In Finland, they said that real estate will not be the basis for issuing visas to Russians

Ownership of real estate in Finland should cease to be the basis for issuing visas to Russian citizens, said President Sauli Niinistö, transmits Yle.

“The fact that a person has a dacha, an apartment or real estate in Finland, we seem to have considered as a factor contributing to extradition,” he said.

Tighter rules for property owners in Finland will be part of a broader set of measures, the president added. According to him, obtaining a visa is not a “subjective right”.

Former Finnish Prime Minister Sanna Marin statedthat sanctions should affect the daily lives of ordinary Russians, so it is necessary to introduce strict restrictions on the issuance of visas.

September 13 at the Association of Tour Operators of Russia (ATOR) reportedthat at the moment nine European countries no longer accept documents for obtaining visas from Russian tourists. These are Latvia, Lithuania, Estonia, Poland, Czech Republic, Slovakia, Denmark, Belgium and the Netherlands. At the same time, Italy, Spain, Greece, France, Hungary, Cyprus continue to accept documents (national visa, not Schengen). The flow of tourists from Russia to the EU will decrease by 15 times by the end of the year, the Federal Tourism Agency has calculated.

On September 9, the Council of the European Union decided to completely suspend the visa facilitation agreement between the EU and Russia. The European Commission recommended that member countries of the Union increase the time for issuing visas to Russian citizens to 45 days against the current 15, issue them only for travel dates and check all applications for possible security threats.

The decision to abandon the simplified visa regime with Russia in the EU was made following an informal meeting of the EU foreign ministers, which took place on August 31 in Prague. At the same time, the Baltic countries, as well as Poland and Finland, insisted on a complete halt in the issuance of visas for Russians. However, a number of countries, including Germany, Greece and France, opposed this initiative.

Later, the foreign ministers of Poland, Latvia, Lithuania and Estonia said they intended to take additional measures on their own. They have already agreed on restrictions on the entry of Russians into the Schengen area through their land borders. The restrictions will come into effect after September 19.

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