Employment opportunities of non-EU students vary between EU Member States

European Migration Network Synthesis Report:

Many European countries want to attract more non-EU university students. In 2011, 2 million first residence permits were issued to non-EU nationals. 21 per cent of these were issued for education reasons. The United Kingdom issued the most permits.

Last year in Finland, the Finnish Immigration Service issued 5,519 student residence permits, which accounted for 32 per cent of all first residence permits (2011: 5,460, 31 per cent).

International students are important for the Member States’ economies, labour markets and education systems. Students often work in low-paid jobs during their studies, but after their completion, they are a potential source of highly-skilled labour. However, students often encounter various difficulties in finding employment in the Member States after completing their studies.

The synthesis report on the subject of international students’ immigration to the EU is based on national contributions from 25 EU Member States and Norway, which were prepared in 2012.

Right to work varies between Member States

The rights of international students vary between Member States. In Lithuania, for example, an employer wishing to hire a third-country national student needs to prove that he or she is unable to find a Lithuanian national or an EU national with the same skills as the international student. In Finland, an international student can work, on average, 25 hours per week outside study time. In Sweden there is no such restriction on how many hours an international student may work, and students can work as much as they like.

In most Member States, students are allowed to apply for a new residence permit on the grounds of employment after completing their studies. Some EU Member States place limitations on the type of employment a new international graduate can obtain. France and Luxembourg, for example, require the employment to be related to the academic programme completed.

In Finland, an international student may apply, without restrictions, for an extended permit to work as an employed person after completing his or her studies. He or she may also stay in Finland for six months in order to find employment.

The opportunity to study for free and in English attracts students to Finland

In most Member States, international students have to pay tuition fees. In Finland, on the other hand, higher education leading to a degree is provided free of charge, irrespective of the student’s nationality.

The lack of tuition fees is a significant factor in attracting international students. Finland is carrying out a tuition fee pilot scheme, running from 2010 to 2014. In Sweden, tuition fees for international students were introduced in 2011, which caused the number of international students to fall considerably.

Finland also draws international students thanks to its wide selection of study programmes in English, which has been added to actively in recent years. However, it has also been acknowledged that the majority of international students have insufficient Finnish language skills upon graduation, partly due to having studied in English. This can make finding employment after graduation more difficult, as insufficient language skills are often an obstacle in the Finnish labour market.

The student route can also be misused

Sometimes student status can be a way for third-country nationals to enter the Schengen Area without the actual intention to study. Forged documents presented during the application process and the lack of progress in studies are the most commonly observed indicators of misuse of the student route. Much attention has been paid to the misuse in Finland, and the validity of documents, for example, is checked very carefully.

Further information for the media

Senior Adviser Berit Kiuru, European Migration Network, Finnish Immigration Service, tel. +358 (0)71 873 0431, e-mail: firstname.lastname@migri.fi

The synthesis report “Immigration of International Students to the EU” is available on the Finnish EMN contact point’s website at http://emn.fi/raportit/uusimmat_raportit

The immigration of international students will be discussed in a working group organised by the European Migration Network at the Metropolis Conference taking place in Tampere from 9 to 13 September 2013.