Back in April, we got my daughter her first passport, as the plan was to travel somewhere outside of Finland in the summer, which didn't end up happening. My wife had to renew hers at the same time, so we did the two birds with one stone thing and did them together. Because it was my daughter's first passport, there were a few extra hoops to jump through to ensure both parents were onboard with it and, I needed my passport too - which expires next year. However I am a permanent resident in Finland and, my card had expired...
in 2018
Oops!!
While the policeman (it is done at the police station) said he was meant to, but wouldn't fine me, I still had to get it renewed as soon as possible. That meant booking in with the immigration services for an interview.
Today was my appointment.
Yes - there was a four month queue to get in!
And then yesterday, they sent me a reminder SMS to make sure I had a photo and to bring my passport and all the paperwork I needed to have, unless I filled it online, in which case they will have it there.
Paperwork?
I had nothing.
Online it is.
However, with only a few hours left in the day, getting all of the attachments was going to be a hassle, if I was going to apply as I had before. My last residency permit was as a worker, which means in order to get it again, I would have to get all the paperwork from my employer too - that wasn't going to happen. So luckily, I also happen to be married to a Finn and have a Finnish child, so - family reasons it will be.
There were questions about how we met (in a bar), if we live together (yes), when I proposed (May 1), are we currently getting getting divorced (it is always on the edge) and other things. However, I also needed to attach our marriage certificate and, my wife's divorce papers from a previous marriage.
Due to the renovation of kitchen and office, our house is a mess, with everything from both rooms piled in the middle of the loungeroom in boxes.
So, I sent a message to my wife and asked,
Do you know where our marriage certificate is?
"Do we have one?"
And your divorce papers?
"No idea."
Brilliant.
So, I decided I would fill what I could pay the 160 euros to submit, go to the interview and at least be able to get the process started. However, I also asked my wife to call the magistrates office in the morning if she had time, to see if they could send a digital version of the documents.
And, this is something that I like about Finland;
The government services generally work.
So, while I went to the office in the morning (as it is close to the migration service center), my wife made the call (it had to be her to get the divorce confirmation) and a few minutes later, I had the email in my inbox and had uploaded it to the application as an attachment.
All good!
And then I went to the migration office.
Not gonna lie, I don't really have overly good experiences when it comes to "being foreign" in my life, nor really with the police in the early years in Finland, as I was "randomly" pulled over every two weeks for all kinds of checks on the road, while none of my friends had been pulled over in the last five years. So, I was expecting some kind of wrinkle, at least.
Due to the four month wait, I was expecting there to be a throng of people there, but the large building was almost deserted and when I first entered, I thought I was in the wrong place. However, on the first floor up, I was met by security and similar to the airport, I had to empty my pockets, take off my belt and have everything passed through a scanner, while I went through a metal detector. This is rare in Finland. Very rare.
There were very few people there waiting, and despite the building being quite new, it was very depressing. There were maybe 10 all together, and I was wondering how long they had been there, because a few seemed like they had been there a while. My appointment was for 14:15 and I was there 15 minutes early, just to make sure, but expecting a delay.
14:15
My name was called.
Unexpected.
I walked down through a hallway that I will call "non-descript" due to its beigeness, past about 10 closed office doors and into the numbered room I had been summoned. It had a couple chairs on the "foreigner side", some safety glass between and a woman sitting behind it. Sitting down, I noticed that the ground her chair was on, was significantly higher than mine, meaning she was looking down at me.
I hate that belittling ploy.
But, without a valid permanent residency permit, it was,
"If you don't like it, leave."
Maybe not.
So, the interview.
"Do you speak Finnish or would you prefer English?"
English please.
I wasn't going to get trapped into some kind of incrimination because they use a funny word.
(Note: All Finnish words are funny words to me.)
She took my passport as she would need to scan it and create a copy and then looked at her screen.
"So, you have filled out the wrong application".
I knew it... wrinkle.
"Here is a piece of paper with an email address on it. Email them so you will get your 160 euros refunded to you."
My eyes narrowed....
There is a trick here somewhere.
But apparently, I didn't have to go through all the hassle of filling out all of the many details and get the documents. If I had just gone to renew the card instead, it would have been 54 euros. She took my fingerprints with the machine, I paid with the other machine and then,
"Now, it will have to go through approval and after that, you will have the card sent to you by post."
How long is the approval process?
She looks at the screen.
"Well, I will approve it in a moment, but the card will take up to two weeks, but you'll likely get it earlier."
Cool.
Literally ten minutes after going into the room, I was walking out of the building and back to my car, calling my wife as I did so:
It has been too long and they aren't going to approve the application. I am going to have to go out of the country first...
She didn't buy it for a second.
I need to become a better liar.
Taraz
[ Gen1: Hive ]
Oh try that here! :)
You will be in GITMO, or worse, some 'undisclosed' location, in no time!
Jokes aside, as a brown to almost black dude living in Texas (earlier even worse, deep inside rural Oklahoma, middle of the bible belt!), I will tell you that I have never been a victim of any social or racial unjustice in the United States (I have been in India! Yes! Multiple times!!).
