Where is the interview conducted?
Four offices of the Finnish Immigration Service hold asylum interviews: the offices of Helsinki, Raisio, Lappeenranta and Oulu.
Usually your interview will be at the office that is the closest to the reception centre where you are registered. Sometimes we may hold the interview elsewhere.
The Finnish Immigration Service will send you an invitation to the interview, telling you where and when your interview will take place. Your reception centre will give you instructions on how to travel to your interview.
Before you enter the customer facilities of the Finnish Immigration Service, you may be required to undergo a security check.
Accessibility information for interviews
Please inform the staff of your reception centre in advance if you have special needs regarding the asylum interview. The reception centre will notify the Finnish Immigration Service of them before the interview. Adjustments can be made if, for instance:
- you have a physical disability
- you have a sensory disability
- you need a support person to attend the interview.
We do our best to meet your accessibility needs when we arrange the interview.
Interview facilities in Helsinki
The address of the interview facilities in Helsinki is Ratapihantie 11. Entrance is from the upper-level door by the junction of the Kellosilta street and the Veturimiehenkatu street.
There are no separate parking spaces for customers. If you hold a parking card for people with reduced mobility, you can drive and park in front of the entrance.
The pick-up and drop-off area is in front of the entrance.
- Drive north along the Ratapihantie street.
- Turn right to the Rautatieläisenkatu street.
- Take the first turn right to the Veturimiehenkatu street.
- Take the first turn right to the Kellosilta street.
- The entrance to the Finnish Immigration Service’s interview facilities is on your right side.
The entrance is not clearly distinguishable. The sign marking the entrance is not easily visible from the traffic route. There is a canopy above the entrance.
There is no electronic door-opening mechanism. There is a low threshold in the doorway. There is space for turning in front of the entrance.
The interview rooms are on the same floor as the entrance. When you enter the building, the security guards will guide you to a waiting area.
The signs inside are clear and distinguishable.
There is seating available in the waiting area. There is sufficient room for moving with a wheelchair in the corridors. An employee of the Finnish Immigration Service will escort you from the waiting area to the interview room and back to the waiting area.
The interview rooms are of different sizes. There is not enough space for turning with a wheelchair in all rooms. If you have told of your wheelchair use in advance, we will book a large interview room for you.
There are two toilets in the waiting area but they are not accessible. There is an accessible, large toilet in a corridor behind a locked door. You can ask the staff to open it for you.
Guide dogs and service dogs are allowed indoors.
There is no sound beacon or induction loop.
Interview facilities in Raisio
The address of the interview facilities in Raisio is Nallinkatu 8.
Parking spaces for customers are available free of charge for 2 hours. Remember to use a parking disc. In addition, there are accessible parking spaces for two cars. They are located over 10 metres from the entrance.
The pick-up and drop-off area is in front of the entrance.
The route to the entrance is marked with signs, has lighting and is wide enough for a wheelchair. There is a canopy above the entrance.
There is a ramp for wheelchair users in front of the entrance. The security guard will open the door for you.
The waiting lobby for customers is at street level on the same floor as the entrance. When you enter the building, the security guard will guide you to a waiting lobby for customers.
There are signs indoors.
There is enough space to move with a wheelchair.
Seating is available in the waiting lobby.
The interview rooms are on the 2nd and 3rd floor. All floors can be accessed with a lift. The lift door opens automatically. The lift is spacious and there is room for turning with a wheelchair or a baby stroller/pushchair. The lift buttons are 90–130 centimetres from the floor and have raised numbers. The button for the exit floor is green and embossed. The alarm button is raised but does not have a collar. The lift does not give audio instructions.
An employee of the Finnish Immigration Service will come and escort you from the waiting lobby to the interview room. During breaks, the employee of the Finnish Immigration Service and the security guards can help you with using the lift.
There is an accessible, large toilet in the lobby on the 3rd floor.
Guide dogs and service dogs are allowed indoors.
There is no sound beacon or induction loop.
Interview facilities in Lappeenranta
There are two routes to the interview facilities:
- the main entrance of the Virastotalo office building at Pormestarinkatu 1
- an accessible entrance at the address Villimiehenkatu 2.
