Many countries and airlines now require travellers to provide up-to-date, official proof of a negative coronavirus test result.
The Helsinki tabloid Iltalehti points out that the text message confirming a negative result that most people get after testing is not accepted as a valid certificate for travel.
Lasse Lehtonen, Chief of Diagnostics at Helsinki University Hospital HUS, has now told Iltalehti that the hospital district will also start issuing an official certificate to those tested free of charge.
"The plan is to be able to get a printable certificate from the tests taken within a couple of weeks. The system may be in good working order by the end of next week," he said.
Although the certificates will be available in English, the system will require Finnish ID authentication.
In principle, this certification service is not intended for leisure trips. However, Lehtonen points out that the intended use is not monitored by HUS. The hospital only does the tests and provides certificates. Referrals are made by municipalities and health centres, which outline the purposes for which the tests are performed.
The total cost of getting a negative test certificate from a private health service provider is around 300 euros.
Quiet border
According to Ilta-Sanomat, there has been a sharp fall in traffic crossing the border between Finland and Sweden since the introduction by Swedish authorities of a certificated negative coronavirus test result as an entry requirement.
The paper reports that fewer that 3,000 people crossed the border at the twin cities of Tornio-Haparanda, in contrast to the usual daily figure of 15,000 to 20,000.
Finland is not requiring testing for entry on the Swedish border, but a strong recommendation has been issued.
IS writes that a difference in attitudes towards the virus is immediately evident at the border. In Finland, all border guards wear face masks. Swedish police do not.
There are six official border crossing points open between Finland and Sweden. Swedish police now stop every car coming from Finland. Passengers must present a negative coronavirus test result no more than 48 hours old.
Ulf Wallin of the Swedish police in Haparanda told the paper that control measure have been working well since their introduction on 6 February.
"Over the weekend, we have turned back sixty people who did not have a negative coronavirus test result with them. The number of people being turned back is declining all the time," said Wallin.
Fear of extremists
Seven out of ten Finns are afraid of Islamic extremism, the extreme political right, or both, according to a Uutissuomalainen poll published by a number of morning papers, including Jyväskylä's Keskisuomalainen.
The survey of 1,000 adults found that 25 percent expressed a fear of Islamic extremism, 17 named right-wing extremists as a fear, and 28 percent said they have fears of both.
The results came as something of a surprise to some experts. Antti Paronen, an adjunct professor at the Finnish National Defence University said that the level of fear of extremism is surprising because Finland is a real periphery for terrorist violence.
The poll showed that one-third of men harbour some fear of Islamic extremism. Women tended to express great fear of the extreme political right or of both.
People aged 60-69 have the highest fear of terrorism. The extreme right is most feared by those over 70 and high-income earners.
The survey also indicated a correlation between education and these fears. The more educated respondents were, the less the fear of Islamic extremism. The situation was the opposite concerning right-wing extremism: the higher the education, the greater the fear of the far right.
Supporters of the Finns Party clearly expressed the most fear of terrorism. Three out of four said they feared Islamic extremism. Half of respondents identifying as backers of the Left Alliance said they have a fear of far-right terrorism.
Real estate on social media
The local Helsinki daily Helsingin Uuutset reports that a large part of the real estate market in the capital region has heated up and much of the trade has shifted away from agents to Facebook groups.
The paper writes that real estate agents in Espoo confirm that demand right now for housing is clearly outstripping supply in the area. They have also noted a shift away from using professional agents to direct sales on social media.
"Housing sales in Facebook groups have grown significantly. Previously, the local residents' groups mainly discussed local issues, but now the housing trade has clearly increased there," says Pekka Lahtinen, CEO of the real estate agency LKV.
Risto Pesola of Prime House realtors stated that he has not seen such high demand in the housing market during his 27 years in the business.
According to Pesola, demand in the capital region is high for all kinds of properties, but especially for five-room flats.
"Those with money want a telecommuting room. Teleworking won’t end even after the coronavirus epidemic and people want a room at home where they have the peace and quiet to work," Pesola said.