Growing your company’s operations in Finland is an exciting opportunity. Whether you’re transferring employees from your parent company, hiring new candidates from other countries, or building a talented workforce with a combination of both, some of your team members will likely need to obtain a Finland work visa. Finland has great work opportunities.
If your country of destination is Finland, you must apply for a visa at the Visa Application Centre indicated by the nearest Finnish mission. All visa applications must be submitted in person. You must submit your application well in advance. You may submit an application no more than six (6) months before the start of the intended visit. The processing time of a visa application is 15 days. The processing time may be longer if a more detailed examination of the application is required. You can even fill in an application in pdf format either by hand or with computer. A visa fee will be charged for processing visa applications (see the Service fees).
Once you have secured a job in Finland, then you can apply for a work permit. Before you apply for your work visa you must find a job in Finland. It’s obligatory to present a valid work contract with the rest of the application. You can apply for the permit through the e-service online, or you can apply on paper. Here you must submit the original documents that you attached to your application in the e-service (passport, civil documents, travel insurance, and so on). If you applied abroad, you cannot travel to Finland and wait for a decision.
Once your residence card has been issued your personal info will automatically be recorded in the Finnish Population Information System. Typically, a work visa issued by Finnish authorities lasts about a year. If you have a B permit, otherwise known as a temporary permit, it will be valid only for a year. Depending on the type of your permit you can either apply for an extension every year or every four years. If you applied for a work permit on the basis of a specific employer then you can’t switch employers.
It was rated as the eighth richest country in Europe and a great number of people would like the opportunity to work in Finland. You should know that your application will be processed in two ways. Firstly, an Employment and Economic Development Office will process the application for you and make a partial decision. The Finnish Immigration Service, or Migri, will make the final decision after making sure employees meet all requirements for a residence permit.
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If you completed a degree program in Finland you are eligible to apply for a job-seekers visa. You can apply for Finland citizenship after you’ve completed 5 years of uninterrupted living in Finland.
Types of Work Visas in Finland
Citizens of countries outside the European Union (EU), Norway, Switzerland, Iceland, and Liechtenstein will need to apply for a residence permit before working in Finland. The type of permit employees will need depends on the nature of the work they’ll be doing for your company. The following 3 categories of work visas will be relevant for most companies:
- Business visa: A business visa allows employees to stay in Finland for up to 90 days. However, this visa does not allow the employee to directly engage with work. A business visa does allow the individual to attend conferences and seminars. This visa may be relevant during the onboarding process for employees who will not be staying to work in Finland.
- Residence permit for self-employment: This permit may apply to some individuals within your company, including private entrepreneurs, partners, and members of a cooperative. Your company will need to be registered with the Trade Register at the National Board of Patents and Registration before this permit can be issued. If you want to work as a freelancer or as a light-entrepreneur this is the type of permit that is most adequate for you. You are considered a free-lancer if you work for several contractors, independently without a permanent employment status. You qualify for this type of permit if you have a start-up business.
- Residence permit based on employment (international special expert): This visa is the most common type, and most companies will need to be familiar with it to grow their operations in Finland. Employees seeking residence in Finland for the first time should apply for a Temporary permit. You should apply for this permit if you qualify for the category of a highly skilled worker that can work as an expert in any field in Finland. You can apply for this work permit if you are working for a religious association.
- EU Blue card: This is typically applicable to highly skilled workers with a minimum salary of at least EUR 5,209 gross per month (as of 2023) and with a higher education degree of at least 3 years. The Finish EU Blue Card is granted to highly qualified individuals who wish to work in Finland. Alongside the general requirements, you will need to have a higher education degree, and your job salary must pass the average number. This type of permit issued by Finland allows you to work only in Finland and not in other Schengen countries.
In June 2022, Finland also introduced a fast-tracked D Visa for specialists, startup entrepreneurs, and their family members. As of Dec. 22, 2022, the D Visa also includes employees in managerial positions, researchers, students, and their families. Fast-track applications can be submitted only in the online service Enter Finland. For more information, see the page Fast track. This visa allows international workers to enter Finland and start working within 10 days.
If you are granted a residence permit for work, your family may usually apply for a residence permit on the basis of family ties. Read the application page to find out if your family members may get residence permits on the basis of family ties.
Seasonal Work Permits
If you are coming to Finland to do seasonal work, you must apply for the appropriate permit for it. The different kinds of seasonal work permits are visa for seasonal work, certificate for seasonal work and residence permit for seasonal work. The duration of your work will affect which seasonal work permit you need to apply for. Seasonal work permits are always tied to a specific employer. This means that you may only work for the employer who is mentioned in your seasonal work permit. For seasonal work, you have to apply for a short-term visa.
