Labour market test
When you recruit employees, you must primarily hire people who are already available in the labour market in Finland or in the EU/EEA area. Assessing the availability of suitable labour is referred to as labour market testing. The purpose of the labour market test mechanism is to support the employment opportunities for labour already in the labour market. If labour is not available in the labour market, recruiting employees from outside the EU and EEA is possible.
Labour market testing is applied to the following permits:
See our ten-minute video about the main principles for labour market testing (youtube.com).
When is a labour market test required?
When a person applies for one of the residence permits listed above, the Finnish Immigration Service will assess whether any labour suitable for the work in question would be available in the labour market in Finland or in the EU/EEA area within a reasonable time.
In applications for a first residence permit, the labour market test procedure concerns all applications for a residence permit for an employed person and applications for a residence permit for seasonal work where the duration of the work is 6–9 months.
In extended permits, labour market tests are not required in the following situations:
- When an employee applies for an extended permit to continue working in the same field of employment for which his or her existing and valid residence permit for an employed person was issued.
- When an employee applies for an extended permit to work in a different field of employment than the field for which his or her existing and valid residence permit for an employed person was issued and the employee has been working for at least 9 months with the residence permit for an employed person.
- When an employee applies for an extended permit and has had an unrestricted right to work on the basis of his or her previous permit.
- When an employee applies for an extended permit to work in a national labour shortage sector (tyovoimabarometri.fi) and has a valid residence permit for an employed person.
In other situations, labour market testing is required. Labour market testing is required if an employee who resides in Finland with a residence permit for studies applies for an extended permit for an employed person, for example. An employee who has completed degree or qualification in Finland may apply for a residence permit for persons with a degree completed in Finland, which does not require a labour market test. Read more on the page Residence permit application for person with a degree completed in Finland.
The Finnish Immigration Service uses the following information sources to assess the availability of labour:
- Regional work permit policies of ELY Centres (elykeskus.fi). The regional work permit policies determine the sectors in which the availability of labour is regarded as reduced in the region in question.
- The job posting published by the employer on the Job Market Finland website.
- The report on recruitment of labour provided to the Finnish Immigration Service by the employer on the terms of employment form under section ‘Availability of labour’.
- The Labour Force Barometer (tyovoimabarometri.fi/ammatti) that provides information on labour needs in different sectors.
If the main occupation that is stated in an employee’s residence permit application is named in the regional work permit policy of the ELY Centre, the availability of labour is regarded as reduced in the occupation in question and in the region in question. In such situations, the employer does not need to establish the availability of labour.
In cases where the main occupation is not named in the ELY Centre’s regional work permit policy and the field of employment has an oversupply of labour according to the Labour Force Barometer (tyovoimabarometri.fi/ammatti), the field of employment is usually not regarded as having a shortage of labour requiring recruitment from outside the EU and EEA area. In that case, a residence permit for an employed person cannot usually be issued. However, factors that enable granting a permit despite the labour market situation may emerge in the report on recruitment of labour. The Finnish Immigration Service will always make a case-by-case assessment.
Labour Force Barometer
You can use the Labour Force Barometer to find information about the labour market situation in your employee’s field of employment.
The barometer includes four different labour market situations which are indicated with different colours:
- Labour shortage (blue)
- Labour mismatch problems (grey)
- Labour market equilibrium (white)
- Oversupply of labour (orange).
See the labour market situations for different sectors on the Labour Force Barometer website (työvoimabarometri.fi/ammatti).
National labour shortage sectors
Employees who hold a valid residence permit for an employed person are allowed to find employment in a national labour shortage sector (tyovoimabarometri.fi/tyolupalinjaus) even if the sectors are not mentioned in their residence permit cards.
When an employee applies for an extended permit to work in a national labour shortage sector, the Finnish Immigration Service does not require a labour market test to be made. However, applications for a first residence permit require labour market testing even if the employee will work in a national labour shortage sector.
An employer may hire a person who resides in Finland to work in a national labour shortage sector if the person holds a valid residence permit for an employed person. Please note that the permit must be valid. For holders of a residence permit for an employed person, the right to work in a national labour shortage sector is tied to a valid residence permit for an employed person. The right to work begins when the residence permit has been issued and ends when the residence permit expires. The list of national labour shortage sectors only applies to foreign nationals who already reside in Finland with a residence permit for an employed person.
Employer, this is what you need to do:
1
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).
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).
2
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 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.
3
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 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.
4
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.
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.
5
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.
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.