I don't know what that tells me or you. I am NOT going to say all the social and racial injustice that you see on the news or read online about the United States are 'fake news'; they are not. At the same time, I must also tell you, it might seem to you that everyone in Texas is carrying two guns and shooting children at random if you read and listen to the news. That is certainly not true either.
In rural Oklahoma, Arkansas, (may I even say Alabama!), people have been nothing but kind to me. Cities? Hell, I will live in any city in the US in a heartbeat, compared to India (if I may say so with deep respect to my home country!).
So, I don't know where the issue is. It can't be possible that I have been lucky for two decades! Well I have a theory. I think there always have been two things that worked in my favor. I have always been well off, if I may say so respectfully without sounding an a-hole. Also I have been friendly and humble. I think money has a distinct advantage everywhere socially, especially in the US. And if you are a friendly, and approachable person, you end up in a social bubble, that is NOT the America most americans are experiencing today.
Sorry for the long rambling comment, but your post describing your experience is something close to my heart. Basically being an 'alien' in the US. I can't lie, they have treated me very nicely!
Honestly dude, I think maybe you have been really lucky. Some of the stories my friends have told me about racial incidents from both police and just strangers from Dallas and Milwaukee WI have been absolutely terrifying.
Yes, believe me I am surrounded by those incidents. Dallas is very close to my home and I have there perhaps 100s of times. Milwaukee, again been there a few times. I don't think the location matters that much. Yes, I also agree that I have been lucky. That said I can't lie. It absolutely never happened to me. That remains a fact. Its been two decades I am here. I am raising my kids here, they are born here. So it is what it is.
I experienced more issues in Australia than I have in Finland and in general, it was more aggressive there. Here, there have been a few incidents, but very few are completely intentional and targeted, other than some of the early police stops.
With those, most were okay because I would put on a broad Australian accent and carried my Australian driver's license still.
"You're Australian?"
Yeah, mate.
"Sorry to pull you over! I have a cousin in Australia and have always wanted to visit!"
You should mate, it's awesome.
"On your way."
You will be in GITMO, or worse, some 'undisclosed' location, in no time!
Just thrown over the wall ;D
Isn't this funny! Funny strange, not funny haha.
And yeah, well-off makes a difference. When it came to getting pulled over, what actually changed it happening as frequently was having a newer car with darker windows :)
It is interesting what you say about the bubble, because that doesn't really exist here, everyone pretty much mingles - as you might have seen in the news with the prime minster partying at a local bar. It is not a super posh or fancy bar, it is a place I have been with my friends - quite drunk (back in the day).
I often wonder if it is skin color or other factors. For example, I have heard that black people from Africa in the US, get far better results than black people born in the US. Why is this? Personality, culture, difference in perspective?
Yes, I have seen the news of Finn PM partying! They way it should be!
I have seen that with my own eye. Being a petroleum geologist led me to travel to strange places and make strange deals. About 15 years back, business was big in Nigeria. Lots of Nigerians expat would come and work with us in Houston (as we will go there). They are black african from Africa, but just being where they are socially there in their lives (basically Kings and Queens in Nigerian standard, all educated in Europe, and having multiple flats in central London, you know what I mean!), they lived in very nice places in Houston. So just because of their socio-economic status, they afford a better social bubble, which many common African-American houstonians couldn't, and they hovered at the edge of justice.....
Its sad. But True!
Money buys opportunity, but it seems to also matter how you get the money. I think that when people are working in various kinds of jobs, they start to act in certain kinds of ways, based on their peer and reference groups. And then of course, that leads onto educational and generational difference, changing the bubble.
Dude!
Everything you've described here is an absolute dream.
I waited for over a year to get my visa stuff last time, and I still can't leave the country because it's only half done... in the past I've often had to wait hours and hours and hours for that little 1 minute interview and we stress over the paperwork for months in meticulous detail, and you can never ever be confident that it's going to go well. All my visa stuff has been the most stressful and boring thing ever... The things we do for adventure hey?
Your cavalier attitude to your paperwork is the most foreign thing to me about you... haha.
I know! It was really surprising. I do consider the general level in Finland good, but with something like this, I was expecting far more headache.
I get the sense that the US is a shambles when it comes to anything admin, especially with something like this that is national agency, because the states are also independently organized, setting up for a lot of communication problems between departments. In Finland, there is really only the national level, so it is far easier to manage.
:D :D
I am terrible with this kind of thing! Still, I was expecting to be slapped for it :)
Clearly you don't have a history as a joker XD
If most of my family members told me that, I would be like what seriously are you joking? And then we'd have a laugh about it if they were but for the most part I'd assume they were telling the truth.
