Finland’s Ministry for Foreign Affairs has suspended the reception of wild-berry pickers’ visa applications in Thailand, Cambodia and Myanmar.
Schengen visas will not be issued to wild-berry pickers from these countries for the summer 2024 harvest season.
After the 2023 harvest season, the Ministry carried out an investment based on allegations about serious crimes relating to the harvest season.
Visas for wild-berry picking have been issued in Finland for a purpose comparable to tourism, to collect wild berries freely under the right of public access (‘Everyman’s Right’) and sell the natural products that they have harvested to the party of their choice.
The current practice contradicts this assumption. Wild-berry pickers have generally entered into employment contracts. The charges and suspicions of trafficking in human beings involve hundreds of victims.
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