Applying for Citizenship 2024

[riku2]

I am wondering if this won’t create potential issues, as I am assuming that I most likely won’t get a decision that soon - before September. So it’s maybe safe to travel abroad during the summer?

In your case I think the summer days will be long gone before a decision.
Somebody here did write that they were abroad at the time of the decision and migri contacted them and knew they were abroad and the decision was made once they returned (due to the residence card being immediately cancelled once you are awarded citizenship).
But somebody else wrote that they returned in this state (having been awarded citizenship while outside the country) and they could still get back anyway. Considering you are a citizen at this point but just without a finnish passport, I don't think they can deny you entry.

This first case where they knew the person was abroad suggests they have some data gathered from the schengen border control (it's unclear if that is all schengen border controls or just the finnish operated ones). I don't see how they would know if you travel inside the schengen zone - you can fly to Sweden or Germany without showing ID to anybody, not even airline staff.

[FinlandGirl]

Somebody here did write that they were abroad at the time of the decision and migri contacted them and knew they were abroad and the decision was made once they returned (due to the residence card being immediately cancelled once you are awarded citizenship).
But somebody else wrote that they returned in this state (having been awarded citizenship while outside the country) and they could still get back anyway. Considering you are a citizen at this point but just without a finnish passport, I don't think they can deny you entry.

Airlines have to pay a hefty fine when they bring anyone inside Schengen who does not have permission to enter and gets refused to enter Schengen, so they are checking carefully whether you are permitted to enter.

It might also be problematic to prove your citizenship if you manage to fly, but when enter Schengen at an airport in Iceland, Portugal or Greece the border agent sees that your residence permit has been revoked.

This first case where they knew the person was abroad suggests they have some data gathered from the schengen border control (it's unclear if that is all schengen border controls or just the finnish operated ones). I don't see how they would know if you travel inside the schengen zone - you can fly to Sweden or Germany without showing ID to anybody, not even airline staff.

Currently the airline staff might actually have to check your ID when boarding a plane to Sweden:
https://home-affairs.ec.europa.eu/polic ... control_en

[riku2]

Airlines have to pay a hefty fine when they bring anyone inside Schengen who does not have permission to enter and gets refused to enter Schengen, so they are checking carefully whether you are permitted to enter.

I have never seen the airline staff check my passport very carefully. As a UK passport holder I would only be allowed max 90 days in any 180 days inside schengen, but the airline staff never check the pages to find that out, they only scan the picture page. The border guards (both in Finland and Germany where i've also entered schengen) are far more thorough and i've noticed that for others entering at Helsinki airport border control. Far more flicking through pages to count the number of days.

[FinlandGirl]

Airlines have to pay a hefty fine when they bring anyone inside Schengen who does not have permission to enter and gets refused to enter Schengen, so they are checking carefully whether you are permitted to enter.

I have never seen the airline staff check my passport very carefully. As a UK passport holder I would only be allowed max 90 days in any 180 days inside schengen, but the airline staff never check the pages to find that out, they only scan the picture page. The border guards (both in Finland and Germany where i've also entered schengen) are far more thorough and i've noticed that for others entering at Helsinki airport border control. Far more flicking through pages to count the number of days.

The core principle of the EU is that refugees who would be eligible for asylum must drown in the Mediterranean.

People with 90 days visa free stay in Schengen are not the problem.

[jcsmartin]

Hi,

I applied just last week. My question is if you think it’s fine that I make 2 trips abroad, 1 for a week and 1 for less than a month during the summer?

Migri’s website mentions that it is permissible to travel abroad while waiting for a decision, and they just need to be informed, and a decision cannot be given while the applicant is abroad.

I am wondering if this won’t create potential issues, as I am assuming that I most likely won’t get a decision that soon - before September. So it’s maybe safe to travel abroad during the summer?

What do you think?

Thanks.

You don’t need to worry about travelling as long as you don’t break your continious residence while doing so. I have spent almost 3 months abroad while waiting for my citizenship for 6 months due to work. I have only reported my single travel to migri when I felt like the decision is coming close from the statistics.

And my application went on second stage while I was abroad. They held my application on second stage and 2 weeks after I came back to Finland I received the decision(I also informed migri with phone that I was back)

[quillcentaur]

It might also be problematic to prove your citizenship if you manage to fly, but when enter Schengen at an airport in Iceland, Portugal or Greece the border agent sees that your residence permit has been revoked.

Can you please link where you got this info? When I was researching about this, I only saw that Schengen countries don't have a centralised online data system of list of who has residence permit and they only rely on checking residence permit cards (i.e., even if your card is revoked due to receiving citizenship, if your card is still showing as valid, other schengen countries have no way of knowing it was revoked).

