RP what happens at an identification appointment.

[Colorinay]

Hello everyone!

I am in Finland and have just submitted my request for residency permit as a third country national, spouse of a Finnish person. I have an anxiety disorder so to avoid a panic attack (I am very nervous about this) I would like to know what to expect exactly from the identification appointment. If any of you could recount your experience I’d be very thankful.

[betelgeuse]

Hello everyone!

I am in Finland and have just submitted my request for residency permit as a third country national, spouse of a Finnish person. I have an anxiety disorder so to avoid a panic attack (I am very nervous about this) I would like to know what to expect exactly from the identification appointment. If any of you could recount your experience I’d be very thankful.

You are allowed to bring a support person with you. Maybe that can help.

[browndude]

Hello everyone!

I am in Finland and have just submitted my request for residency permit as a third country national, spouse of a Finnish person. I have an anxiety disorder so to avoid a panic attack (I am very nervous about this) I would like to know what to expect exactly from the identification appointment. If any of you could recount your experience I’d be very thankful.

If you have been truthful and accurate, for this type of application, it really is not a big deal. They just want to confirm that you are who you say you are in your application. Is your anxiety disorder a diagnosed disability? If so they might make special accomodations in your case.

[heretostay]

It’s super low key. The worker checks your passport and other documents and makes copies if necessary. Goes over your application to make sure nothing is missing or incomplete. Then they take your signature and fingerprints. The person is only verifying your identity and the completeness of the application. They have nothing to do with the decision. That is another department entirely and knowing that may help you. It’s all done very slowly and will take the entire half hour. No rushing and very low pressure.it will take place in a small private rroom or closed cubicle like space, you will have a chair to sit in and the person taking your application will be behind glass. If you think bringing someone with you will help, do that but make sure you are the one doing the speaking. I wish you well. Anxiety is something that I myself have struggled with, so I can understand how absolutely terrifying this is.

[betelgeuse]

If you think bringing someone with you will help, do that but make sure you are the one doing the speaking.

Why? There shouldn’t be any issues letting someone else speak also.

[Colorinay]

It’s super low key. The worker checks your passport and other documents and makes copies if necessary. Goes over your application to make sure nothing is missing or incomplete. Then they take your signature and fingerprints. The person is only verifying your identity and the completeness of the application. They have nothing to do with the decision. That is another department entirely and knowing that may help you. It’s all done very slowly and will take the entire half hour. No rushing and very low pressure.it will take place in a small private rroom or closed cubicle like space, you will have a chair to sit in and the person taking your application will be behind glass. If you think bringing someone with you will help, do that but make sure you are the one doing the speaking. I wish you well. Anxiety is something that I myself have struggled with, so I can understand how absolutely terrifying this is.

Thank you so much for the description. This really puts me at ease.

[Kregian]

Hello everyone!

I am in Finland and have just submitted my request for residency permit as a third country national, spouse of a Finnish person. I have an anxiety disorder so to avoid a panic attack (I am very nervous about this) I would like to know what to expect exactly from the identification appointment. If any of you could recount your experience I’d be very thankful.

Well, i'm a european citizen so maybe the process is a little bit different for me, but i know that anxiety is terrible so i'll give you a blow-by-blow description of what it was like for me and hope that will help you.

so my appointment was early in the morning, like 9h30, so i arrived 15 minutes before that. i entered the building and went up the stairs, because this Migri service point was on the first floor, not the ground floor. There I found a very wide space with some chairs (there were already some people sitting there) and a door with a security officer. the security officer asked me if I had an appointment, and when i said yes and told him my name, he checked his papers and let me through.

on the other side of the door, there was a security checkpoint like those you find at an airport. there were more security officers there, who helped me put my stuff and all things metal i was carrying on those trays, to get them scanned, and then i passed the metal detector thingy. since nothing beeped or seemed strange, they gave me back my things and let me through once again.

and then i was in a waiting room with a lot more chairs. there was a hallway in front, with lots of numbered doors. they eventually called me (by my last name only, which was very strange to me because in my country they either call by full name or just the first name) and said a door number.

so i looked for the right door and went in. i don't know if it's the same in all Migri service points, but here what i entered was a small room with, like, a wall of glass dividing it in half? so i had no way to access that other side, where the worker was. there were two chairs on my side, so i sat on one. she asked me for my ID and if I already had a Finnish ID number, and when i said yes, i also told her my Finnish ID number. she tapped on her keyboard for a REAAAALLY long time. at one point she also asked me to give her an estimate of my salary. she did some more stuff on her computer for a really long time, then printed a sheet of paper and asked me to confirm if my data was correct. when i said yes, she took it back, and then told me how much i had to pay, and i paid, and then she tapped at her keyboard for another rather long stretch of time, and finally she gave me a printed sheet of paper - my right of residency! she said it was the only document i would get from them, and to keep it safe.

and that was it! i thanked her and said goodbye and left.

hope that helps.

[heretostay]

If you think bringing someone with you will help, do that but make sure you are the one doing the speaking.

Why? There shouldn’t be any issues letting someone else speak also.

I say that because from my experience Migri prefers and sometimes insists the applicant to speak for themselves. It is also promoted in these posters at the Migri service point :

https://images.app.goo.gl/s74aDDukP42H6FWM6

[Colorinay]

If you think bringing someone with you will help, do that but make sure you are the one doing the speaking.

Why? There shouldn’t be any issues letting someone else speak also.

I say that because from my experience Migri prefers and sometimes insists the applicant to speak for themselves. It is also promoted in these posters at the Migri service point :

https://images.app.goo.gl/s74aDDukP42H6FWM6

Thank you for the tip. I have a supporting husband that will accompany me and thankfully I’m okay with speaking for myself. I am just extremely anxious and knowing exactly what to expect helps me.

