Staying in Finland as EU citizen

JK_Ironak · Post by **JK_Ironak** » Wed Sep 09, 2015 2:56 pm

Hey everyone!

I expected to find answers to my questions by searching the forum, but I didn´t - I am sorry if they are already there.
I came to Finland a month and half ago, hoping to have luck in finding a job -but I didn´t. I have Finnish boyfriend, we live together here. We asked police if he could vouch (he has enough savings) for supporting me for a years residence permit so that I can overstay the 3 months, but they replied I can stay here for up to 6 months if I am actively looking for a job.

I am wondering for how long and where do I have to go from Finland to reset the 3 month and 6 month timers? We might just decide to get married before 6 months is up, but I am wondering about other options...

**Sponsor:**

Upphew · Post by **Upphew** » Thu Sep 10, 2015 7:36 am

EU citizen or resident?

JK_Ironak · Post by **JK_Ironak** » Thu Sep 10, 2015 10:00 am

Whoops, thank you. Citizen it is.

rinso · Post by **rinso** » Thu Sep 10, 2015 10:48 am

JK_Ironak wrote:Hey everyone!

I expected to find answers to my questions by searching the forum, but I didn´t - I am sorry if they are already there.
I came to Finland a month and half ago, hoping to have luck in finding a job -but I didn´t. I have Finnish boyfriend, we live together here. We asked police if he could vouch (he has enough savings) for supporting me for a years residence permit so that I can overstay the 3 months, but they replied I can stay here for up to 6 months if I am actively looking for a job.

I am wondering for how long and where do I have to go from Finland to reset the 3 month and 6 month timers? We might just decide to get married before 6 months is up, but I am wondering about other options...

You have confused the drones. You don't need a residence permit but you need to register yourself with the police within 3 months. But unless you can support yourself they won't register you. (support from a friend is not accepted)
Marrying is the easiest option. Since your coming and going is not registered within Schengen there is no way of knowing when you arrived or how long you stayed. So you in fact can stay as long as you want, but you only can get registered after you found a job or married.

betelgeuse · Post by **betelgeuse** » Thu Sep 10, 2015 11:19 am

JK_Ironak wrote: I am wondering for how long and where do I have to go from Finland to reset the 3 month and 6 month timers? We might just decide to get married before 6 months is up, but I am wondering about other options...

If you live in South, take the boat to Estonia. If you live in the North, drive to Sweden or Norway. In practice they are not monitoring this. You will just get few local services before you register.

rinso wrote: You have confused the drones. You don't need a residence permit but you need to register yourself with the police within 3 months. But unless you can support yourself they won't register you. (support from a friend is not accepted)

If the OP has lived with the boyfriend for two years, they can apply for a residence permit based on family ties (cohabitation). EU registration is not available if you want to register using family relationships to Finnish citizens.

JK_Ironak · Post by **JK_Ironak** » Thu Sep 10, 2015 11:52 am

I thought that registration with police was the same thing as residence permit? I guess I am confusing things

We thought he could sign a legal document that obliges him to support me for year, just so we don´t have to rush with organising the wedding.

Since your coming and going is not registered within Schengen there is no way of knowing when you arrived or how long you stayed. So you in fact can stay as long as you want, but you only can get registered after you found a job or married

Isn´t staying here longer than 3 month breaking some law or something?

As for cohabitation, we are together for much longer than 2 years, but never got to really live together until now.

If you live in South, take the boat to Estonia.

But because of Schengen, does it make any difference?

Rip · Post by **Rip** » Thu Sep 10, 2015 12:33 pm

[quote="JK_Ironak"
Isn´t staying here longer than 3 month breaking some law or something?[/quote]

In principle yes, you might get a fine. In practice it does not seem to be enforced much. It would be rather hard and pointless anyway.

If you live in South, take the boat to Estonia.
But because of Schengen, does it make any difference?

As a EU citizen there is no restriction on your stay inside Schengen zone. If you go to Tallinn (or Stockholm) you're out of Finland, so even if the above mentioned rule would be enforced, you'd not be violating it. I have vague recollection that this has been told also by the police to some EU immigrants.

Upphew · Post by **Upphew** » Thu Sep 10, 2015 12:39 pm

JK_Ironak wrote:I thought that registration with police was the same thing as residence permit?

"If you are a citizen of the EU, Iceland, Liechtenstein, Norway or Switzerland you will not require a residence permit for Finland. You will be free to reside and work in Finland for up to three months. If you are staying longer you must register your right of residence before the end of the three-month period. "
http://www.migri.fi/information_elsewhe ... c_citizens

JK_Ironak · Post by **JK_Ironak** » Thu Sep 10, 2015 12:44 pm

Upphew wrote:
JK_Ironak wrote:I thought that registration with police was the same thing as residence permit?
"If you are a citizen of the EU, Iceland, Liechtenstein, Norway or Switzerland you will not require a residence permit for Finland. You will be free to reside and work in Finland for up to three months. If you are staying longer you must register your right of residence before the end of the three-month period. "
http://www.migri.fi/information_elsewhe ... c_citizens

What I don´t really get from that is, would a weekend trip to Tallinn reset the 3 months? Is it enough to just keep the ticket in case someone asks? Because of Schengen the police won´t know it on their own

onkko · Post by **onkko** » Thu Sep 10, 2015 12:59 pm

Thats "how it should go, only 3 months" but de facto things go that if you are schengen citizen and dont ask goverment handouts etc who knows how long you have been here.
You are tourist with de facto permission to stay as long as you dont cause problems. Your 3months is reseted when someone asks you say i just came in here.

If you want officially move here then you need all bells and whistles like job but till that you are tourist.

JK_Ironak · Post by **JK_Ironak** » Thu Sep 10, 2015 1:01 pm

Well, if someone has an opposite info please share, but until then I´m gonna be happy with this. Thank you a lot everyone

onkko · Post by **onkko** » Thu Sep 10, 2015 1:30 pm

JK_Ironak wrote:Well, if someone has an opposite info please share, but until then I´m gonna be happy with this. Thank you a lot everyone

Just make sure your health insurance is ok. And get (European Health Insurance Card, EHIC) and dont tell your home country that you are moving.

JK_Ironak · Post by **JK_Ironak** » Thu Sep 10, 2015 1:43 pm

Have that all covered atm, but thanx

betelgeuse · Post by **betelgeuse** » Thu Sep 10, 2015 4:46 pm

JK_Ironak wrote:I thought that registration with police was the same thing as residence permit? I guess I am confusing things

Residence permit creates the legal right to stay in Finland. For EU citizens it's the citizenship not the registration that creates this right.

JK_Ironak wrote: We thought he could sign a legal document that obliges him to support me for year, just so we don´t have to rush with organising the wedding.

A contract between two people can always be nulled instantly when two people agree. A marriage is much more binding.

justaguy · Post by **justaguy** » Fri Sep 11, 2015 8:39 am

When I saw other people ask about the '3 month rule' they said that you'd have to go all the way out of the schengen area, wait ages, and then be allowed to come back in. It was always more trouble than it's worth. Though I never used to think that this remotely applied to EU citizens who had freedom of movement within the EU.

Now you've basically got people on the forums here advising against even leaving, and giving borderline illegal advice.

It really surprises me how much things have changed in the last couple of years.

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