How Finland planted Petersburg for a visa hook

From cross-border Imatrs and Lappeenranta to Helsinki in all wrappers in the fitting glass hanging in our notice of the warring video surveillance with the subsequent surrender of the police, as well as requests to be attributed to the place. In all establishments of the catering there is a our menu. Trade also transferred price tags for native language (us) Osin. On the site forum "We are going to Finland" Some kind person laid out his travel notes: what day and time at what border crossing how much he stood how many cars was, and t. D. – It remains only to write a computer program that would calculate the speed of the queue, taking into account the exchange of border guards and customs officers.

What did St. Petersburgers forgot in Suomi?
Generally speaking, in Finland and in itself – a lot of advantages. There is clean, beautiful, safe, and in many places, contrary to the statements of lazy and unlocking fellow citizens, also interesting. However, a huge number of crossing the border do it not for the sake of the meaningful and joys, but – for only to cross the border. That is "twist a visa". It is known according to the rules of the Schengen zone the first border that you cross with a fresh multiple visa must be the boundary of the country’s main stay, or, as it is also called, the responsible country. Therefore, if you have a Finnish visa to go with her in Sweden, Greece and Venice, needed before being in Finland. A visa for most Petersburgers – Finnish, since Finns, unlike other consulates of the Schengen member countries, do not require any invitations, certificates, vouchers, blood receipts etc., and just a correctly filled questionnaire.

But, having received the desired reusable Schengen with such a unheard of ease, I want to do it again and again. And here the visa applicant enters the dense fog myths and legends surrounding the Finnish consulate. You will be told about familiar who did not give a new visa, because they spent two weeks in Spain and only two days in Finland. And about those who told the border guard, as if going to walk in Helsinki, and they found a ticket to Spain and wrapped them on the border. And as the Finnish customs found someone from someone’s super-profile vodka and tobacco and immediately brought intruders "in computer". And even how someone managed to misunderstand the border office, and that in response … I say: subculture.

Some of these myths commented on and dispelled in the attached interview Mr. Consul General of Finland in St. Petersburg. But I’m a little about the friend – I admires the brilliant enterprise the finnons. For example, Israel since September 20 last year canceled a visa for us, believing that this will lead to an increase in the tourist flow. And it came out (as the first secretary of Israel’s Embassy in Russia, Boleslav Yatvalsky, was told, for the entire 2007, 195 thousand of our tourists arrived on Earth, at the end of 2008 – already 300 thousand). Suomi, on the contrary, set up the north-west of Russia for a visa hook: it is necessary – no need to go to the Finnish Republic.

At first – "open" Visa. Then, from all airlines, you will choose Finnair, not only because it is not enough, but also because, dear from Helsinki, you get a visit to Finland, useful in the types of obtaining another visa. Then in the same species you will go to live in the Finnish cottage, go skiing or, at worst, buy a couple of consumer goods. For no, it seems, in St. Petersburg, a person who did not know that the Finnish powder disrupts, the Finnish bleach whitens, and one drop of Finnish dishwashes launders the mountain of this very dish, does not corrodies – unlike the same transnational brands, but produced in less thorough countries.

Finns made a precious contribution to a piggy bank of human civilization – this is the only country in the entire history of the country, where the problem of the national minority (Swedes) is solved so that the decision suits absolutely all. This experience, alas, no one perceived. But then another lesson of civilization, it seems, Finland teaches us not in vain. our drivers in the intersection of the border have to go through Finnish rules – and then again will stay without the next visa. This subject is still waiting for ethnologists, but now empirical experience shows that the domestic driver’s wildness is slowly somewhere, at least a little bit, but inferior "ride as in Finland".

Consul General of the Consulate General of Finland in St. Petersburg Mr. Ollie Permeyentup answered questions "Cities 812":

– How many single and multiple visas issues a visa department of the Consulate General?
– 525 thousand visas last year. Each country of the European Union has its own migration legislation. The existing Agreement between the EU and Russia, regulating visa procedures, provides ample opportunities for their relief. And Finland uses these possibilities more than other countries of the European Union. We welcome ours in Finland – businessmen, tourists, and do not want to limit their entry.

