Finland’s Interior Ministry on 7 February circulated a 580-page draft bill that will rewrite almost every section of the Aliens Act in order to transpose the EU Pact on Migration and Asylum before it enters into force in mid-2026. On 10 February the Deaconess Foundation, one of the country’s largest refugee-support NGOs, published a blistering 12-page opinion accusing the government of ‘prioritising speed over fairness’.
Under the proposal, border-guard officers would be allowed to make negative decisions in an accelerated ‘border procedure’ lasting as little as five days; legal-aid entitlements would be trimmed; and the deadline to appeal a first-instance refusal would drop from 30 days to 15. Applicants could not work legally until they had waited six months—double the current three-month rule.
The Interior Ministry argues that the changes are needed to clear a backlog of more than 10 000 cases and to deter secondary movements within the Schengen area. But critics point out that the EU pact gives member states discretion to keep stronger guarantees where national law already provides them. ‘Finland is choosing to weaken, not to maintain, its own standards,’ said Anne Hammad, the Foundation’s migration specialist.
![Civil society group warns Finland’s sweeping asylum overhaul could erode human-rights safeguards]()
Amid this evolving legislative landscape, individuals and employers alike may find it useful to consult specialist visa facilitation services. VisaHQ, for example, offers an up-to-date portal on Finnish entry requirements (https://www.visahq.com/finland/) and can guide travellers, trainees and sponsoring companies through the paperwork that still applies under the current Aliens Act—helping them remain compliant until the new rules take effect.
Business-immigration lawyers are watching the bill closely because the same package will harmonise permit categories and align Dublin transfer rules with the new EU format. Employers who host trainees and intracompany transferees could see shorter decision times—but also find themselves footing the bill for mandatory return-sponsorship if an assignee’s asylum claim is rejected.
The draft is open for comments until 4 March. The government hopes to submit it to Parliament before the Easter recess so that the new system can go live in January 2027, three months ahead of the EU deadline.
Under the proposal, border-guard officers would be allowed to make negative decisions in an accelerated ‘border procedure’ lasting as little as five days; legal-aid entitlements would be trimmed; and the deadline to appeal a first-instance refusal would drop from 30 days to 15. Applicants could not work legally until they had waited six months—double the current three-month rule.
The Interior Ministry argues that the changes are needed to clear a backlog of more than 10 000 cases and to deter secondary movements within the Schengen area. But critics point out that the EU pact gives member states discretion to keep stronger guarantees where national law already provides them. ‘Finland is choosing to weaken, not to maintain, its own standards,’ said Anne Hammad, the Foundation’s migration specialist.
Amid this evolving legislative landscape, individuals and employers alike may find it useful to consult specialist visa facilitation services. VisaHQ, for example, offers an up-to-date portal on Finnish entry requirements (https://www.visahq.com/finland/) and can guide travellers, trainees and sponsoring companies through the paperwork that still applies under the current Aliens Act—helping them remain compliant until the new rules take effect.
Business-immigration lawyers are watching the bill closely because the same package will harmonise permit categories and align Dublin transfer rules with the new EU format. Employers who host trainees and intracompany transferees could see shorter decision times—but also find themselves footing the bill for mandatory return-sponsorship if an assignee’s asylum claim is rejected.
The draft is open for comments until 4 March. The government hopes to submit it to Parliament before the Easter recess so that the new system can go live in January 2027, three months ahead of the EU deadline.
