Finland Marks 83% Decrease in Schengen Visa Applications in 2020

Finish consulates processed 83 percent fewer applications for a Schengen visa (152,543) in 2020, compared to the number of visas processed in 2019 (895,781).

Coroonavirus’s rapid spread in other countries as well as in Finland led the latter’s authorities to temporarily suspend the reception of regular visa applications and tourist visas on March 19, 2020.

From that date, Finland received only visa applications for special categories identified jointly within the European Union and Finland’s government, taking into account its national entry restrictions, AtoZSerwisPlus.com reports.

“Constraints on all activities, including the provision of entry services in both Finnish missions abroad and through the reception services of external service providers, have moreover been imposed by the local authorities, depending on each country’s specific disease situation,” Finland’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs has announced through a statement.

The Coronavirus pandemic outbreak provoked a decrease in the number of visa applications in countries worldwide, in 2020, due to many government’s imposed bans and restrictions introduced in an effort to minimize virus’ further transmission.

Visa Applications in Finland in Past Two Years & Top Nationalities

According to Finland’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs’ data, the following nationalities were the most interested ones in obtaining a visa in Finland in 2020,  even though in smaller degrees compared to 2019’s figures.

• Russian citizens (116,818)
• Chinese citizens

While in 2020, a total of 116,818 citizens of Russia filed an application for a Schengen visa in Finland, making the largest number of applications received by Finish consulates in the same year, the figures marked a significant decrease compared to 2019 when citizens of Russia submitted 786,407 visa applications.

In 2019, Finland issued a total of 728,173 visas for Russian citizens, while 3,486 visas were denied.

St. Petersburg Consulate received 644,858 visa applications for Finland’s visa in 2019. A total of 623,477 visas were issued, and 2,034 were denied.

Finland’s consulate in Moscow received 75,717 visas in the same year. The consulate in Russia’s capital issued 74,145 visas for its citizens interested in obtaining a Finish visa, while 1,209 visas were denied. Petrozavodsk’s consulate in Russia received 39,849 applications for Finland’s visa, while Murmansk’s consulate submitted 26,001 applications.

As for China, Finland received 81 percent fewer applications from Beijing, while those submitted in Shanghai declined by 77 percent during last year, compared to 2019’s statistics. The Finnish consulate in Beijing received a total of 28,418 applications. The same consulate issued 26,019 visas, while 2,327 visas were denied.

Finland’s consulate in Shanghai received 16,829 applications for a visa. It issued 15,797 visas, while 975 of them were denied.

Citizens from the United Arab Emirates in 2019 were more interested in obtaining a Finnish visa. A total of 45 percent increase has been marked in the number of UAE nationals applying for Finland’s visa in 2019, compared to 2018’s data.

A total of 3,383 applications have been filed by UAE nationals for Finnish visas during 2019.

According to AtoZSerwisPlus.com statistics, of them, 2,438 were issued, and 890 were denied.

Finland’s consulates processed 895,679 visa applications in 2019, marking a 14 percent increase in the number of visas processed, compared to 2018 figures, which processed 768,978 visa applications.

From 2019’s number of processed visa applications, a total of 5,854 visas were processed by Finnish foreign missions in other Schengen Zone countries.

Schengen Visa Applications’ Figures During Past Few Years

In 2019, Schengen embassies, consulates, and visa processing centers received about 17 million applications for Schengen visas, marking the highest number of applications filed for a Schengen visa since the borderless area started granting visas.

The number of applications from third-country nationals for a Schengen visa reached 16,955,541 in 2019.

Based on AtoZSerwisPlus.com statistics, in 2017, a total of 16,955,541 persons applied for a Schengen visa, or a 6.3 percent increase compared to 2016 figures.

The data from 2016 revealed that in the same year there were made only 15,192,556 applications. Except for 2019, the number of Schengen visa applications declined for five years.

Besides the visa application numbers, the figures reveal that the rejection rate of visa applications also marked an increase over the years.

In 2017 the refusal rate was 8.2 percent, while in 2018, it rose to 9.6 percent. A further increase was also marked in 2019 when visa applications’ rejection rate increased to 9.9 percent.

Finland in a State of Emergency Due to Increasing COVID-19 Cases

The Coronavirus pandemic’s rapid spread has also created a profound impact in Finland’s industries as well as on the number of Schengen visa applications.

The country recently reported a surge in the number of infections which pushed Finnish authorities to declare a state of emergency.

“The government, along with the President of the Republic, has declared a state of emergency in the country,” Prime Minister Sanna Marin pointed out last week during a press conference.

The European Union Commission urged Finland to lift its imposed restrictions and facilitate the movement of persons.

However, the Finnish Ministry of Interior, together with other ministries, addressed a common response to the European Commission, highlighting that these kinds of restrictions are necessary to halt the disease’s further spread.