Entry restrictions to continue until 17 April

The government on Thursday decided to extend the restrictions on entry into the country until 17 April 2021.

The COVID-19 pandemic continues to spread, and there are no adequate measures available yet to replace the restrictions, said the Ministry of Interior in a press release.

For this reason, and to curb the spread of COVID-19 variants, both internal border controls and restrictions on external border traffic will continue.

Only minor changes were made to the decisions taken on 18 February. The changes will enter into force on 19 March 2021.

Finland will also continue to provide assistance to its neighbour Estonia. In accordance with the current operating procedure, the Gulf of Finland Coast Guard District has informed passengers at the Port of Tallinn about the conditions for entry since September 2020.

For example, a holiday or work other than tasks that are considered essential from the perspective of security of supply or the functioning of society does not entitle travellers to enter the country, even if they have a negative COVID-19 test certificate.

Finland continues to restrict entry from all other Schengen countries except Iceland.

Restrictions have already been lifted earlier for traffic into Finland from the Vatican, and for traffic between Finland and Australia, South Korea, Singapore, Thailand, and New Zealand for residents of these countries. Restrictions will now be lifted for traffic into Finland from Rwanda for residents of Rwanda.