Visa Information

Finland is part of the Schengen treaty for free travel among its member states. EU-nationals and citizens of Liechtenstein, Monaco, San Marino, Switzerland, and Schengen Agreement countries can enter Finland with a valid passport or a valid identity card. All other nationalities require a valid passport. Finland has extensive visa waiver agreements with many other countries, including Argentina, Brazil, Australia, Canada, Chile, Israel, Japan, South Korea, Mexico, New Zealand, Singapore, and the United States, among many others. For other countries (e.g., China, India, Egypt), visa processing is usually smooth, easy to carry out online, and with a predictable (positive) outcome.

Foreign nationals who need an entry visa are requested to apply for it from the diplomatic mission that represents Finland in their home country (https://um.fi/finland-s-representation-abroad-by-country). General enquiries regarding travel documents accepted by Finland and visa issues should be emailed to the passport and visa unit at the Ministry for Foreign Affairs (visas.mfa@formin.fi). The usual processing time of vias application is 15 days. The processing time may be longer if a more detailed examination of the application is required. It is recommended to apply as soon as possible. The Schengen member states have jointly agreed about the rules concerning the movement of third-country nationals in their territories and decided which countries' citizens are required to present a visa. Furthermore, each Schengen State has decided which travel documents citizens of different third countries have to present upon entering the country. For more information, please see: https://um.fi/entering-finland.

Visa Support Letters

ACM does not issue formal invitation letters for visas to attend ACM sponsored conferences. We can however issue a visa support letter.

• ACM is able to provide visa support letters to attendees as well as authors with accepted papers, posters, or members of the conference committee.
• For visa support letters, refer all requests to supportletters@acm.org. Please allow up to 10 business days to receive a letter. All requests are handled in the order they are received. The information below should be included with the request.
  • Your name as it appears on your passport
  • Your current postal mailing address
  • The name of the conference you are registering for. Only accepted authors may request a visa support letter prior to registering for the conference
  • Your registration confirmation number
  • If you have any papers accepted for the conference, please provide the title and indicate whether you are the “sole author” or a “co-author”
  • Authors may indicate their paper title. If no paper, speakers can provide the title of their presentation

ACM does not provide letters for transport of vendor or presenter equipment. ACM suggests shipping the materials insured to the conference facility.

In case you need an invitation letter from the local organizers, please contact the general chair: Petteri Nurmi (petteri.nurmi@helsinki.fi) once you have registered. We will then provide you with a complementary invitation letter from the Helsinki organizers for the Finnish Embassy or Consulate.