MFA Finland Visa process improvement programs

MFA Finland
Visa process improvement programs
NETVIS & ELVIS
Katja-Marika Puittinen & Ari Uusikartano
NETVIS kicked-off in late 2009 because:
• Finland Schengen visa applications in Russia had more than doubled since 2005
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– in 2009 735 926 applications submitted in Finland Missions in Russia (worldwide
total 795 936 applications)
– visa application count was still constantly increasing
no capacity nor resources in Missions to handle the increasing amount of visa
applications
– residential and office space converted into visa processing areas
processing cannot be handled in normal office hours
– continuous 2-shift work in Saint Petersburg, overtime charges in all the Missions
long queues in front of the Missions for customers to submit their visa applications
visa applications were filled in improperly
– lot of manual work when processing the applications
importance for Finnish tourism, trade, business and industry
– in 2008 more than 2,3 million Russian spent 595 million Euros in Finland
biometrics data collection (finger prints) will increase the demand for even more
capacity and resources
Benefits
Online VAF
more effective application
processing
less manual work, more
emphasis on actual decision
making process
improved customer service, no
queuing, shorter waiting times
no queues in front of the
Missions
Procurement was conducted at no cost by MFA Finland. No local contracts.
Outsourcing
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appointment scheduling for both to the Missions and to the VACs
visa application submission and review, incl. annexes
application data check and enter into online VAF if in paper form
online VAF data quality check
call center
visa application online tracking, sms, email
document delivery to and from the Missions
pass-back
courier service (extra charge)
Finland VAC in Saint Petersburg
• world’s largest visa application center
• approx. 3000m2
• approx. 300 employees
• separate areas for individual applicants
and travel agents
Average waiting time is
less than 1 minute.
Queuing…
… is history!
Key milestones in NETVIS
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Appointment scheduling and online VAF implementation in Moscow, Russia 15.5.2010
VAC opening in Moscow, Russia 18.6.2010
Online VAF implementation in Kyiv, Ukraine 15.9.2010
Online VAF implementation in Saint Petersburg, Russia 22.9.2010
Appointment scheduling implementation in Kyiv, Ukraine 1.10.2010
Online VAF implementation in Petrozavodsk, Russia 8.10.2010
VAC opening in Kyiv 15.10.2010
Appointment scheduling implementation and VAC opening in Saint Petersburg 11.2.2011
Satellite VAC opening in Kazan, Russia 17.6.2011
Satellite VAC opening in Lviv, Ukraine 20.2.2012
Remote visa processing centre setup in Kouvola , Finland 6.8.2012
Satellite VAC openings in Donetsk, Odessa and Harkova, Ukraine 14.9.2012
Ten more satellite VAC openings in Russia during 2013
 More than 95% of all Finland Schengen visas are submitted in VACs.
ELVIS kicked-off in early 2012 because:
• Finland Missions processed 1 258 999 visa applications
worldwide in 2011
– application count increased by 23% from previous year
• almost 95% of the visa applications were submitted in
Finland Missions in Russia
• St. Petersburg processed 936 620 visa applications
– application count increased by 26% from previous year
• no capacity nor resources in Missions to handle the
increasing amount of visa applications
ELVIS
• the increase in visa applications from Russia has accentuated the
need for developing electronic visa services and the Ministry for
Foreign Affairs is reforming the electronic processing of visa
applications (LIVP = Location Independent Visa Processing)
• the Ministry has decided to set up a visa service centre in Kouvola
• by implementing this reform, the Ministry wants to ensure the
provision of high-quality visa services in Russia until the objective of
visa-free travel shared by the EU and Russia is realized
• electronic visa processing will in future level out the peaks in the
demand for visa services occurring in Finnish Missions in Russia
ELVIS
• during the initial stage, some of the visa applications submitted at the
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diplomatic mission in St. Petersburg will be processed in Finland
the service centre concept will also enable utilization of the entire
visa service capacity should any unexpected country-specific
changes occur in visa activities
the pilot project was launched in early April 2012 and the Kouvola
Visa Service Centre (RVPC = Remote Visa Processing Centre) was
opened in August 2012
during the pilot stage, the Centre employed 60 visa officers
piloting lasted until summer 2013, after which the Ministry made
decision about continuing and expansion of Kouvola Centre
Key milestones in ELVIS
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First group of visa officers start 2.7.2012
Second group of visa officers start 16.7.2012
First visa application processed in RVPC 8.8.2012
Third group of visa officers start 3.9.2012
>1000 applications from St. Petersburg per day processed in RVPC 17.9.2012
Decision by the Ministry to continue and expand the Kouvola Centre summer
2013
Currently Kouvola site serves missions in St. Petersburg, Murmansk, Moscow
and Petrozavodsk (Kiev in process)
Over 70 visa officers currently employed by Kouvola Centre
About half of the overall applications from Russia are processed in Kouvola
The processes are harmonized in the Missions using Elvis and in Kouvola
By going from this…
… to this…
… we have created history!
Photo: Kouvolan Sanomat
Photo: Kouvolan Sanomat
…and scanning is revealing…
Normal light…
and UV…
K-MP/AJU
21.5.2014
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