Finland Offers 14-Day Fast-Track Residence Permit for These 5 Worker Categories, Lists Requirements

• Finland's Immigration Service confirmed a fast-track service that can deliver a residence permit decision in as little as 14 days
• The accelerated route is open to specialists, EU Blue Card holders, start-up entrepreneurs, ICT permit holders, and company management staff
• Applicants can also apply for a D visa simultaneously, allowing them to travel to Finland before their physical permit card arrives

Finland has opened a significantly faster route to legal residency for a select group of foreign workers, with the Finnish Immigration Service confirming that certain applicants can receive a residence permit decision within 14 days through its fast-track service.

The expedited pathway covers five categories of applicants: specialists, start-up entrepreneurs, EU Blue Card holders, holders of intra-corporate transfer (ICT) residence permits, and individuals taking up top or middle management positions within a company.

How Finland's fast-track application works

For specialists, EU Blue Card applicants, ICT permit holders, and those entering management roles, employers play a central part in the process. Once an application is submitted, the employer must log into the Enter Finland for Employers portal and upload the applicant's terms of employment within two working days.

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A key eligibility condition is that the fast-track service applies strictly to first-time residence permit applications submitted from outside Finland. People already residing in Finland are not eligible, and the service cannot be used for permit renewals or extensions.

Finland's D Visa and family members

Applicants going through the fast-track route have the option to simultaneously apply for a D visa. This temporary visa allows a successful applicant to travel to Finland immediately after a decision is made, without having to wait for the physical permit card to be produced and delivered.

Family members, including spouses and children, are also eligible for fast-track processing, provided they submit their own applications at the same time as the primary applicant.

The Finnish Immigration Service has published a step-by-step video guide on its official YouTube channel to help prospective applicants navigate the fast-track application process.

Proofreading by Samuel Gitonga, copy editor at YEN.com.gh.

Source: YEN.com.gh