A Travel and Tour World round-up of global border disruptions published on 21 November reiterates that Finland has kept all passenger crossings on its 1,340-km border with Russia shut since December 2023. The article notes that Finland’s parliament in June 2025 extended emergency legislation allowing guards to reject asylum applications at the frontier and to maintain the shutdown as a counter-measure against what Helsinki terms “instrumentalised migration” from Russia.
Finland’s closure is listed alongside recent clamp-downs in Poland, Nigeria and Israel, underscoring how geopolitical tensions continue to disrupt international mobility. For Finland the measure has profound implications: road freight is rerouted via Baltic Sea ferries, while visa-holding travellers must use air or sea entry points.
![Travel Advisory Highlights Finland’s Ongoing Land-Border Closure With Russia]()
Corporate mobility managers moving staff to or from Finland’s eastern regions face longer supply-chain lead times and higher costs. Employers must also monitor changes in Russia policy; Prime Minister Petteri Orpo has hinted the border could reopen if Russia stops facilitating undocumented crossings, but no concrete timeline exists.
With winter approaching, companies should ensure contingency plans for land-transport diversions remain active and that assignees understand asylum policies if family members intend to travel. The episode also illustrates the EU’s growing willingness to suspend Schengen norms under security pretexts, a trend that may resurface elsewhere.
Finland’s closure is listed alongside recent clamp-downs in Poland, Nigeria and Israel, underscoring how geopolitical tensions continue to disrupt international mobility. For Finland the measure has profound implications: road freight is rerouted via Baltic Sea ferries, while visa-holding travellers must use air or sea entry points.
Corporate mobility managers moving staff to or from Finland’s eastern regions face longer supply-chain lead times and higher costs. Employers must also monitor changes in Russia policy; Prime Minister Petteri Orpo has hinted the border could reopen if Russia stops facilitating undocumented crossings, but no concrete timeline exists.
With winter approaching, companies should ensure contingency plans for land-transport diversions remain active and that assignees understand asylum policies if family members intend to travel. The episode also illustrates the EU’s growing willingness to suspend Schengen norms under security pretexts, a trend that may resurface elsewhere.