[Colorinay]

Hello everyone!

I am in Finland and have just submitted my request for residency permit as a third country national, spouse of a Finnish person. I have an anxiety disorder so to avoid a panic attack (I am very nervous about this) I would like to know what to expect exactly from the identification appointment. If any of you could recount your experience I’d be very thankful.

Well, i'm a european citizen so maybe the process is a little bit different for me, but i know that anxiety is terrible so i'll give you a blow-by-blow description of what it was like for me and hope that will help you.

so my appointment was early in the morning, like 9h30, so i arrived 15 minutes before that. i entered the building and went up the stairs, because this Migri service point was on the first floor, not the ground floor. There I found a very wide space with some chairs (there were already some people sitting there) and a door with a security officer. the security officer asked me if I had an appointment, and when i said yes and told him my name, he checked his papers and let me through.

on the other side of the door, there was a security checkpoint like those you find at an airport. there were more security officers there, who helped me put my stuff and all things metal i was carrying on those trays, to get them scanned, and then i passed the metal detector thingy. since nothing beeped or seemed strange, they gave me back my things and let me through once again.

and then i was in a waiting room with a lot more chairs. there was a hallway in front, with lots of numbered doors. they eventually called me (by my last name only, which was very strange to me because in my country they either call by full name or just the first name) and said a door number.

so i looked for the right door and went in. i don't know if it's the same in all Migri service points, but here what i entered was a small room with, like, a wall of glass dividing it in half? so i had no way to access that other side, where the worker was. there were two chairs on my side, so i sat on one. she asked me for my ID and if I already had a Finnish ID number, and when i said yes, i also told her my Finnish ID number. she tapped on her keyboard for a REAAAALLY long time. at one point she also asked me to give her an estimate of my salary. she did some more stuff on her computer for a really long time, then printed a sheet of paper and asked me to confirm if my data was correct. when i said yes, she took it back, and then told me how much i had to pay, and i paid, and then she tapped at her keyboard for another rather long stretch of time, and finally she gave me a printed sheet of paper - my right of residency! she said it was the only document i would get from them, and to keep it safe.

and that was it! i thanked her and said goodbye and left.

hope that helps.

Thank you so much, this was so detailed. I’ll probably still be super nervous but knowing what to expect really helps mitigate the anxiety.

[Kregian]

Hello everyone!

I am in Finland and have just submitted my request for residency permit as a third country national, spouse of a Finnish person. I have an anxiety disorder so to avoid a panic attack (I am very nervous about this) I would like to know what to expect exactly from the identification appointment. If any of you could recount your experience I’d be very thankful.

Well, i'm a european citizen so maybe the process is a little bit different for me, but i know that anxiety is terrible so i'll give you a blow-by-blow description of what it was like for me and hope that will help you.

so my appointment was early in the morning, like 9h30, so i arrived 15 minutes before that. i entered the building and went up the stairs, because this Migri service point was on the first floor, not the ground floor. There I found a very wide space with some chairs (there were already some people sitting there) and a door with a security officer. the security officer asked me if I had an appointment, and when i said yes and told him my name, he checked his papers and let me through.

on the other side of the door, there was a security checkpoint like those you find at an airport. there were more security officers there, who helped me put my stuff and all things metal i was carrying on those trays, to get them scanned, and then i passed the metal detector thingy. since nothing beeped or seemed strange, they gave me back my things and let me through once again.

and then i was in a waiting room with a lot more chairs. there was a hallway in front, with lots of numbered doors. they eventually called me (by my last name only, which was very strange to me because in my country they either call by full name or just the first name) and said a door number.

so i looked for the right door and went in. i don't know if it's the same in all Migri service points, but here what i entered was a small room with, like, a wall of glass dividing it in half? so i had no way to access that other side, where the worker was. there were two chairs on my side, so i sat on one. she asked me for my ID and if I already had a Finnish ID number, and when i said yes, i also told her my Finnish ID number. she tapped on her keyboard for a REAAAALLY long time. at one point she also asked me to give her an estimate of my salary. she did some more stuff on her computer for a really long time, then printed a sheet of paper and asked me to confirm if my data was correct. when i said yes, she took it back, and then told me how much i had to pay, and i paid, and then she tapped at her keyboard for another rather long stretch of time, and finally she gave me a printed sheet of paper - my right of residency! she said it was the only document i would get from them, and to keep it safe.

and that was it! i thanked her and said goodbye and left.

hope that helps.

Thank you so much, this was so detailed. I’ll probably still be super nervous but knowing what to expect really helps mitigate the anxiety.

great, i'm glad it helped. later, let me know how your appointment goes!

[betelgeuse]

If you think bringing someone with you will help, do that but make sure you are the one doing the speaking.

Why? There shouldn’t be any issues letting someone else speak also.

I say that because from my experience Migri prefers and sometimes insists the applicant to speak for themselves. It is also promoted in these posters at the Migri service point :

https://images.app.goo.gl/s74aDDukP42H6FWM6

This goes against the Aliens Act: "When an administrative matter is filed and considered, a party may use a counsel. When an administrative matter is filed and considered, the party may also use an attorney when it is not necessary to hear him or her in person or if his or her appearance in person is not necessary for examining the matter or establishing his or her identity."

There are no qualification requirements for a counsel so a spouse is acceptable.

https://finlex.fi/en/laki/kaannokset/20 ... 040301.pdf

I somewhat get what they are aiming for but the implementation is problematic.