How can I turn my Finnish visa into a temporary residence permit?

November 29, 2013 2:19 PM

I'd like to turn my Finnish tourist visa into a temporary residence permit, and I don't know how.

This is a follow up to my question from last week, How can I (as an American on a tourist visa) get my visa changed into a temporary residency permit, in order to stay in Finland for longer, and to open a European bank account? I am here doing physical therapy trying to recover from a sports related injury, and surgery that I had here in Finland. FYI I am in Turku Finland

posted by crawltopslow to Law & Government (3 answers total)

You've looked at the official guidelines, yes? Work, study, family: all the usual categories for temporary residence. You're also expected to apply from outside Finland.

The underlying problem you face here, looking at your earlier question, is that you're assuming that you can stay in Finland for as long as you expect your rehab to take. If by 'tourist visa' you mean the standard Schengen visa waiver granted to US citizens, then you actually have 90 days, of which you have used up about a third. If you are able to cover your expenses for the months you expect to be rehabbing, then you can afford some local legal advice on whether it's possible to stay.
posted by holgate at 4:27 PM on November 29, 2013 [2 favorites]

Response by poster: OK. At least, how can I extend my standard schengen visa waiver? The immigration guy at Helsinki airport said I can do it in Turku, but I don't know how or where/
posted by crawltopslow at 5:15 AM on November 30, 2013

Best answer: Apparently the place to go to is the local police office. I have no idea if you qualify for an extension, at a first glance you don't seem to meet those criteria, but perhaps the immigration officer you talked to had a different view. Or perhaps he meant a whole other procedure, in which case I haven't a clue.
posted by Ms. Next at 6:37 AM on November 30, 2013