Applications for worker’s residence permits should be submitted in good time this spring. It is especially advisable to plan ahead if the foreign employee is coming to Finland for seasonal employment at short notice.

Immigration authorities are transferring over to a new electronic processing system in mid-May. The increased efficiency of the new system is expected to shorten the processing times for all types of applications. It is, however, advisable to allow for minor delays during the transfer period.

The greatest pressure will be witnessed in the processing of employment-based applications, as their annual peak traditionally falls in May–June. Furthermore, a large share of applications submitted in early summer focuses on the horticultural and agricultural sectors; such applications need to be processed as urgent before the beginning of the harvesting season. The Finnish Immigration Service does not expect the economic recession to reduce the number of seasonal workers this summer.
Submit applications in March at the latest

Employers and employees wishing to ensure that their application is processed before the desired employment commencement date in early summer should submit their application for a worker’s residence permit in March at the latest.

Processing can also be expedited by ensuring that the application has been carefully filled in and contains all the required appendices (forms OLE 1 and TEM054, available for printing on the Finnish Immigration Service website).

At the annual level the average processing time for worker’s residence permit applications is approximately 50 days. This figure may temporarily increase during the coming summer.

More information:

http://www.migri.fi/netcomm/content.asp?article=3543&language=EN