Foreign nationals in Estonia with legal basis to stay can remain in country
Foreign nationals who have a legal basis for staying in Estonia as at March 12 will not be required to leave the country and will be able to remain on a temporary basis, Baltic News Service reports.
The announcement, made by the Police and Border Guard Board (PPA) also covers those whose journeys home are hampered by travel upheaval in the wake of the coronavirus pandemic.
This means that no application for extending the term of stay is required by the PPA or other authority, BNS reports.
"We are automatically granting foreign nationals the right of continued temporary stay in Estonia, to avoid them having to individually file an application with the Police and Border Guard Board for extending their stay, " Liis Valk, of the PPA's bureau for status and identity said on Monday.
Those foreign nationals whose returning to their home country is not currently hindered, however, must leave Estonia before their term of stay expires, BNS reports.
In addition, all PPA migration-related procedures have been temporarily suspended as of Monday, March 16.
"The PPA is employing its resources to prevent the spread of the virus; therefore applications for visas, extension of the period of stay, residence permits, residence right and short-term employment are temporarily not processed. New applications continue to be accepted, but decisions concerning them will not be made," Valk said.
The PPA advises people to postpone filing an application other than in the most dire of cases until the emergency situation, announced late last week, has been declared over, according to BNS.
With the caveat about the suspension of migration procedures in mind, those with Temporary Residence Permits in Estonia who need to renew them can file these by email, or by postal mail by sending them to Pärnu mnt 139, Tallinn, 15060, BNS reports. The migration advice line is 6 123 500 (9 a.m. to 3 p.m., Mondays to Fridays) or can be emailed here.
Applications for registration for short-term employment can be filed online here.
Estonia is imposing border controls from Tuesday, March 17 under which foreign nationals without residence in Estonia will not be permitted to enter the country.
Download the ERR News app for Android and iOS now and never miss an update!
Editor: Andrew Whyte