Following legislative amendments that entered into force on February 17, 2025, wild-berry picking carried out by foreign nationals is now treated as seasonal work. Employers must hire foreign berry pickers for a contractual employment relationship to enable them to apply for an entry permit to Finland, and berry pickers will apply for a seasonal work visa for stays up to three months.
The Seasonal Workers Act will apply to wild-berry picking starting from the 2025 harvest season. In future, companies must hire berry pickers for a contractual employment relationship to enable them to apply for a visa or residence permit for seasonal work.
In practice, an employment relationship was already required last summer when berry pickers applied for a residence permit for an employed person issued by the Finnish Immigration Service. The recent legislative amendments enable berry pickers to apply for a seasonal work visa or a seasonal work permit from 2025.
Berry pickers seeking to stay in Finland for up to 90 days apply for a seasonal work visa at a Finnish mission. The Ministry for Foreign Affairs is responsible for processing the applications.
Erickson Insights & Analysis
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