Finnish Prime Minister Petteri Orpo wrapped up a one-day working visit to Beijing on 27 January with an hour-long meeting with President Xi Jinping that put people-to-people mobility firmly on the bilateral agenda. While the headline announcements focused on climate cooperation and green-tech investment, senior officials confirmed that both sides want to turn the existing 30-day, visa-free regime for Finnish travellers to China into a permanent arrangement and, eventually, a reciprocal scheme for Chinese business visitors to Finland.
Background and context Finland has enjoyed unilateral visa-free entry to China since late 2023, with the current waiver running until 31 December 2026. The policy has already revived two-way traffic: according to Visit Finland, Chinese arrivals in the country were up 13 percent year-on-year between January and September 2025, while Finnish airlines reported 85 percent seat-load factors on Helsinki–Shanghai services. Business groups, however, say growth is being held back by the lack of a matching waiver for Chinese executives heading to Finland to finalise deals.
What was agreed In Beijing, Xi said China was “ready to welcome more Finnish friends to experience a China that is both ancient and modern,” and encouraged Finnish firms to “take a swim in the vast ocean of the Chinese market.” Orpo, for his part, invited Chinese delegations to explore Finnish hydrogen projects and proposed a working group to study streamlined short-stay travel for Chinese technicians installing equipment at Finnish industrial sites. Both leaders instructed their foreign ministries to begin talks on mutual long-term visa facilitation, starting with multi-entry business visas valid for up to five years.
![Xi–Orpo Summit Sets Stage for Easier Finland-China Business Mobility]()
Practical implications The summit sends a clear signal to multinationals with operations in both countries. Companies planning 2026 budget cycles can expect faster permit processing for seconded staff and should prepare internal mobility policies that leverage the existing 30-day waiver for Finnish passport-holders. Trade advisers also recommend lining up language-training vouchers for Chinese engineers who may soon be able to spend longer stints in Finland without the current paperwork.
For companies and private travellers needing help navigating the evolving China–Finland travel framework, VisaHQ offers a one-stop portal (https://www.visahq.com/finland/) that tracks policy changes in real time and provides guided application services for Chinese and other global visas. Using its digital tools, Finnish firms can pre-arrange multi-entry permits for staff, while Chinese partners can receive step-by-step support the moment reciprocal arrangements come online.
Looking ahead Negotiators aim to deliver a draft bilateral mobility accord before the China-Finland Joint Economic Commission meets in Helsinki in June 2026. If successful, Finland would become the first Nordic country to secure truly reciprocal, visa-light travel with China—potentially giving Finnish exporters a head start in Asia’s largest market.
Background and context Finland has enjoyed unilateral visa-free entry to China since late 2023, with the current waiver running until 31 December 2026. The policy has already revived two-way traffic: according to Visit Finland, Chinese arrivals in the country were up 13 percent year-on-year between January and September 2025, while Finnish airlines reported 85 percent seat-load factors on Helsinki–Shanghai services. Business groups, however, say growth is being held back by the lack of a matching waiver for Chinese executives heading to Finland to finalise deals.
What was agreed In Beijing, Xi said China was “ready to welcome more Finnish friends to experience a China that is both ancient and modern,” and encouraged Finnish firms to “take a swim in the vast ocean of the Chinese market.” Orpo, for his part, invited Chinese delegations to explore Finnish hydrogen projects and proposed a working group to study streamlined short-stay travel for Chinese technicians installing equipment at Finnish industrial sites. Both leaders instructed their foreign ministries to begin talks on mutual long-term visa facilitation, starting with multi-entry business visas valid for up to five years.
Practical implications The summit sends a clear signal to multinationals with operations in both countries. Companies planning 2026 budget cycles can expect faster permit processing for seconded staff and should prepare internal mobility policies that leverage the existing 30-day waiver for Finnish passport-holders. Trade advisers also recommend lining up language-training vouchers for Chinese engineers who may soon be able to spend longer stints in Finland without the current paperwork.
For companies and private travellers needing help navigating the evolving China–Finland travel framework, VisaHQ offers a one-stop portal (https://www.visahq.com/finland/) that tracks policy changes in real time and provides guided application services for Chinese and other global visas. Using its digital tools, Finnish firms can pre-arrange multi-entry permits for staff, while Chinese partners can receive step-by-step support the moment reciprocal arrangements come online.
Looking ahead Negotiators aim to deliver a draft bilateral mobility accord before the China-Finland Joint Economic Commission meets in Helsinki in June 2026. If successful, Finland would become the first Nordic country to secure truly reciprocal, visa-light travel with China—potentially giving Finnish exporters a head start in Asia’s largest market.
