“There is a certain category of foreigners who come to Estonia on a visa and immediately after that get married in order to obtain a residence permit,” explained the press secretary of the Department of Citizenship and Migration (DCM). “Later it turns out that the marriage was fictitious.” According to the press secretary, officials of the Department of Citizenship and Migration, in cooperation with the police, can verify whether a marriage concluded under such conditions is indeed fictitious.
The new version of the law also provides for the possibility of fining an organization through whose fault a foreigner illegally entered the territory of Estonia. For illegally crossing the state border of Estonia, for delivering a foreigner to a temporary control line or to a transit zone, a fine of up to 50,000 kroons may be imposed. For example, a transport company may be fined if an illegal immigrant crosses the border in a vehicle belonging to it.
Obtaining a residence permit or work permit for a foreigner who illegally entered the territory of Estonia can be costly for both an individual and a company. If until now for this violation an individual could be fined 12,000 kroons and a company 20,000 kroons, then from March 1 these maximum amounts will increase to 18 and 50 thousand kroons, respectively. In accordance with the new version of the law, authorities may punish a foreigner illegally staying in Estonia with a fine of up to 18,000 kroons or arrest for up to 30 days.
Since March 1, Estonia has also enacted a law on the obligation to leave and entry ban, which will simplify and speed up the procedure for expelling people who are in the country illegally. According to the press secretary of the Estonian Department of Citizenship and Migration, the new version of the law will allow police or border guards to expel an illegal immigrant from the country within two days of detention without a decision by an administrative court. A person expelled from Estonia also automatically receives a ban on entering the country for 10 years. The new law also allows establishing a permanent entry ban to Estonia for this person.