The Ministry for Foreign Affairs has issued a Decree on Fees for Services Produced by the Foreign Service for 2020–2022. The new decree will replace the former Decree of the Ministry for Foreign Affairs on Fees for Services Produced by the Foreign Service (377/2014). The new decree will enter into force on 1 September 2020 and will be valid until 31 December 2022.

In its informal meeting on 18 August, the Government outlined changes to border traffic restrictions and travel recommendations. Restrictions on internal and external border traffic will be reinstated based on an epidemiological assessment. Internal border control will be reinstated for traffic between Finland and Iceland, Greece, Malta, Germany, Norway and Denmark. Restrictions on external border traffic will be reinstated for traffic into Finland from Ireland, Cyprus and San Marino, as well as to Japanese residents in traffic arriving in Finland from Japan.