This was also based on other people's experiences. They got citizenship while outside schengen zone (despite telling migri ahead of time about the travel) but they still got to enter schengen area using their rp card with no problem.

[Maaria]

Hi,

I applied just last week. My question is if you think it’s fine that I make 2 trips abroad, 1 for a week and 1 for less than a month during the summer?

Migri’s website mentions that it is permissible to travel abroad while waiting for a decision, and they just need to be informed, and a decision cannot be given while the applicant is abroad.

I am wondering if this won’t create potential issues, as I am assuming that I most likely won’t get a decision that soon - before September. So it’s maybe safe to travel abroad during the summer?

What do you think?

Thanks.

You don’t need to worry about travelling as long as you don’t break your continious residence while doing so. I have spent almost 3 months abroad while waiting for my citizenship for 6 months due to work. I have only reported my single travel to migri when I felt like the decision is coming close from the statistics.

How to know from statistics that the decision for your application is coming close? Can you please explain?

[jokulalala]

Hi,

I applied just last week. My question is if you think it’s fine that I make 2 trips abroad, 1 for a week and 1 for less than a month during the summer?

Migri’s website mentions that it is permissible to travel abroad while waiting for a decision, and they just need to be informed, and a decision cannot be given while the applicant is abroad.

I am wondering if this won’t create potential issues, as I am assuming that I most likely won’t get a decision that soon - before September. So it’s maybe safe to travel abroad during the summer?

What do you think?

Thanks.

You don’t need to worry about travelling as long as you don’t break your continious residence while doing so. I have spent almost 3 months abroad while waiting for my citizenship for 6 months due to work. I have only reported my single travel to migri when I felt like the decision is coming close from the statistics.

How to know from statistics that the decision for your application is coming close? Can you please explain?

if you follow the posts and just_passing_by's posts, there seems to be a rule that in case your case is in the normal track (processed within 5 - 6 months), your case would be likely processed when the queue reaches 5k.

[Maaria]

You don’t need to worry about travelling as long as you don’t break your continious residence while doing so. I have spent almost 3 months abroad while waiting for my citizenship for 6 months due to work. I have only reported my single travel to migri when I felt like the decision is coming close from the statistics.

How to know from statistics that the decision for your application is coming close? Can you please explain?

if you follow the posts and just_passing_by's posts, there seems to be a rule that in case your case is in the normal track (processed within 5 - 6 months), your case would be likely processed when the queue reaches 5k.

Thank you very much for your reply. Is it possible to know if your case is in the normal track?

[karhu86]

Since the question of what to do if granted a citizenship while abroad is being posted again and again on this forum, i have a simple question: why don't you go to the Finnish embassy and apply for a fast track passport. It says on the ministry of foreign affairs website that normal passports aboard take usually 2 weeks and the fast track passports are faster (they didn't specify the time).

[jokulalala]

How to know from statistics that the decision for your application is coming close? Can you please explain?

if you follow the posts and just_passing_by's posts, there seems to be a rule that in case your case is in the normal track (processed within 5 - 6 months), your case would be likely processed when the queue reaches 5k.

Thank you very much for your reply. Is it possible to know if your case is in the normal track?

I am also waiting for my application to be processed but from my own observation, in normal case, if you check your queue right after you got the diary number and it is somewhere high, i.e. 8xxx, and it drops by around 3xx cases per month, it is likely that you are in the normal track. In case the starting queue is 2xxx, it is likely that your case would be processed in longer period, i.e. 1 year or more.

[mamutti]

Hi guys

It is interesting that in a new plan the deadline for processing all citizenship applications in maximum 1 year is going to be postponed to the year 2028. In previous documents, it was stated that the deadline must have been achieved in 2021, 2022 and 2023 (and it hasn’t been), but looking that it’s not possible to achieve that anymore, so they have postponed that to the year 2028.

Thanks for the best customer experience, Migri

https://migri.fi/documents/5202425/5915 ... 1370317973

[curiousVK]

Hello! do we get any response from migri when we send them some information or send a request? (using their secure mail channel).

[Oussbe7]

Hello! do we get any response from migri when we send them some information or send a request? (using their secure mail channel).

Yes they answer within 1 to 2 days , from my experience.

[just_passing_by]

This week's stats:
Total processed: ~140
Total processed above threshold: ~89
Processed above threshold to total processed ratio: ~0.64
Threshold processing median: ~12496/310/2023
2022 processing median: ~4671/310/2022
New applications created: ~170