There is no free parking reserved for customers. There are public parking spaces along the Pormestarinkatu street. Parking there is subject to a fee. There are no accessible parking spaces.
The pick-up and drop-off area is in front of the Villimiehenkatu entrance at the address Villimiehenkatu 2.
The main entrance of the Virastotalo office building is distinguishable and has lighting. The route to the Villimiehenkatu entrance is not very distinguishable and has poor lightning. Both entrances are wide enough for a wheelchair. There is a canopy above both entrances.
Both entrances have a ramp for wheelchair users. The front doors have an electronic opening mechanism. You can open the front doors by pushing a button. There are buttons both on the outside and on the inside. There is space for turning with a wheelchair in front of both entrances.
The main entrance of the Virastotalo office building, the interview rooms and the customer lobby are on the P floor. The Villimiehenkatu entrance in on the K floor.
There is a lift in the building. The lift door opens automatically. The lift gives audio instructions, meaning that the lift will announce when it reaches a floor. There is not enough room in the lift for turning with a wheelchair or a baby stroller/pushchair.
The entrance to the Finnish Immigration Service facilities is inside the office building on the P floor. The door has a doorbell. Ring the doorbell and wait for the security guard to open the door for you. The door has an automatic opening mechanism. There is a low threshold in the doorway.
The security guard will guide you to a customer lobby. There is seating available in the customer lobby. There is sufficient room for moving with a wheelchair in the corridors.
There are not many signs indoors. An employee of the Finnish Immigration Service will come and escort you from the customer lobby to the interview room.
There is an accessible toilet in the common areas of the Virastotalo office building on the P floor.
Guide dogs and service dogs are allowed indoors.
There is no sound beacon or induction loop.
Interview facilities in Oulu
There are two routes to the interview facilities:
- The main route is at the address Albertinkatu 4 B.
- Another route is via the inner courtyard entrance of the Oikeustalo Court House at the address Sepänkatu 3 A. This entrance is intended for customers who need an accessible parking space.
Neither entrance is entirely accessible.
The pick-up and drop-off area is in front of the entrance at Sepänkatu 3 A. Cars may stop for pick-up and drop-off at the address Albertinkatu 4 B as well.
There are private parking spaces, where parking is subject to a fee, in the inner courtyard of the building, as well as accessible parking spaces that can be used free of charge. The accessible parking spaces are located less than 10 metres from the inner courtyard entrance of the Finnish Immigration Service. The Finnish Immigration Service does not have separate parking spaces reserved for its customers.
The route from the Sepänkatu entrance has insufficient signs. The main entrance on the Albertinkatu street is distinguishable and has sufficient signs.
Both entrances have lightning and are wide enough for a wheelchair. There is a canopy above both entrances. There is space for turning with a wheelchair in front of both entrances.
The inner courtyard entrance at Sepänkatu 3 A has a door buzzer. Press the buzzer, and a security guard will come and open the door for you. The buzzer is too high for a wheelchair user to reach. There is a high threshold in the doorway. There is no ramp for wheelchair users. The security guards can provide assistance at the entrance.
At the Albertinkatu entrance, there is no electronic door-opening mechanism. At the Albertinkatu entrance, there is a low threshold in the doorway but it is easy to cross with a wheelchair.
The route from the Albertinkatu entrance to the facilities of the Finnish Immigration Service is marked clearly with signs. If you enter from the Sepänkatu side, a security guard will escort you to the Finnish Immigration Service’s premises.
The customer premises of the Finnish Immigration Service are on the 2nd floor. Both entrances are on the P floor.
There is a lift in the building. The lift door opens automatically. The lift does not give audio instructions. There is not enough room in the lift for turning with a wheelchair or a baby stroller/pushchair.
The entrance to the Finnish Immigration Service's facilities is inside the building on the 2nd floor. The door has a doorbell. Ring the doorbell and wait for the security guard to open the door for you. The security guard will guide you to a customer lobby. There is a low threshold in the doorway.
Seating is available in the customer lobby. There is sufficient room for moving with a wheelchair in the corridors.
An employee of the Finnish Immigration Service will come and escort you from the customer lobby to the interview room.
There is an accessible, large toilet in the customer lobby on the 2nd floor.
Guide dogs and service dogs are allowed indoors.
There is no sound beacon or induction loop.