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Seasonal work refers to work in agriculture and tourism that is tied to a certain time of the year. Seasonal work done in Finland will be governed by the Seasonal Work Act based on the new EU Directive on seasonal workers. Examples of seasonal work include work in forestry, plant production and festivals. Seasonal work is permitted under a Schengen visa for a maximum of 90 days over a period of 180 days. The regular processing times set out in the Visa Code apply to the processing of seasonal visas.
A permit for engaging in seasonal work is granted for working for one or more designated employers. You can find instructions on how to apply a visa in the paragraph Where and how to apply for a visa. The employer's assurance form is one of the appendices required for applying for a visa for seasonal work. The employer's assurance form is one of the appendices required for applying for a visa for seasonal work.
The Seasonal Workers Act will also apply to wild-berry picking starting from the 2025 harvest season. Compared to the prior practice, wild-berry pickers will be required to have an employment relationship with the company that invited them to Finland and meet the other conditions for granting a seasonal work permit. Wild-berry pickers subject to a visa requirement can apply for a seasonal work visa at Finnish missions abroad for short-term wild-berry picking for up to 90 days. Visa applications for the purpose of wild-berry picking, submitted by third-country nationals who are subject to the visa requirement, are processed individually in accordance with the Visa Code and based on all available information.
Requirements to Obtain Finland Work Visas
To obtain a working visa in Finland, employees need:
- An employment contract
- A valid passport and passport photo
- A residence permit for an employed person application
- Color copies of the passport page containing personal data and of all passport pages that contain notes
- Document showing that the individual is legally staying in the country where they submit the application
The process begins when employees are offered a position with a company in Finland. An employment contract is necessary to live and work in Finland legally. If employees are moving to Finland, they’ll need to apply for a residence permit, which can be done online through the Enter Finland service.
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If the employer has obtained employer certification, employees can apply for a D visa at the same time they apply for a residence permit. The D visa allows individuals to travel to Finland immediately after they’ve been issued with a residence permit and a D visa sticker has been attached to their passport. Within 3 months of submitting the application, they must visit a diplomatic mission or embassy of Finland and present original copies of the application appendices, including fingerprints and supporting documents. Once approved, employees receive a residence permit card from the embassy of Finland. The first permit is valid for 1 year, or 2 years for those with the EU Blue card, and can be renewed at a local police station in Finland.
Other Important Considerations
While employees who are citizens of EU member states, EEA, and Switzerland do not need to apply for a residence permit to work in Finland, they do need to register their right to reside in the country. This process can be completed through the Enter Finland system.
Citizens of the Nordic countries, including Iceland, Norway, Denmark, and Sweden, must register their right of residence at the Digital and Population Data Services Agency. If they intend to live in Finland for more than 6 months, they must visit the service location personally to register. They have to have a valid identity card showing nationality, such as a passport, and should register as soon as possible - but no later than 1 month after moving to Finland.
Employees with a residence permit should be aware that they’re entitled to apply for permanent residence after 5 years of legally living and working in Finland. You must meet the requirements for your residence permit during your entire stay in Finland. The Finnish Immigration Service may withdraw your residence permit if you do not meet the permit requirements.
When you apply for a residence permit in order to work in Finland, you must be paid an appropriate salary for your work. Read more on the page Income requirement.
If you have been granted a residence permit on the basis of work and your employment ends, you need to find a new job. The Finnish Immigration Service will not withdraw your permit immediately: you will have a protection period during which you can look for a new job. When the employment relationship based on which your residence permit was granted ends, you will have either 3 or 6 months to find a new job. This period is called the protection period. The duration of your protection period depends on which work-based residence permit you hold and how long you have lived in Finland. If your residence permit has been granted on grounds other than work, such as on the basis of family ties or international protection, your permit may include the right to work. If your residence permit includes the right to work, you will usually not need a separate permit for work. To find out whether you have the right to work, see your residence permit decision and your residence permit card.
You normally need a residence permit to be allowed to work in Finland.
At G-P, we’re committed to breaking down barriers to global business, enabling opportunity for everyone, everywhere, and helping companies tap into the fullest potential of their workforce. We help you maintain full compliance with local laws and ensure everything from hiring and onboarding to paying your team is quick and easy, regardless of where they are in the world. - For this particular location, G-P may offer support processing certain work visas and permits. Contact us today to assess your specific needs.
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