Finland’s Strict Quarantine Rules Hampers Tourism Recovery

Finland should do away with its quarantine requirements for arriving passengers who have a certificate of being vaccinated against, testing negative for or recovering from the disease caused by the new coronavirus, demands a group of cities, companies, employer groups and trade unions with a vested interest in tourism.

If Finland continues to insist on entry restrictions stricter than the rest of the EU, the group warned, it could stem fledgling tourism flows and delay recovery from the pandemic-induced crisis.

“The quarantine requirement is a really major obstacle to the recovery of tourism,” Topi Manner, the chief executive of Finnair, stated to Helsingin Sanomat on Monday.

In addition to the majority state-owned airline, the plea has been signed by Finavia, the Finnish Hospitality Association (Mara), Service Union United (PAM), and the cities of Espoo, Vantaa and Helsinki.

People arriving in Finland are almost without exception presently required to observe at least a three to four-day self-quarantine. The country continues to recommend that arriving passengers observe a two-week quarantine that can be shortened by testing negative for the virus 72 hours after arrival.

The requirement applies to passengers from all countries with a 14-day incidence of coronavirus infections of at least 25 per 100,000 inhabitants. In Europe, Iceland is currently the only country with a lower incidence of infections.

The tourism industry provides employment to about 140,000 people and contributed 2.7 per cent of the gross domestic product of Finland in 2018, according to the group.

The European Union last week took a major step toward the resumption of tourism. The European Parliament and European Council on Thursday reached a provisional agreement on a certificate to facilitate free movement within the 27-country bloc. The certificate, available to citizens for free either in a digital or paper format, attests that its holder has been vaccinated, tested negative or recovered from the disease.

The Ministry of Employment and the Economy has predicted that the pandemic could inflict revenue losses of up to 15 billion euros on Finland in 2020–2021.

Source: The Helsinki Times