Third programme for the prevention of illegal entry and stay

The Ministerial Working Group on Immigration has adopted the Action Programme for the Prevention of Illegal Entry and Stay for 2017–2020. The current programme is more extensive and covers a longer period of time than the Action Plan for the Prevention and Management of Illegal Stay approved last December. This is the third in a series of programmes first established in 2012.

The action programme now adopted was commissioned by the Ministerial Working Group on Immigration appointed by the Sipilä Cabinet. The implementation of the programme will be monitored by the Civil Service Working on the Prevention of Illegal Immigration operating under the auspices of the National Police Board.

The programme provides for a range of measures to ensure the prevention of illegal entry and stay and maintain control over immigration. Among the key priorities are actions to be taken in central Finland to combat illegal residence and ensure internal security. The programme specifies 25 measures to be carried out by various authorities. Some of the measures are new while others were already included in the earlier action programme; however, it was felt necessary to continue to pursue the previously specified measures.

Illegal stay is nothing new

Over the past few years, illegal entry to Europe has multiplied and become harder to predict. Even though there has also been a major change in circumstances in Finland, illegal stay is no new development. In recent years, the authorities have detected an annual average of slightly over 3,000 people living in Finland illegally.

Previously, most of these illegal foreigners were asylum-seekers who had filed their applications in central Finland and lacked the documents required for legal entry to the country. Another major group of people staying in Finland illegally are those suspected of violations of the Aliens Act. The number of illegal residents is expected to grow. Those denied asylum are likely to create a new category of illegal aliens.

The measures to prevent illegal entry are not designed to prevent the entry of refugees or asylum-seekers or complicate legal residence in the country. In all actions to control illegal immigration, it is imperative to give due consideration to fundamental and human rights as well as the legal protection of each individual.

Finland no easy place to stay illegally

Until recently, Finland was not an attractive place to stay illegally. Aside from the country’s geographical location up north, its appeal has most likely been reduced by the fact that the control of aliens, the asylum process and the implementation of deportation orders are known to be effective. Moreover, there is no established market for black jobs in Finland. All these circumstances tend to discourage illegal entry and stay.

Now the risk that this phenomenon may grow has been recognised. The period from 2017 to 2020 will be extremely important in terms of maintaining control over who may enter and stay in the country. By October 2016, no indications of any increase in the number of those found to stay in Finland illegally had been detected.

As a phenomenon, illegal entry and stay affect the administrative sectors of not only the Ministry of the Interior but also the Ministry of Social Affairs and Health, the Ministry of Economic Affairs and Employment, the Ministry of Justice, the Ministry of the Environment and the Ministry for Foreign Affairs. The impacts will also be felt by municipalities and non-government organisations.

Action programme (in Finnish)

Inquiries: Chief Superintenent Mia Poutanen, tel. +358 (0)295 481 760, mia.poutanen(at)poliisi.fi