Now come to me, J, the eldest and a couple of my uncles and people would assume we were joking because that's exactly the kind of stunt that we'd pull XD
I'll always come clean immediately afterwards to avoid people worrying kind of as a habit from when the kids were little so they only get worried if I don't, my uncle on the other hand...XD
Awesome that went so smoothly, imagine things running on time with no wait XD
I'm only complaining about wait times as we were waiting a lot yesterday while getting eldest's learner's permit sorted, the actual process was reasonably quick and very well explained and handled, just there were a LOT of people having to go to less Transport and Licensing centres (the one I had been planning on going to because it's easier to get in and out of apparently doesn't exist anymore so we had to go to a centre that was central and very busy
I just don't think my wife takes anything I say seriously! :D
It is an interesting issue when government departments that people need and use are short-staffed, but there are other departments that seem to have a massive surplus of people doing nothing (the political side :D )
Hahahaha, if someone told me that a post about renewing a residency card could be this funny, I would not believe it :D
How cool that paperwork in Finland can be done that quickly. Well, I don't know if everything goes this great as in your experience, but seems that it is better than in Spain.
There is an old video, made to show what do we have to bring when we want to be freelancers. And it is not very exaggerated 😂
Gotta have some fun with normality - it is often just so ridiculous :)
Yeah, it goes relatively well here, partly because it is well organized, but also because people are so comfortable with technology that digitalization has happened very, very fast. It has been decades ahead in some cases.
"Alright, Blondie" :D
A perfect attitude, having fun with normality 😉
Bureaucracy...
sigh
There's an amazing classic 1950s movie from Japanese master Akira Kurosawa, about bureaucracy in Japan, back then. I know you don't watch many movies but if you ever get a chance to see this one I highly recommend it.
I like Japanese movies , they tend to be quite quirky. They are great storytellers.
If by chance you haven't yet seen it, Spirited Away.
So all you had to do was marry a Finn, get'er pregnant, have a child, borrow from banks and build a life and house and future? Easiest passport ever.
There are hidden costs to everything these days!
It seems folks make it way to hard for others. Yes there ae t's to cross and i's to dot but the hoops can be endless and complicated for some. For others, it is way to easy, as folks are bused and lodged here in the US and the expense of the government. I have never got a passport before, and perhaps that may be a blessing. Wishing you well, my friend.
I am always surprised at how many in the US haven't had a passport or travelled, because in Europe, it is an essential item, because countries are so much closer together and border crossing is daily for some. However, the passport itself these days is not needed for most transits and in a lot of cases, the drivers license can be enough :)
I call bullshit on happenstance...you managed to cut through all the red tape with your sweet-talking mannerisms and devilish good looks. Right?
I tried, she wasn't having a bar of it!
The only explanation could be language barrier, but then, the international language should have kicked in. Did you wear your 1980's Don Johnson in Miami Vice clobber? That wins them over every time.
:D :D
You should have seen the shoulder pads!
I fucken knew it!
I thought you already had the Finnish citizenship. Your wife didn't believe you as there is little possibilty for you to be deported :)
Nah, I will never likely become a citizen here. Though, I will get my daughter duel citizenship when I renew my passport. Have to send it overseas to be done, as there is no embassy here.
The most important thing was that you were been attended because it is kind of stressful and frustrating when they start bringing fault from what is required to do properly to fill all kind of form that is not suppose to be so.
Yeah, I am glad it went smoothly. I was expecting more drama with it, because it had been expired for so long.
Lol the ending! Interesting experience. What made you choose or become a PR in Finland?
It is easier. I keep my Aus nationality and passport, but don't have to worry a bout meeting various restrictions as well as now qualify for different kinds of support, if required. Hasn't been required yet in 20 years, but just in case. For those inside the EU, this isn't overly important, those from outside it is more so. However, I know a couple Americans who have not only changed their nationality to Finnish, but given up their US citizenship too.
I see, thanks for sharing!
It has been a difficult process, very sad. I hope you will get your card soon. A friend of mine, who was born in Finland and lived there until the age of 17, but later came to Turkey, wanted to visit his older sister, who lived there 18 years later. This friend of mine still has Finnish citizenship. However, he did a lot of paperwork for about 6 months, just as you mentioned. He was able to go to Finland only 8 months after the first application. I don't understand what they are doing, what they want. This is really weird.
You see, this is a better comment. Comment like this around the platform and you will do okay :)
Yeah, I don't know about repatriation and that kind of thing. If I wanted to become a citizen, it gets much more difficult and I would also have to do language tests and stuff. However, this is permanent residency, I keep my own nationality, but have "almost" the same rights as Finns. I can vote in local elections, but not in federal.
I'm learning :) I will make better comments from now on. I don't know much either, but I know it's a tough process. I hope everything turns out the way you want.
Good to hear :)
I thought you were Finnish. Although your wife and daughter are Finnish citizens, you are not. Hope you get this problem resolved soon.
Nah, I am Australian.
I am glad you were finally attended to and right on your appointment time.
The process can be a bit stressful with some delays but it feels good to get what you want at the end.
I think I wasn't stressed enough for this - I just didn't have the time to spend on it! :D
Yeah, very true sir
I was surprised you didn't meet a lot of people too. Cos I was expecting a long queue.
But it's good you were able to get it done without hitches. And now, you'll be getting your approved response and of course your card in two weeks time.
Sometimes things work out okay. Sometimes.
Definitely. Sometimes.
It's a shame they demand we bother with this paperwork nonsense just to exist. Whether it's easy or difficult, it remains an imposition that interferes with peaceable folk.