Entering Finland without a return ticket.

[Suitsuke]

Possible or not? Just called the embassy in Australia earlier and they said they don't know. So next step was to come here or call in Finland and ask.
Surely should be possible right? As long as I have a bank statement saying that I have sufficient funds for a ticket?.

[FinnGuyHelsinki]

Chapter 2, section 11, paragraph 3: http://www.finlex.fi/en/laki/kaannokset ... 040301.pdf

[Suitsuke]

Hmm I think all of that in 'laymens' terms means that it shouldn't be a problem right as long as I get a recent bank statement saying I have sufficient funds for purchasing such a ticket.

[dan760]

From my experience i was told by finnish consulate in sydney on advice that I had to get a return ticket or get a follow on ticket,say sydney to helsinki then helsinki to sweden or Norway etc,At the time a one way ticket was nearly the same price as a return ticket,So i opted for a return but i could change my return ticked to any date within a 6 month period,My ticket cost $1800AUS so relatively cheap for peace of mind,Then again last time I traveled to finland 10 months ago at Vantaa/helsinki airport they just asked where I was staying and for how long and who with,Didnt ask to see my flight tickets

[Rip]

First of all, what is your flight route? Last time i checked I think there was there was direct flight between Helsinki and Australia. If you first enter the Schengen area anywhere outside Finland, you will meet border guards and official passport check point in that country and only there.

As far as I know, the Helsinki-Vantaa airport personnel are not interested in return tickets. On the other hand, I do know that in some Asian countries, the Finnair personnel at the check in desk when encountering a non-Finnish passport holder using their return ticket to get back to Finland start browsing the passport, becoming satisfied when they see a residence permit attached to it. So the first policy you should check is the policy of the airline you plan to use.

[Suitsuke]

Well my fiancé called up migri and the woman said that there is really no point me getting a return ticket if my intention to is to come to Finland, marry and then apply for residency.

The only thing I am worried about is getting into customs and immigration saying 'Why don't you have a return ticket' and me telling them why and them getting angry at me or something. I will have enough funds to purchase such a ticket and I could always get a recent bank statement to show that I have the funds but at the moment I can't really find anywhere in direct hand writing if I need a return ticket or not.

My next thought is to ask my travel agent.

My flight route will probably be: Coolangatta -> Sydney -> Thailand -> Helsinki -> Oulu
or Coolangatta -> Sydney -> Germany -> Helsinki -> Oulu

My last return ticket was $2222.65. I would like to pay around half that this time... as I have no intention of coming back unless my permit is denied or such. It would be a waste of money to buy a return ticket.

[Rip]

My flight route will probably be: Coolangatta -> Sydney -> Thailand -> Helsinki -> Oulu

At least when purchasing tickets from Finland Finnair does not offer one-way tickets (for economy class) with any reasonable pricing, you'd buy return simply because it is the cheapest option. I understand this does not apply to the part of the trip to Thailand. Anyway, if this would be your final choice one of the places where I would recommend to ask would be Finnair. Otherwise the possibility of problems would be much higher at the Bangok checkin desk than in Helsinki. According to Finnish law, if you did not have right to stay here nor the money to pay for the return, the return would be on Finnair's expense.

I know pretty fairly many foreigners, none of them have been asked to show return ticket in Helsinki (most of them have had one, but the border guards checking the passport would not know).

or Coolangatta -> Sydney -> Germany -> Helsinki -> Oulu

If you this then it is the German authorities and the airline flying you there are the only ones that you need to worry about. From there to Helsinki and Oulu it is "domestic" for all practical purposes.

[Suitsuke]

Ok thanks for the heads up I'm going to ask my travel agent though and see what they say because they should know all of this, if it's cheaper for a return then I will of course get one of those. But if I don't have to pay around $2222 like I did last time because I can get a one-way for cheaper I will.

[FinnGuyHelsinki]

My last return ticket was $2222.65. I would like to pay around half that this time... as I have no intention of coming back unless my permit is denied or such. It would be a waste of money to buy a return ticket.

One-way flights are usually not much cheaper than two-way, and practically never half the price.

