Deportation and denial of admittance or stay

If you do not get a residence permit, you have to leave Finland

If you have applied for a residence permit and have received a negative decision on your application, you have to leave Finland. A decision on removal from the country means either denial of admittance or stay or deportation, depending on your situation.

Decision on denial of admittance or stay

When the decision on your application for a first residence permit is negative, you will also be given a decision on denial of admittance or stay. If you object to being denied admittance or stay because your human rights or safety would be endangered in your home country or country of permanent residence, you can lodge an application for international protection with the police or the border control authorities. See the page Information for asylum seekers for more information about the asylum procedure.

The decision on denial of admittance or stay may set a time limit for you to leave Finland voluntarily. Usually, the time limit for leaving Finland voluntarily is 30 days. The time limit is counted from the day when you have been served with the decision on denial of admittance or stay. In contrast, if you appeal against the decision on your residence permit application to an administrative court and the court prohibits the enforcement of the Finnish Immigration Service’s decision, the time limit will be counted from the administrative court's decision on your residence permit application.

If you wish to return to your home country voluntarily, you may be granted assistance for voluntary return. Read more about voluntary return on the page Voluntary return.

If you do not leave Finland voluntarily, the police or the Border Guard will remove you from the country.

You may also be issued with an entry ban to the Schengen area if, for example:

your application was rejected because you have evaded immigration regulations, for example by entering a sham marriage
you are considered to present a danger to public order or security, for example because you have committed crimes
your application for international protection is rejected in an accelerated procedure
you do not leave Finland voluntarily within the time limit given to you.

For more information on denial of admittance or stay for asylum seekers, see the page Denial of admittance or stay.

An entry ban means that you cannot enter Finland or other Schengen countries while the entry ban is in force.

Decision on deportation

You will be issued with a decision on deportation if you already have a residence permit in Finland but you are not granted an extended permit or your residence permit is withdrawn. You may also be deported if you have committed crimes in Finland. If you object to being deported because your human rights or safety would be endangered in your home country or country of permanent residence, you can lodge an application for international protection with the police or the border control authorities. See the page Information for asylum seekers for more information about the asylum procedure.

Your residence permit expires when you are deported from Finland. In other words, the residence permit that you have had stops being valid when you are deported.

If you do not leave Finland, the police or the Border Guard will enforce the deportation. In other words, they will remove you from the country.

The decision on deportation may set a time limit for you to leave Finland voluntarily. Usually, the time limit for leaving Finland voluntarily is 30 days. The time limit is counted from the day when the deportation decision becomes final or from when the deportation decision becomes enforceable. This means that even if you have appealed against the decision issued by an administrative court to the Supreme Administrative Court, the decision on deportation will still be enforceable unless the Supreme Administrative Court separately prohibits the enforcement. After the Supreme Administrative Court has issued a final decision in such situations, the decision on deportation becomes final. In such a case, the counting of the time limit for leaving the country voluntarily starts over. If you have applied for an extended permit for seasonal work, the time limit for voluntary return begins when you are served with the decision made by the Finnish Immigration Service.

If you wish to return to your home country voluntarily, you can apply for assistance for voluntary return. Read more about voluntary return on the page Voluntary return.