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Residence permit application for extended permit to look for work or to start a business

Apply for a residence permit with this application if you need an extended permit to look for work or to start a business and you do not yet have a job. You need to have a valid residence permit for studies or for scientific research.

  • If you have a residence permit for studies, you must have finished your studies and graduated.
  • If you have a residence permit for scientific research, you must have finished your research work or you must have completed a doctoral degree in Finland after finishing your research work.

  • Expected processing time

    2–3 months

  • Paper application fee

    430 €

You can get a residence permit to look for work or to start a business only once and for a maximum of one year.

You cannot be granted a residence permit to look for work if you have received a decision on deportation from Finland.

Extended permit to look for work or to start a business

 

This is what you should do

1

Make sure you meet the requirements for the residence permit you are applying for.

2

Make sure you have all the attachments needed for the application and that they are up to date. If necessary, have them translated and legalised.

3

Fill in your application.

4

Book an appointment at a service point of the Finnish Immigration Service.

5

Pay for your application at a service point of the Finnish Immigration Service.

6

Wait for a decision. The Finnish Immigration Service will contact you if necessary.

7

Read what happens after you have applied.

General requirements for entry into Finland

Make sure you meet the general requirements for entry into Finland before you submit an application.

Requirements

You must also meet the following requirements:

1

You have a valid residence permit for studies or for scientific research.

2

You have studied and completed a degree in Finland, or you have either finished your research work or completed a doctoral degree in Finland after finishing your research work.

3

You have not yet found a job that would begin before your residence permit for studies or research expires.

4

You are submitting your application before your residence permit for studies or research expires.

Income requirement

You have secure means of support

  • It is your responsibility to ensure that you have the necessary funds for living in Finland. You must have at least EUR 560 at your disposal every month to be able to pay for your accommodation, food and other needs. In other words, you must have EUR 6,720 to be able to study in Finland for a year. The income requirement for this permit is the same as it is for a residence permit for studies. Read more on the page Income requirement for students. 

Right to work

This residence permit is meant for job-seeking. When you find a job, apply for a new residence permit on the basis of work before the permit that was granted for job-seeking expires. Check which of these two permits you can apply for: Degree completed in Finland or Research completed in Finland. If you start a business, apply for a residence permit for an entrepreneur. You can start working immediately after you have found a job or started a business.

General attachments

  • Valid passport (you must present it when you submit the residence permit application)
  • Passport photo complying with the photo guidelines issued by the police or a photograph retrieval code you received from a photo shop, OLEL_PK
  • Color copies of the passport page containing personal data and all pages that contain notes
  • Form for clarification of family ties PKJATKO_plus (to be filled in and signed by your family member living in Finland)

Application-specific attachments

•    Degree certificate and documentation of your means of support (if you have a residence permit for studies)
•    Degree certificate or document on finished research work and documentation of your means of support (if you have a residence permit for scientific research)

 

Residence permit application on other grounds, OLE_MUU

Fill in a paper application
You cannot apply for this permit in the e-service