The majority of residence permit applications of students who were due to begin studying this autumn have been processed. Almost 92 per cent of the decisions made earlier this year were positive. In most cases, uncertain means of support was the reason for a negative decision.
At the moment, students' applications are being forwarded for processing within one week of their arrival at the Finnish Immigration Service. If you applied for a residence permit for studies more than a month ago, and still have not received a decision, you should wait a little longer. You will receive the decision within the next few weeks.
The next peak time in November: Apply for a permit well in advance
The next peak time for the processing of residence permit applications for studies is expected in November, when students who are due to begin their studies at the beginning of the year apply for residence permits.
Please therefore apply for a residence permit as soon as your study place at a Finnish educational institution is confirmed. This is the best way to ensure that you receive a decision before the beginning of your studies.
You can expedite the decision by completing your application carefully and submitting it online via the Enter Finland service. Applications submitted through Enter Finland will be transferred directly to the Finnish Immigration Service once you have visited the Finnish embassy or consulate in your country in person.
Student residence permit applications are always treated as urgent
The Finnish Immigration Service processes all residence permit applications for studies as high-priority applications – without a separate request to expedite processing. Applications are processed in the order in which they arrive, and emailing or calling the Finnish Immigration Service will not speed up the processing of your application. We will contact you if we need any additional information for your application.
The Finnish Immigration Service makes a decision on each application within about a month. Processing times vary depending on the case.
Do not buy flight tickets in advance, because the processing of your application cannot be fast-tracked just because flight tickets have been purchased.
