Finland has joined more than two dozen other Schengen members in publicly endorsing the European Travel Information and Authorisation System (ETIAS) and its newly revised €20 processing fee for visa-exempt nationals. Travel and Tour World reports that Helsinki signed off on the higher tariff on 25 January after the Council of the EU approved budget adjustments for the long-delayed scheme. (travelandtourworld.com)
Under the plan, citizens of the United Kingdom, United States, Canada and 55 other visa-free countries will need to secure an ETIAS clearance before boarding transport to Finland or any other participating state. Authorisations will be valid for three years but limited to stays of 90 days in any 180-day period. Travellers under 18 or over 70 will be exempt from the fee, while carriers will be obliged to verify ETIAS status at check-in.
For travellers and corporate mobility teams seeking a streamlined way to navigate the new ETIAS requirement, VisaHQ’s digital platform can handle the application end-to-end, provide real-time status updates, and even offer bulk-processing tools for groups or employees. More information on its Finland-specific services is available at https://www.visahq.com/finland/
![Finland confirms €20 ETIAS fee for visa-exempt travellers starting late 2026]()
For Finnish companies that host frequent inbound visits—particularly tech firms in Espoo and mining companies in Lapland—the new charge is modest but administratively significant. HR and mobility teams will need to budget for the fee and educate short-term assignees, auditors and training staff about the on-line application, which must be completed at least 96 hours before departure to avoid red-flag reviews.
The Finnish Border Guard says it expects minimal impact on border-crossing times at Helsinki-Vantaa thanks to automated gates already calibrated for biometric checks. However, travel-industry associations warn of potential teething problems during the six-month grace period, noting that earlier roll-outs of Canada’s eTA and the U.S. ESTA generated high initial refusal rates due to mistakes in passport data entry.
Although the European Commission has pushed the go-live date to Q4 2026, Finnish tour operators are urging travellers to factor the fee—and possible currency fluctuations—into 2027 holiday budgets. Corporate mobility managers, meanwhile, should update intranet guidance and assure that travel-booking tools capture ETIAS details to maintain compliance.
Under the plan, citizens of the United Kingdom, United States, Canada and 55 other visa-free countries will need to secure an ETIAS clearance before boarding transport to Finland or any other participating state. Authorisations will be valid for three years but limited to stays of 90 days in any 180-day period. Travellers under 18 or over 70 will be exempt from the fee, while carriers will be obliged to verify ETIAS status at check-in.
For travellers and corporate mobility teams seeking a streamlined way to navigate the new ETIAS requirement, VisaHQ’s digital platform can handle the application end-to-end, provide real-time status updates, and even offer bulk-processing tools for groups or employees. More information on its Finland-specific services is available at https://www.visahq.com/finland/
For Finnish companies that host frequent inbound visits—particularly tech firms in Espoo and mining companies in Lapland—the new charge is modest but administratively significant. HR and mobility teams will need to budget for the fee and educate short-term assignees, auditors and training staff about the on-line application, which must be completed at least 96 hours before departure to avoid red-flag reviews.
The Finnish Border Guard says it expects minimal impact on border-crossing times at Helsinki-Vantaa thanks to automated gates already calibrated for biometric checks. However, travel-industry associations warn of potential teething problems during the six-month grace period, noting that earlier roll-outs of Canada’s eTA and the U.S. ESTA generated high initial refusal rates due to mistakes in passport data entry.
Although the European Commission has pushed the go-live date to Q4 2026, Finnish tour operators are urging travellers to factor the fee—and possible currency fluctuations—into 2027 holiday budgets. Corporate mobility managers, meanwhile, should update intranet guidance and assure that travel-booking tools capture ETIAS details to maintain compliance.
