The Finnish Immigration Service takes the effects of the coronavirus on income and studies into account when you apply for an extended permit
This year, the Finnish Immigration Service may grant an extended permit even if your income was temporarily lower than required. The lower income must be due to the coronavirus pandemic, and it may last for a maximum of six months.
In this way, we want to make sure that the exceptional situations due to the coronavirus, such as breaks in your employment relationship, do not affect your residence in Finland.
The exception to the requirement is not automatic for all applications for an extended permit submitted this year. The Finnish Immigration Service checks if your situation is due to the coronavirus. The decrease in income is considered to be temporary if it lasts for six months at maximum. The exception will be in force until 31 December 2020.
Most types of residence permits have an income requirement. The income requirement means that you must have sufficient funds to live in Finland throughout the whole period of validity of the residence permit. For example, the income requirement of an employee applies to the wages received from work.
Labour market subsidy secures the means of support
If you are applying for an extended permit based on work, and your income has decreased temporarily due to the coronavirus, your income requirement is exceptionally considered to be met at the gross amount of labour market subsidy, that is, EUR 724 per month.
Please attach the following documents to your application:
- certificate of the lay-off or termination of employment received from the employer
- certificate of work done during the coronavirus epidemic in a field critical to the security of supply and to the functioning of the labour market.
Families, students and researchers
We also take the effects of the coronavirus into account in the permits of family members, students and researchers. If you have been laid off, your employment has been terminated, or your amount of work has decreased due to the coronavirus, the exception to the income requirement may apply to you. The exception for permits for the family requires that the income that secured the means of support of the family has decreased temporarily, due to the coronavirus.
Attach a certificate of the lay-off or termination of employment received from the employer to your application.
Granting an extended permit based on studies usually also requires that your studies have progressed sufficiently. We can make an exception to the requirement, however, if your studies did not progress as planned because of the exceptional situation or illness caused due to the coronavirus.
Attach a report to your application stating why your studies have not progressed as planned. If necessary, the Finnish Immigration Service will ask you or your educational institution for more information.
The extended permit is granted for one year
Usually, the extended permit can be granted for four years at maximum. If we make an exception to the income requirement, or if we consider your means of support secured with lower income than usual, we will grant you an extended permit for one year
Further information
- Stay up to date on news about the effects of the coronavirus epidemic: migri.fi/coronavirus
- Further information about income requirements:
