For the small municipality of Salla in northern Finland, visa-freedom with Russia will bring jobs and increased turnover for retailers and in tourism. The economic impact of Russians traveling from the Murmansk region to Salla is now €1,6 million. With visa-freedom, the impact will be €4,6 million by 2020, a study made by the Multidimensional Tourism Institute in Rovaniemi shows.
The study, funded by the European Regional Development Fund, is the first which investigated what positive and negative effects visa-freedom with Russia can bring for northern Finland.
“Outcomes of the research have given essential facts for preparations for possible visa freedom, says Project Manager Pekka Iivari to BarentsObserver.
Iivari admits there might take some time before Europe offers talk on a visa waiver for Russians:
“The current crisis in Ukraine and the political tension caused by it have frozen all negotiations on visa freedom between the Schengen agreement area and Russia. My estimation is that this decade is already lost what comes to the real proceedings of the visa freedom. There is not enough political will in all Schengen countries right now. But the option will be raised seriously up again in the beginning of the next decade if and hopefully when settlement between Russia and the EU takes place.”
Near border visa-freedom
There could, however, still be hope for the near-border town of Salla in eastern Lapland, according to Pekka Iivari.
“Visa-free border crossings, as modelled in Kirkenes and the two Russian towns of Nikel and Zapolyarny, can be possible also between Finland and Russia during the next decade.”
Kirkenes in Norway and its neighboring towns are all located within a 30-kilometres distance to the border line. Citizens within this zone has since 2012 been allowed to travel without holding a visa.
Today, the biggest employers in Salla are agriculture and forestry and those industries would not have direct economic benefits from visa free travel. But with more Russians crossing the border, there will be more people employed in tourism and shopping, and that will benefit all locals.
While the majority of the 3,800 inhabitants of Salla have a positive attitude towards visa free travel, the older and female inhabitants tended to have the most negative attitudes, according to the study. Salla is a 20 minute drive from the border to Russia.
Most Russians driving from the Murmansk region passes by Salla, located on the main road towards Rovaniemi. The road on the Russian side, from Kandalakhsa to the border has been upgraded substantially over the last few years with funding from Kolarctic, a joint EU, Russian program for cross border cooperation and infrastructure investments.
Border traffic down 56 percent
After years of boosting traffic over the Russian-Finnish border check-points, last year saw a dramatic drop, especially in the last few months following the ruble crash and bigger economic uncertainties.
215,921 border-crossings were counted at Salla in 2014, down 15 percent from 2013. Also the border check-point Raja-Jooseppi east of Ivalo had a decline of 15 percent to 113,668 crossings, informs Rajavartiolaitos, the Finnish Border Guard.
In the first week of 2015, the decline has been even worse. Down 56 percent compared with the same week last year reports Lapin Kansa. First week of January is traditionally very busy as many Russians have days off celebrating new year and Orthodox Christmas.
