Finland sees sharp drop in asylum applications as border closures take effect

By admin On Mar 23, 2025

Immigrants in Puhos shopping mall in eastern Helsinki / Lehtikuva

The number of new asylum applications in Finland is declining. The Finnish Immigration Service (Migri) estimates that between 2,000 and 3,000 first-time asylum claims will be filed in 2024. This represents a significant decrease from the 2,948 applications submitted in 2023 and the 5,372 filed in 2022.

The Finnish Ministry of the Interior and Migri attribute the decline to a combination of border control measures, policy tightening, and regional security decisions.

Johannes Hirvelä, Development Director at Migri, said two main factors have influenced the trend. “The first is that the eastern border has remained closed for an extended period. No asylum seekers are coming through that route,” he said.

Since 15 December 2023, all land border crossing points between Finland and Russia have been closed by government order. The decision followed a sharp increase in irregular migration along the eastern border in late 2023. On 25 November 2023, 55 asylum seekers crossed into Finland through the Raja-Jooseppi border station in Lapland.

According to Finnish authorities, many of those arriving via Russia were from third countries, including Syria, Somalia, and Afghanistan. Interior Minister Mari Rantanen said the closures were necessary to ensure national security. “The direction is right,” she told Helsingin Sanomat earlier this week.

Under the current restrictions, applications for international protection can only be submitted at designated external border crossings open for air and sea traffic. These include Helsinki-Vantaa Airport and the Port of Helsinki.

In parallel to the fall in asylum claims, applications for residence permits on other grounds have increased. Migri reported that family reunification was the most common basis for a first residence permit in 2023. The agency received 16,486 applications for family reunification, a rise from 14,688 the year before.

The number of international students moving to Finland has also grown. Migri issued 10,029 residence permits to students in 2023, compared to 8,543 in 2022. The majority came from Bangladesh, India, China, and Russia.

Work-based immigration remains steady. Migri expects the number of work permit applications to decline slightly in 2024 before increasing again in 2025. In 2023, a total of 20,935 applications were submitted for employment-based residence permits. Sectors with the highest demand included construction, logistics, agriculture, and cleaning services.

Despite the general decrease in asylum claims, the Finnish government continues to maintain internal border checks within the Schengen area. These were reintroduced in 2022 and have since been extended multiple times. The Ministry of the Interior has said the checks help control secondary movements of migrants arriving in other EU countries before reaching Finland.

Policy changes have also contributed to the overall trend. In recent years, Finnish authorities have tightened criteria for granting asylum and subsidiary protection. The processing times for asylum decisions have shortened, and the appeal process has been streamlined.

According to Migri’s annual report, the overall approval rate for asylum applications in 2023 was 31 percent. In most cases, applicants were granted subsidiary protection rather than full refugee status. The largest groups of applicants by nationality in 2023 were from Russia, Afghanistan, Somalia, and Iran.

Return procedures have been stepped up for those whose applications are rejected. In cooperation with the Finnish Border Guard and the International Organization for Migration (IOM), the Ministry of the Interior has expanded voluntary return programmes.

In 2023, a total of 1,807 people returned to their countries of origin through voluntary return schemes, compared to 1,561 in 2022. Most returnees were from Iraq, Russia, and Nigeria.

The Finnish government continues to develop its immigration strategy with an emphasis on labour migration and controlled humanitarian intake. In 2023, Finland fulfilled its annual refugee quota of 1,050 resettled refugees through the UNHCR. The largest contingents came from the Democratic Republic of Congo and Syria.

Meanwhile, the government’s decision to close the eastern border remains in force. A review is scheduled for late March, but no changes have been announced.

Prime Minister Petteri Orpo has stated that border closures will remain “as long as necessary” to prevent instrumentalised migration flows from Russia. Russian authorities have denied involvement in facilitating crossings.

Finland shares a 1,340-kilometre land border with Russia. It is the European Union’s longest external land border with the Russian Federation. The Finnish Border Guard continues to monitor the area and reports no significant border crossings since the closures took effect.

The drop in asylum applications marks a significant shift in Finland’s migration patterns. While humanitarian migration is declining, arrivals through study, work, and family ties are rising. Migri says it expects these trends to continue in the coming year, barring significant policy or geopolitical changes.

Source: www.helsinkitimes.fi