Finavia has confirmed that the European Union’s automated Entry/Exit System (EES) will be phased in at the region’s four Lapland airports—Rovaniemi, Kittilä, Ivalo and Kuusamo—starting this month, following successful implementation at Helsinki Airport last October. The announcement, released on 7 January 2026, signals the second stage of Finland’s nationwide deployment programme led by the Finnish Border Guard. (nordicmarketing.de)
EES replaces manual passport stamping for third-country nationals with a biometric database that records each traveller’s facial image and fingerprints along with entry and exit timestamps. Border officers in Lapland have spent the past six weeks in simulator training, while terminals have been reconfigured to add self-service kiosks and dedicated lanes. A six-month transition period will run through July, during which conventional booths will operate in parallel to mitigate peak-season queues—crucial given Lapland’s heavy winter tourism traffic. (nordicmarketing.de)
For travellers who want one-stop guidance on Finland’s evolving border formalities, VisaHQ can help untangle the details. Its Finland portal (https://www.visahq.com/finland/) follows EES developments, the upcoming ETIAS launch and all visa or residence-permit requirements, providing corporate travel managers and individual visitors with up-to-date information and document-processing support before they even head to the airport.
![Lapland Airports Next in Line for EU Entry/Exit System Roll-Out]()
For business travellers, the key change is time: first-time enrolment can add two to three minutes per passenger. Companies sending staff to the Arctic mining and renewable-energy clusters are being advised to allow extra airport dwell time and to brief travellers on biometric data collection to avoid refusals. EU nationals, including Finns, remain exempt, but third-country residents of Finland who lack EU long-term status must register. (airportindustry-news.com)
Finavia says signage in Finnish, Swedish, English, Japanese and Mandarin will guide passengers through the new process—reflecting the dominance of Asian leisure groups in Lapland. The authority will publish weekly throughput statistics to monitor bottlenecks; if average processing time exceeds 45 seconds, additional staffed desks will open. (nordicmarketing.de)
Long term, EES is a precursor to the EU’s ETIAS travel authorisation, now slated for late 2026. Finnish tour operators welcome the predictability the system brings but warn that any technical glitches during peak ski season could dent the region’s reputation for smooth connectivity. Corporate travel managers should watch Finavia’s dashboards and update traveller-tracking tools once live data becomes available.
EES replaces manual passport stamping for third-country nationals with a biometric database that records each traveller’s facial image and fingerprints along with entry and exit timestamps. Border officers in Lapland have spent the past six weeks in simulator training, while terminals have been reconfigured to add self-service kiosks and dedicated lanes. A six-month transition period will run through July, during which conventional booths will operate in parallel to mitigate peak-season queues—crucial given Lapland’s heavy winter tourism traffic. (nordicmarketing.de)
For travellers who want one-stop guidance on Finland’s evolving border formalities, VisaHQ can help untangle the details. Its Finland portal (https://www.visahq.com/finland/) follows EES developments, the upcoming ETIAS launch and all visa or residence-permit requirements, providing corporate travel managers and individual visitors with up-to-date information and document-processing support before they even head to the airport.
For business travellers, the key change is time: first-time enrolment can add two to three minutes per passenger. Companies sending staff to the Arctic mining and renewable-energy clusters are being advised to allow extra airport dwell time and to brief travellers on biometric data collection to avoid refusals. EU nationals, including Finns, remain exempt, but third-country residents of Finland who lack EU long-term status must register. (airportindustry-news.com)
Finavia says signage in Finnish, Swedish, English, Japanese and Mandarin will guide passengers through the new process—reflecting the dominance of Asian leisure groups in Lapland. The authority will publish weekly throughput statistics to monitor bottlenecks; if average processing time exceeds 45 seconds, additional staffed desks will open. (nordicmarketing.de)
Long term, EES is a precursor to the EU’s ETIAS travel authorisation, now slated for late 2026. Finnish tour operators welcome the predictability the system brings but warn that any technical glitches during peak ski season could dent the region’s reputation for smooth connectivity. Corporate travel managers should watch Finavia’s dashboards and update traveller-tracking tools once live data becomes available.
