Check whether the main occupation of the residence permit applicant (the employee) can be found in the regional work permit policy of the ELY Centre (ely-keskus.fi). The occupations are listed in the work permit policies based on the 4-digit level of the ISCO classification (International Standard Classification of Occupations). The 4-digit level of the ISCO classification is also used to determine the right to work given to a holder of a residence permit for an employed person. For more information about the ISCO classification, see the Statistics Finland website (stat.fi).

If the main occupation is included in the regional work permit policy of the ELY Centre, the availability of labour is regarded as reduced in the occupation and region in question. In that case, the Finnish Immigration Service does not require labour market testing. In such cases, the employer does not need to provide information about the availability of labour in the residence permit application.

If the main occupation is not mentioned in the regional work permit policy of the ELY Centre, the residence permit application is subject to labour market testing. See the online service Labour Force Barometer (tyovoimabarometri.fi/ammatti). If the Labour Force Barometer shows an oversupply of labour in the field of employment of the employee, the field is, as a rule, not considered to have such labour shortage that would require labour recruitment from outside the EU or EEA. In that case, a residence permit for an employed person cannot usually be issued. As an employer, you must establish the availability of labour before a residence permit application is submitted if you proceed with the recruitment. Post the job on the Job Market Finland website with the same requirements that will be stated in the possible residence permit application. Have the job posting open for applications for 2 weeks.

If you did not find an employee despite the job advertisement and decide to hire a person from outside the EU or EEA who applies for a residence permit, give a report on recruitment of labour on the ‘Terms of employment’ form. 

Complete the ‘Terms of employment’ form and attach it to your employee’s residence permit application. For further instructions, see the page Instructions for employers on filling in the terms of employment.