Closure of Finland’s Consulate General in St Petersburg, services available at Embassy in Moscow

On 6 July 2023, Russia announced the withdrawal of consent to Finland to operate the Consulate General in St Petersburg as of 1 October 2023.

The Consulate General in St Petersburg was one of the largest among Finland’s diplomatic and consular missions abroad. Its range of duties was extensive, especially with regard to matters concerning entry into Finland. The Consulate General’s office building will remain in Finland’s ownership.

Finland’s Embassy in Moscow took on the duties for consular and entry matters for the whole of Russia on 1 September 2023 (press release by the Ministry for Foreign Affairs). Applications for a visa to Finland may be submitted at VFS Global Visa Applications Centres. Customers must visit the Embassy in Moscow in all residence permit matters. In its travel advice, the Foreign Ministry advises against all travel to Russia.

The bank accounts of Finland’s Consulate General in St Petersburg and Embassy in Moscow were frozen in April. The assets in the accounts have been transferred to a new account, opened for the Embassy in the bank designated by Russia (the VTB Bank).

Finland had a Consulate General in Petrograd, and later in Leningrad, from 1923 to 1938. Finland reopened its Consulate General in Leningrad in 1967. The Consulate General’s offices in Petrozavodsk and Murmansk were opened in the early 1990s. Finland decided to temporarily close both offices earlier this year. In May 2023, Russia announced the permanent closure of the offices.