– Visa costs 35 euros, in the amount it turns out almost two million. How to spend this money?
– We have a hundred people with registration of visas, plus another twenty work at the reception of documents. The money that the ours pay for a visa go to the salary to employees, and since our consulate works efficiently, part of the funds received goes to Helsinki and goes to maintain the entire visa system of the country.

– How many trips to Finland are committing ours in Finnish visas?
– Last year, the ours were committed 2.5 – 3 million trips to Finland.

– How much money they leave in Finland?
– In 2008, the ours bought goods and services (tourist, transport, hotel) by 500 million euros. This is 5 – 6% of Finnish exports to Russia, so it can be said that tourism from Russia is quite important for the Finnish economy. There is reason to believe that the tourist flow will increase. In December-January, when the ruble cheaper, the ours began to abandon distant trips to rest – in favor of the nearby Finland. In the first quarter of this year, the total number of border intersections decreased by 4%, but at the time the flow of traveling through the border crossing – Vaalimaa fell by 20%, and through Svetogorsk – Imatru, on the contrary, grew up. That is, less became those who go to Helsinki to fly to other countries, and more those who are going exactly in Finland itself. Thus, the crisis was in this sense to benefit.

– There are many myths around these border crossings: "Finns do not like it", "Finns do not like that". What they are based – because there should be no "Love" and "dislike", if there is accurate regulation? Especially in Finland, which has a reputation as the anti-corruption country itself in the world.
– Yes, Finland is usually located in the first second-third place in this indicator, below the third we never sank. For example, we in the Ministry of Education revealed the case of free tickets to the Football Championships provided by employees – that’s all Finnish Corruption. Or, one company invited me to the opera festival in Savonlinna – but I have no right to take such a gift, it will be considered a bribe.

As for the behavior of border guards – there are absolutely clear and unambiguous situations, and there are where various interpretations are possible. But the main thing remains the rule of the country of the main stay – if you ask for a visa from Finland, then the country of the main stay must be Finland. Therefore, asking for a visa, and on the border we must always tell the truth about the purpose of your trip. 85 – 87% of visas we produce – multiple, and there is always the opportunity to trace how a person ordered his visa. In our computer database, visa stories are stored for ten years, and if you need to learn more than a long-standing story – they are in the archive. In addition, we have a direct computer connection with the Ministry of the Interior, and the border guard always has the opportunity to compare the purpose of the trip that you called him, with the one you specified in the questionnaire when receiving a visa.

– But I just surrendered a new passport for a visa, and I asked me old – that is, my "Visa story" checked on border stamps?
– Check for stamps is just easier technically, but if necessary – all the information can be obtained by contacting the Ministry of Internal Affairs.

– Another common myth – "If the number of days spent in Finland is less than in other countries, the next visa Finns will refuse". This is true?
– Schengen Agreement clearly does not regulate how long it is possible to spend the main stay in the country. In addition, it is impossible to check how many days in which country did you spend if you are traveling on the Schengen zone where there is no border control. Therefore, the Finnish interpretation is that we pay attention not to the number of days, but by the number of visits to Finland. And if the number of visits to Finland is less than in other countries, in the next visa you can really refuse.

– And how many failures in the visa?
– Less than 2% of the queries. But the main reason for the refusal – perfect on the territory of Finland road accidents and unpaid fines for them. However, if the violation is serious, and the fine is not enough, the police will impose an annual ban on driving a car – compliance with this ban is difficult to control, so it’s easier for us to give a visa for this year.

– If the Schengen Agreement is one at all, why Finland divides an annual visa for the first half of the year, and in a visa costs the number of days that can be held in Finland for six months, and many other countries of this division are not recognized and believed that this is the number of days for the whole year?
– In this issue, Finland is guided by the general consular instruction for diplomatic missions and consular services of the Schengen countries.

– Is it possible to talk about the civilization influence of Finnish standards of conduct on our motorists, passengers, buyers and t. D.?
– Fifteen years ago, when I first found myself in St. Petersburg, no car did not miss pedestrian transition. Although the our drivers who have already traveled to Finland, recognized: there is comfortable, calmly and economically arranged a road movement, so that even huge cars do not interfere with anyone. And now, you have motorists pass pedestrians – it’s hard to say whether the Finnish influence is right here or in general the influence of European experiences already acquired by ours over the years. But Petersburg is a huge megapolis, and there will never be such a movement, as in Helsinki.