Originally Posted by
Aviatrix
Quote:
Originally Posted by Sjoerd
A friend of mine has a similar problem: his Schengen visa expires on September 3 and his flight out of Schengen will be on September 4. He called the immigration office at Schiphol AMS (where he will leave Schengen) and they told him not to worry. In my and my friends' experience, Schengen countries' immigration officers still use common sense.
Schengen is not one country. Schengen is lots of different countries and lots of different cultures and different mentalities. Just because a Dutch immigration office decided to turn a blind eye to someone overstaying doesn't mean someone in Finland will take the same approach. Overstaying is overstaying, and could - in a worse case scenario - get the OP banned from entering Schengen in the future.
I just wouldn't do it.
Quote:
If I were you, I would explore Helsinki for the day. At the airport before your flight home, IF they ask a question, just tell them the Norwegians gave you a visa for the time in Norway forgetting about the transit in Helsinki. Shouldn't be a problem.
You are advising the OP to break the law. We should never do that.
Unless the OP gets specific permission from the Finnish authorities to stay an extra day then the only option he has is to stay within the law and go airside before the visa expires.
Do you never break the law? I break some law every day. Finnish people have common sense too. They won't punish a visitor for being one day "too long" in the Schengen zone. To the OP: don't worry and enjoy a day in Helsinki!