More than 850 returned voluntarily to their home countries
Assisted voluntary return system being established as a part of administration
A total of 858 foreigners who arrived in Finland mainly as asylum seekers returned voluntarily to their home countries in the Assisted Voluntary Return project organised by IOM Helsinki (International Organization for Migration) and the Finnish Immigration Service.
The project, entitled ‘Developing Assisted Voluntary Return in Finland’, ran from 2010 to 2012. It assisted foreigners from outside the EU who were residing in Finland to return to their home countries voluntarily. The project received 1,333 applications.
“The project’s popularity came as a surprise, even though IOM had expected the number of returns to grow compared to the years preceding the project. The opportunity to return proved popular among immigrants living in Finland; in addition, IOM developed return procedures that are currently in daily use around the country. We would not have been able to achieve such positive results for the project without partners, in particular reception centre employees, the police and other authorities, who have actively helped us succeed,” says Jacob Jørgensen, coordinator of the project.
Return system maintained by a continuation project
The aim is to integrate the assisted voluntary return system into the migration management in Finland. On 30 November 2012, the Ministry of the Interior launched a project for this purpose. The project will prepare the proposals required for legislative amendments. The intention is to submit the Government’s proposal to Parliament during the 2013 autumn term.
In the beginning of 2013, IOM Helsinki launched a new “Voluntary Assisted Return and Reintegration Programme in Finland” (VARRP-FIN) project. This continuation project, intended to last two years, aims at maintaining return procedures and, in particular, developing assistance for the period after return.
“Finland is obviously willing to assist returnees towards permanent integration into their former home countries, in order to provide them with better prerequisites for living permanently in their place of residence. In the VARRP-FIN project, IOM seeks to pay more attention to the various backgrounds of the returnees for integration, and to offer assistance in the form of goods and services to an increasing number of returnees,” says Jørgensen.
In the previous project, the number of people seeking voluntary return was higher than the number of returns that could be implemented within the framework of the budget. The estimated number of returnees has therefore been increased. For 2013, return aid has been budgeted for 400 returnees.
As with the previous project, the VARRP-FIN project is funded by the European Return Fund and the Finnish Immigration Service.
Further information for the media
Further information (e.g. statistics) on the Assisted Voluntary Return project is available from the contact persons listed below and at www.assistedvoluntaryreturn.fi. Media representatives may request a USB press kit from IOM, containing project materials in electronic form.
Jacob Jørgensen, Project Coordinator, IOM
jjorgensen@iom.int
Phone: +358 9 684 11 529
Pirkko Väänänen, Project Communication Manager, IOM
pvaananen@iom.int
Phone: +358 9 684 11 559
Matti Heinonen, Head of Section, Finnish Immigration Service
firstname.lastname@migri.fi
Phone: +358 71 873 0431
Press release of the Finnish Immigration Service and IOM, 31.1.2013
The International Organization for Migration (IOM), founded in 1951, is the leading intergovernmental organisation in its field. IOM works to promote orderly migration in the interests of all parties: countries of origin, transit and destination, and the migrants themselves. In 2013, IOM Helsinki commemorates the 20th anniversary of IOM activities in Finland.
