- The central thing in the new rules is a ban on restaurants to receive guests, a maximum of six people may gather in the same place and in general they try to avoid people meeting to a greater extent, says city director Timo Nousiainen in Tornio.
When SVT Norrbotten crosses the national border, we are met by peace and quiet.
Everywhere it says "Temporarily closed" and few people pass the city's main street.
Lower infection rates in Finland than in Sweden
The reason why Finland has been given stricter rules than before is that the mutated coronavirus was discovered in January.
Finland has a much lower infection rate than Sweden, but for security reasons, a partial shutdown of society was introduced on Monday.
Despite the stricter rules, most upper secondary and upper secondary schools are kept open throughout Lapland County.
Finnish laws allow for regional deviations and it is the municipalities that decide on schools, for example.
"After all, the infection rates are not that high here in northern Finland, so we have decided that students should be taught in schools," says city director Timo Nousiainen.
"We can not force people to test themselves"
If you do not have a recent negative covid test to show, you are asked to visit the rapid test station on the Finnish side of the border between Haparanda and Tornio.
- We can not force people to get tested, but if we think that border passengers should have a fresh covid test, and if he lacks it, then a doctor can order quarantine, says Tuomas Klint, who works as an inspector for the healthcare district in the Tornio region.
Hear more about the new rules that apply in the neighboring country in the video above.