Timetable: 01/11/2022–30/04/2025

Description: The project will build the mechanisms for automated subsequent control and enable the extensive deployment of an automated decision-making.

Goals: The project will promote the wider use of automation and develop related practices. The project will implement information system changes for the automation of the subsequent control of employment and student residence permits and create processes for the implementation of this automation. In addition, functionalities for maintaining the automation of the electronic case management system for immigration affairs (UMA) will be developed. The project has two goals:

1. Automation of subsequent control will be in place and the maintenance of the automated permit processes will be efficient and legally certain.
2. Written and administrative processes and structures for the introduction and monitoring of the automated decision-making and the follow-up of the permit processes will have been established and implemented.

Timetable: 01/01/2023–31/12/2024

Description: Customer testing, interviews and observation will be used to determine the suitability of the self-service kiosks for use by Finnish Immigration Service customers in specific target groups. At the same time, the technical functionalities of the kiosks are examined and evaluated.

Goals: The aim of the project is to speed up access to the customer services of the Finnish Immigration Service. The project will include a test phase in which self-service kiosks from two different manufacturers will be tested in customer use. After the experiences gained, an assessment of requirements will be carried out for a competitive tender to find a suitable equipment supplier if the tests confirm that the introduction of the machines would be a viable solution to reduce the waiting time for appointments. Once the requirements have been defined and a suitable equipment supplier has been identified, development and wider deployment testing begins. Upon completion of the project, the self-service kiosks will be introduced in the service points of the Finnish Immigration Service.

Results: The Finnish Immigration Service has investigated the possibility of using self-service kiosks at the agency's service points. The aim in introducing self-service kiosks is to make it easier for customers to use the agency’s services and to improve cost-efficiency in such a way that customers no longer need to book appointments with an official. This arrangement would also free appointments for those who need the help of an official to handle their matters. 

The project developed a biometric self-service kiosk concept that streamlines and speeds up customer service processes. The project included a successful Proof of Concept preliminary assessment phase.

On the basis of the assessment, self-service kiosks were found to have potential for streamlining operations. 

The EU Home Affairs Funds co-funded Finnish Immigration Service’s IPA self-service kiosks project during 2023–2025. The funding from the EU Home Affairs Funds enabled the implementation of the IPA project.

Timetable: 1 January 2023–31 December 2025

Description: Operative support to ensure and maintain the efficient processing of asylum seekers’ applications and high quality of asylum decisions.

Goals: A flexible asylum process allows the Department for International Protection of the Finnish Immigration Service to ensure the quality and efficiency of the processing of asylum applications. With the operative support, the Department ensures that a sufficient number of competent employees work in asylum investigation, which will make decision making smoother, improve the asylum process for customers, and reduce reception costs. The operative support funding is used for the salaries of officials.

Timetable: 01/05/2023–30/04/2024

Description: Developing the skills of interpreters for asylum interviews and acquiring an interpretation processing system.

Goals: The aim of the project is to develop the skills of asylum interpreters for the asylum process and interviews. The aim is to ensure that all asylum seekers receive equal access to interpretation, regardless of their country of origin and language. This will enable speedier and more efficient asylum interviews, which will also save costs. In cooperation with the Finnish Immigration Service and the Diaconia University of Applied Sciences (DIAK), the project will produce a comprehensive and high-quality training package on interpreting for asylum interviews based on an online platform. The project will also provide an interpretation management system to ensure the availability of interpreters and the smooth booking of interpreters for interviews.

Timetable: 1/8/2024–31/7/2025

Description: The MOVE project will further and advance the process of moving from a reception centre to a municipality for clients receiving temporary protection. The project aims to assist clients who are in a vulnerable position and need more intensive support and guidance in the process of moving from a reception centre to a municipality. The project will help utilise a wider selection of communications channels and will further improve the service models of customer service and guidance together with reception centres and other interest groups. 

Goals: The main goal of the project is to create and tailor service models for beneficiaries of temporary protection in different life situations, especially for clients in a vulnerable position. The project aims to increase the share of clients who, after gaining the right to obtain a municipality of residence, move from a reception centre to a municipality, to provide clients the support they need, and to shorten the transition periods. A wider selection of communications channels will be utilised to share information about customer guidance services, and the information will reach the target group better. Clients and interest groups will have a wider selection of communications materials available to them.

Timetable: 01/04/2023–31/03/2025

Description: The project will promote returns and sustainable reintegration to Iraq and Somalia and improve the Finnish authorities' knowledge of both countries. The project will develop cooperation with both the Iraqi and Somali authorities.

Goals: The project will establish and maintain relations with the Somali and Iraqi authorities and other relevant stakeholders in these countries to promote returns and reintegration. As part of the project, information will be collected on return and reintegration support measures in the countries of destination and a general situational snapshot will be formed on issues related to returns. The information gathered will enhance the capacity of the authorities to develop the return system in a holistic way, in particular with regard to voluntary return, channelled directly through return advice and the development of reintegration support measures. The project will also organise and procure support services for reintegration in Somalia.

Timetable: 01/03/2023–28/02/2026

Description: Operational support ensures and maintains the efficient and rapid processing of applications for residence permits, in particular for permits based on employment, studies and for family members. This will contribute to a sustainable national policy on immigration.

Goals: Operational support is intended to ensure that the permit processes are staffed at all times by a sufficient number of people with up-to-date and diversified skills in explaining and promoting the grounds for applications from customers of different backgrounds. Adequate human resources will ensure smooth permit processes and allow for the achievement of processing time targets. It also builds readiness for change and unexpected global political developments, and ensures efficient, high-quality decision-making and customer experience.

