Information obtained by Yle suggests that government is considering allowing visitors from countries with up to twice as many Covid-19 infections as in Finland.
The administration is said to be hustling to finalise legislation that would provide clear guidance on who can visit Finland and on what conditions. The general rule of thumb is that people can enter the country if they are coming from countries where the epidemic situation is on par with or better than in Finland.
The government is aiming to circulate the draft bill for commenting in the next few days. In practice this means that the bill may not come before lawmakers before Christmas. The situation is not helped by the fact that government would also need to make corresponding decisions on travel restrictions and changes to the Infectious Diseases Act.
The Lapland tourism industry has waited weeks for new travel rules that would help revive their flagging fortunes. However it now seems that there will be no relief to the coronavirus squeeze in time for the Christmas season.
No European countries meet criteria
Current travel rules in Finland limit visitors to countries where the incidence rate of the disease is 25 per 100,000 in two weeks. According to the European Centre for Disease Prevention and Control, Finland’s infection rate now stands at 53 per 100,000 residents.
There are currently no European countries that would meet the new criteria under consideration. In Estonia the Covid-19 infection rate is 129 per 100,000 people, while the corresponding figures for Germany and the UK are 218 and 478 per 100,000 respectively.
The proposed new travel rules would likely take effect next spring at the earliest, if and when the pandemic begins to let up globally. A lot is therefore riding on the hope that an effective vaccine will also be available soon.
The question of how many people would be willing to travel to Lapland now is another matter. For example borders are effectively closed in France, the UK and Greece. People are largely only allowed to leave their homes if they are venturing out for exercise, to walk their dogs or to take their children to school.
New take on test and travel
Government is also said to be revisiting a proposed test and travel model. It will essentially determine how incoming travellers will be tested for coronavirus at national borders.
A previous attempt at a test and travel protocol advanced by the Transport and Communications Ministry lost steam in parliament’s Constitutional Law Committee, because it attempted to introduce amendments to the Act on Transport Services.
The committee said that it rejected the model because it granted too much power to the Finnish Institute for Health and Welfare, THL. Quarantines in Finland are recommended by infectious diseases physicians.
Following that defeat, responsibility for preparing new test and travel rules was handed over to the Social Affairs and Health Ministry, whose proposal will require modifying infectious diseases laws.
The model now under consideration would allow visitors to avoid a 10-day quarantine upon entry if they can show a negative coronavirus test from the country of origin. Travellers who wish to spend more than three days in Finland will also have to quarantine for three days before taking another test.
Need to ensure free movement
Government is under tremendous pressure to act quickly. Border regulations for Schengen countries mean that Finland cannot maintain border controls for longer than six months. Finland already passed that threshold at the end of September.
Every time the limit is exceeded, government must present justifications for wanting to continue border controls. The next deadline will be on 23 November -- just two weeks from now.
According to Yle’s sources, one option would be to continue extending border controls until lawmakers ratify the new legislation -- something that may not happen before Christmas.
Government will also need to make sure that visitors do not spread the disease in Finland, monitor the operations of tourism operators and ensure that it can at some point lift restrictions on the free movement of EU citizens across Finnish borders.
