EU Ends Visa Sanctions on Ethiopia, Finnish Missions Return to Standard Schengen Processing

The Council of the European Union on 19 May revoked the Article 25a visa restrictions that had been in place against Ethiopia since 2024. For Finland, the decision means its embassies in Addis Ababa and neighbouring countries can again process Schengen short-stay visas under the normal 15-day service standard and at the usual €80 fee — a welcome change for tour operators and Finnish companies with projects in the Horn of Africa. Under the sanctions, Finnish posts had to suspend priority appointments, impose a €120 surcharge and withhold multiple-entry visas. Business delegations complained of month-long waits, while the University of Helsinki saw several research visits cancelled. The Council cited “substantial improvement” in Ethiopia’s cooperation on readmission, including faster issuance of emergency travel documents and joint return flights organised with Frontex. Finnish border-statistics show that 2,600 Ethiopian nationals applied for visas in 2025, mostly for conference travel, medical treatment and ship-crew changes at Helsinki and Kotka ports. The Ministry for Foreign Affairs told Global Mobility News that applications filed on or after 22 May will be billed at the lower tariff automatically; those already in the pipeline will be refunded the surcharge upon collection. Corporate mobility managers should update internal guidelines immediately: invitation letters no longer need to justify an ‘urgent business purpose’, and seafarer agencies can resume multi-entry requests for crew who rotate through Finnish ports. However, the Foreign Ministry cautions that Schengen information-system alerts related to overstay or asylum claims will still trigger additional scrutiny at border control. Visa-free transit through Gulf airports remains unaffected by the change. The Council’s decision is part of a broader push to wield visa policy as soft power. Officials in Helsinki stressed that similar measures could be re-imposed on any third country that fails to readmit its citizens — a scenario that companies should factor into their global-mobility risk mapping.