[Suitsuke]

My last return ticket was $2222.65. I would like to pay around half that this time... as I have no intention of coming back unless my permit is denied or such. It would be a waste of money to buy a return ticket.

One-way flights are usually not much cheaper than two-way, and practically never half the price.

Why is this? It's like doubling the distance and such so you would think it's lots more.
Oh well I called up the travel agent and left a message they will get back to me.

[FinnGuyHelsinki]

Why is this? It's like doubling the distance and such so you would think it's lots more.
Oh well I called up the travel agent and left a message they will get back to me.

Try e.g. http://www.ebookers.com and see for yourself. Buying from a travel agent is usually more expensive than online, BTW.

[Suitsuke]

Ok so I called the travel agent. They said that in almost all cases that I need a Return Ticket and that a one-way was really only $200 cheaper. It's just that Finnair likes to throw another $750 fuel surcharge on as tax. So the ticket costs around $1500 but in the end after all the little taxes (more like bribes am I right? ) it's around $2300. Which is fine because years go on, prices go up etc. I'm not worried about that.

What I AM worried about is if I go to Finland, get married and apply for a residency permit and get it. I am not going to want to go back. So I have this Return Ticket that I don't want to use.
Can I sell my seat back to the airline or something? Like lose -$200 off the seat or whatever but sell it back a few months before it leaves, so the airline can sell it to someone else?
Surely I should be able to right? I mean they get to sell the same seat twice, I know if I was an airline company I'd want to do that. I know I wouldn't get ALL of my money back but at least some would be great.

Does anyone know about doing this?

[Suitsuke]

Not meaning to double post but this ticket looks really good:



The only thing is if I could it would I get yelled at along the way for not having a return ticket?
Though if they are selling them surely I wouldn't get into any trouble.

Also Here it says Chapter 2, Section 11, Paragraph 3.

They can, if necessary, produce documents which indicate the purpose of their intended stay and prove that the requirements for entry are met, and they can prove that they have secure means of support, considering both the projected length of their stay and their return to the country to which they are certain to be admitted, or that they can legally acquire such funds.

So I should be able to use a 1-way if I have a bank statement saying I have enough. I would hate for them to just deny me entry on the grounds that I don't have a return ticket...

[Suitsuke]

Thanks for the info Cory

I found a 1-way for $1695.65 which I think is pretty good. I just don't know if the customs people will get angry at me.
With the ticket I have to hang around in Zurich for 6 hours but that isn't really a concern of mine because the ticket is really cheap.

I talked to my travel agent and he said that if there was going to be an issue, the Finnair people in Zurich would ask me why I didn't have a return ticket.
He also said the same as you, "Don't mention it unless they mention it, in most cases they wont ask".

When I went to Finland last time the guy I spoke to looked pretty bored, he looked up sleepily and beckoned for me to come forward. Scanned my passport asked me what I was doing and I said I was coming here to visit friends, this struck him obviously as pretty odd because he raised his eyebrow and said "Just to see friends?" and I said "Yes" and he stamped my passport and said "Welcome to Finland then". Now that I think of it he didn't really do anything. Except give me a pretty boring looking stamp !

So I'm going to ask my fiance to call up immigration and see if she can find out if they would yell at me for not having a return ticket. I'm also at a loss to know if I should be completely honest with them and tell them that the reason I don't have a return ticket is because I plan to marry and then apply for a residency permit under grounds of a spouse, if they ask me.
The last thing I want is them to be all in uproar and think I am being immature and doing this in a dishonest way or something and send me home

[FinnGuyHelsinki]

So I'm going to ask my fiance to call up immigration and see if she can find out if they would yell at me for not having a return ticket. I'm also at a loss to know if I should be completely honest with them and tell them that the reason I don't have a return ticket is because I plan to marry and then apply for a residency permit under grounds of a spouse, if they ask me.
The last thing I want is them to be all in uproar and think I am being immature and doing this in a dishonest way or something and send me home

The law clearly states the requirements for gaining an entry, and it doesn't say you have to have a return ticket. Fulfill the criteria and you are allowed to enter. It's as simple as that.