Results: During the first 18 months, funding was allocated to the salary expenses of Senior Administrative Officers processing residence permit applications based on family ties. After this, the funding was transferred to the salary expenses of Senior Administrative Officers processing work-based and study-based applications.

During the three-year period, the Senior Administrative Officers who worked on the project issued a total of 8,781 decisions, of which 4,507 were work-based residence permit decisions and 3,748 were decisions on applications based on family ties. The rest of the decisions were related to, among others, removals from the country, residence permits of victims of human trafficking and residence permits based on other grounds. The operating support contributed to enabling a controlled processing of work-based and family-based applications and to securing sufficient resources in situations of change during the operating period.

Timetable: 01/04/2023–31/03/2025

Description: Development of the case management system for immigration affairs (UMA) with regard to the Assistance system for victims of human trafficking, particularly to support statistics and reporting functionalities.

Goals: The project will improve the data collection and comparability of statistics in the assistance system to meet national and international data needs, to provide a complete picture of trafficking in human beings and to eliminate errors and manual work. The project has three goals:

1. To clarify the statistical requirements of the Assistance system for victims of human trafficking to comply with section 55 of the Government's Action Plan against Trafficking in Human Beings 2021–2023 and the reform of the legislation on reception (746/2011) that will enter into force on 1 January 2023.
2. Digitalisation and automation of the case management for the Assistance system for victims of human trafficking in the UMA system.
3. The staff of the Assistance system for victims of human trafficking will have received UMA training and UMA user instructions will have been created as part of the UMA guidance.

Timetable: 01/01/2023–31/12/2024

Description: Voluntary return client work for immigrants who reside in the country illegally after being denied asylum, and training and consultation for reception centres. Implementation of Frontex services.

Goals: Operational support will maintain client work and consultation on returns and ensure that reception centres have the necessary skills to support returns. Operational support will ensure the coverage, quality, timeliness and forms of comprehensive return consultation, with a special focus on vulnerable persons, including victims of human trafficking. The project also includes the implementation of Frontex services in the Finnish returns system.

The voluntary return package will also be widely advertised on Facebook, on the Migri.fi website and on the paluuinfo.fi website. The aim of the publicity work related to voluntary return is to help clients and those working with them to find answers to their questions and provide up-to-date information.

Timetable: 01/05/2023–30/04/2025

Description: Introduction of a new asylum interview booking system.

Goals: The purpose of the Varausapu 2 project is to reform the interview booking system used for asylum interviews to achieve better adaptability in changing situations. The system will streamline the process of making interview bookings by speeding up the booking process in the asylum process and improving the interview resource management, such as interviewer and interview room bookings. In future, the aim is to scale up the use of automation of the interview booking system, which means, for example, that the system will be better able to suggest appropriate choices for each individual case when booking an interview. The project will result in a more efficient and better quality interview system, which is a key element of the asylum process.

Timetable: 01/01/2023–30/06/2025

Description: Implementing the obligations the Finnish Immigration Service arising from EU legislation relating to the Visa Information System (VIS) and the development of interoperability of EU large-scale IT systems (IO).

Goals: The project aims to implement the functionalities required by the VIS Regulation (EU) 2021/1134 and the Regulation on interoperability (EU) 2019/817 into the case management system for immigration affairs (UMA) and to connect the UMA system of the Finnish Immigration Service to the VIS Central Visa Information System via the message exchange solution (VVR) provided by the Ministry for Foreign Affairs. Through the UMA system, the Finnish Immigration Service will be able to carry out the new mandatory measures reliably, securely and efficiently.

Results: The results of the project did not match the goals set in the project application. During the project, eu-LISA, which is responsible for system development at EU level, was unable to provide sufficient interface documentation to be used by the Member States. Interface documentation is critical for the national system development that is required.

During the project, the Finnish Immigration Service successfully carried out required technical development work in a concept form together with the Ministry for Foreign Affairs. The development work will await the entry into operation of the revised VIS Regulation. As a result of the cooperation, a DAVIS component was built which will work as a mandatory new message exchange solution for the Central Visa Information System in Finland. The DAVIS component will replace the old VVR solution.

The DAVIS component will steer the required transaction traffic from the national architecture in Finland to the Central Visa Information System (VIS) maintained by eu-LISA. Without the DAVIS component, the Finnish Immigration Service would not be able meet its registration obligations arising from the Regulation in the EU Visa Information System that will be reformed.

During the project, the implementation of the revised VIS Regulation was postponed in the European Union from 2025 to the end of 2027. The Member States are still waiting for EU legislation that complements the VIS Regulation, on the basis of which possible amendments to the national legislation, including Aliens Act, will be drafted.

Timetable: 1 October 2024–30 January 2026

Description: The VOKnet website is the Finnish Immigration Service’s most important channel for communicating instructions and information to all reception centres, detention units and units for minors in Finland. VOKnet contains clear, up-to-date instructions that are available for employees at reception centres, units for minors and detention units, as well as employees at the Finnish Immigration Service’s Reception Services Department and Department for International Protection.

Goals: The aim is to create an up-to-date website that is easy to use and that supports the provision of efficient, high-quality reception services according to plan. The website is also important for preparedness. During the project, a new web platform will be acquired and launched, and the contents of the website will be updated. The maintenance and updating process will be described, and it will be ensured that updating and finding necessary instructions is easy.

Timetable: 01/01/2023–31/05/2024

Description: Improvement of the facilities, equipment and infrastructure of the Finnish Immigration Service's reception centres to meet today's needs while supporting preparedness to respond to rapid fluctuations in the numbers of asylum seekers.

Goals: The aim of the project is to improve the centres' preparedness for different types of incidents and emergencies, ensure the safety of their customers and staff, improve customer satisfaction and the efficient use of premises, and increase staff productivity.