The Finnish parliament has accepted the amendments to the Aliens Act (“the Act”) and the legislative amendments came into force on February 23, 2023. The purpose of the amendments is to clarify certain aspects of the Act as well as enhance and ease the process of applying for work-based residence permits in Finland.1 Increasing digitalisation and automation in the application process are essential parts of the new amendments.2 The most significant changes in the Aliens Act concern special experts’ salary requirements and the certification of employers.
Previous efforts regarding the reduction of processing times have included the introduction of fast-track processing (see GMS Flash Alert 2022-116, 16 June 2022). To further accelerate the process of entering Finland, a national long-term visa was introduced in 2022, offering the possibility of getting a residence permit card in Finland, as opposed to waiting for the card in the home country.3 (For more information on the changes regarding the D visa, see GMS Flash Alert 2023-004, 10 January 2023.)