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Asking for a friend because we really can't find answer to this despite searching a lot.

He came here at the beginning of October, let's say 10.10, from Asia (90 days allowed). Applied for a work permit end of October, got a positive decision beginning of January, until end of March.

Is it okay to stay after the work permit ends, again 90 days, or is it an overstay?

Going to leave in one week anyway but just want to know the real answer because of being worried, some places say is okay and some not.

The main thing making us confused is, does waiting for a work permit inside Finland consume tourist days or not (applied in Finland so can wait unlimited time for the decision in Finland)?

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  • What is the citizenship of your friend, and what does the visa say in terms of number of entries, validity dates, and duration of stay?
    – jcaron
    Commented Apr 5 at 14:46
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    Hongkong, Im sorry others I dont know, but I think general answer to this answers this question: Main thing making us confused is that does waiting for working permit inside Finland consume tourist visa days or not (applied in Finland so can wait unlimited time for the decision in Finland)
    – Samz
    Commented Apr 5 at 15:30
  • I think since its working visa it ends the day mentioned in the visa and unlimited entries but the thing is it end 31.3 so can the friend stay after this longer with tourist visa considering the things I write in first post
    – Samz
    Commented Apr 5 at 15:34
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    Related question travel.stackexchange.com/questions/79143/… Based on the example of Germany in that question I think you should contact the Finnish authorities to find out if you need to exit by the work permit expiry date and then re-enter. See also Long term visa expiry + count towards tourist days
    – Traveller
    Commented Apr 5 at 15:41
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    Technically, as a Hong Kong passport holder, your friend doesn't need, didn't have, and would not be able to get a short-stay visa. Instead what he did is a visa-free short stay. The difference is that he didn't need to apply in advance for it. I wrote my answer on that basis.
    – Relaxed
    Commented Apr 6 at 9:59

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Is it okay to stay after the work permit ends, again 90 days, or is it an overstay?

It's not an either / or situation, it's also entirely possible that he would be allowed to stay or reenter the Schengen area for a few days but not for 90 days. You can just use the usual calculators, ignoring the days spent under a valid permit.

The main thing making us confused is, does waiting for a work permit inside Finland consume tourist visa days or not (applied in Finland so can wait unlimited time for the decision in Finland)?

It's kind of moot as there is no way to prove that to other Schengen countries. I do not know about Finland but I know other countries will backdate the residence permit to the date of application, which neatly handles this issue. What matters to you right now is what the permit states.

If you add this info to the question somewhat might run the numbers but the important thing to understand is that you don't really need to figure out what the rules around residence permit applications are as they have no impact on the broader Schengen area.

To the extent that Finland wants this period not to be counted towards the Schengen maximum stay, they would do that by making sure it is covered by the permit your friend got (or providing him with another similar document). If they haven't, it means that this period counts. That is the only information that matters.

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  • sry, deleting my comment
    – Jan
    Commented Apr 6 at 14:44
  • He received document that has date end of October and says hes allowed to stay in Finland until the permit is processed as yes or no. But the paper doesnt say if it counts or not. Official permit is dated january until march( january they gave the positive decision) Document says its not suitable to use on travelling other countries
    – Samz
    Commented Apr 6 at 17:28
  • @Samz That's tricky. I think there is a procedure for Finland to notify the EU Commission about this document but I don't know how to find out whether they did or not.
    – Relaxed
    Commented Apr 7 at 8:28
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The main thing making us confused is, does waiting for a work permit inside Finland consume tourist days or not

This question is not relevant in this case because your friend is allowed 90 days every 180 days. The 90 days from January to March don't count towards that. Even if the days prior to that would count, they will be over 180 days in the past, and also won't count.
E.g. by June, when his 90 days are due, his stay in December will be over 180 days ago and won't count. Therefore, he is clear to stay for 90 days following March.

Be aware that in order to stay another 90 days as a tourist he might need to exit the Schengen area and come back again. You can find more details here: https://travel.stackexchange.com/a/79146/138206

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  • In June, it will definitely be fine to reenter the Schengen area but how do you go from that to being clear to stay for 90 days following March? Depending on the exact dates on the permit, it's possible only a few days would be allowed on April 1st. The full 90-day allowance will become available again exactly 91 days after the beginning of the permit's validity (e.g. if it was issued on January 10 then April 10).
    – Relaxed
    Commented Apr 7 at 8:33
  • That is true. It depends on the exact dates, but when he mentioned from January to March I assumed it was January + February + March which in 2024 had exactly 91 days. June seems too much time already, but you are correct that depending on his dates he might only be cleared on April 10. On the other hand, he only got there on October 10th, therefore he likely has less than 90 days on the previous stay. I rather not speculate that much cause the OP knows the exact dates.
    – André
    Commented Apr 7 at 9:39

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