Residence permit application for seasonal work

You must apply for your first residence permit for seasonal work abroad before arriving in Finland.

If you already have a certificate or a visa for seasonal work and want to continue doing seasonal work in Finland directly after your certificate or visa for seasonal work expires, you can apply for a residence permit for seasonal work in Finland. In that case, apply for a first residence permit for seasonal work before your certificate or visa expires.

Applying for an extended permit for seasonal work is possible only if you have a valid residence permit for seasonal work and you intend to continue doing seasonal work directly after your previous residence permit for seasonal work expires.

You can be granted permits for seasonal work for a maximum of 9 months during a 12-month period.

You will receive a decision on your residence permit application for seasonal work within 90 days of submitting your correctly filled-in application and all documents required by the Seasonal Workers Act to the Finnish Immigration Service.

As a seasonal worker, you are only allowed to work for the employer whose name is marked on your residence permit. If you want to add a new employer of seasonal workers to a valid residence permit for seasonal work, you can apply for the addition of a new employer.

Family members of seasonal workers cannot get a residence permit in Finland on the basis of family ties.

Expected processing time for electronic application

first permit, 3–6 mths: 1–2 months, first permit, 6–9 mths: 3 months / extended permit 1–3 months
Expected processing time for paper application

first permit, 3–6 mths: 1–3 months, first permit, 6–9 mths: 3 months / extended permit 1–3 months
Electronic application fee

first permit, 3–6 mths: 380 €, first permit, 6–9 mths: 490 € / extended permit: 160 €
Paper application fee

first permit, 3–6 mths: 480 €, first permit, 6–9 mths 740 € / extended permit 430 €

This is what you should do:

Make sure you meet the requirements for a residence permit for seasonal work.

Requirements for a residence permit for seasonal work:

The types of seasonal work to which the Seasonal Workers Act is applied include, for instance, agricultural and garden work, forestry and work in the tourism sector. For more information, see the page What counts as seasonal work?

Please note that you can be granted seasonal work permits for a maximum of 9 months during a 12-month period.

You must have confirmed employment before you may apply for a residence permit. If you have been offered work by an employer, the employer needs to confirm that you will really be hired. This is usually done in the form of an employment contract.

If you wish to apply for a residence permit for seasonal work to work for more than one employer, you must fill in the necessary information and submit attachments about all the employers.

If you are employed by a temporary-work agency, attach to your application the contract between the temporary-work agency and the user company. The contract must contain information about the parties of the contract, the period of validity of the contract and the work duties in the work location.

If you are requesting for a certificate for seasonal work, you need to be able to earn your living in Finland through gainful employment throughout the time your certificate for seasonal work is valid.

Your wages must meet at least the minimum set in accordance with the collective agreement applicable to your employment contract.

If there is no collective agreement for the job, your gross wages must be at least 1,331 euros per month in 2023. This sum meets the condition regarding previous employment (in Finnish: ‘työssäoloehto’) under the Unemployment Security Act (1290/2002).

Your living conditions must meet the generally recognised health and safety requirements applied to housing in Finland. The apartment must be warm, and it must have good fire safety and adequate sanitary facilities. There must also be warm water for washing and a sufficient sleeping area.

If you have either a residence permit, a right of residence or a D visa granted by an EU Member State other than Finland or by Iceland, Liechtenstein, Norway or Switzerland for at least one year, you cannot be granted a permit for seasonal work in Finland. Instead, apply for a residence permit for an employed person.

Make sure you have all the necessary attachments. Have the attachments translated and legalised if needed.

Attachments:

Information about the terms of employment

Your employer must supplement your application with information about your terms of employment.

If you apply for a permit in Enter Finland, you can give your employer permission to supplement your application in Enter Finland for Employers. This will speed up the processing of your application.
If it is not possible to use Enter Finland, submit the supplement form TY6_plus, filled in and signed by your employer, together with your application.

If you are employed by a temporary-work agency, the contract between the temporary-work agency and the user company must also be attached to the application.

Valid passport accepted by Finland (um.fi). Present your passport when you submit your residence permit application
- Your passport must still be valid for three months after your residence permit for seasonal work has ended.
A copy of the passport page containing personal data and of all passport pages containing markings (such as stamps, visas or residence permits).
Passport photo complying with the photo guidelines (pdf, poliisi.fi) issued by the police, or a photograph retrieval code you received from a photo shop
Document showing that you are legally staying in the country where you submit the application
Form MP_1, when applying for a residence permit in Finland

Fill in the application:

1

Fill in the application OLE_TY6 and add the necessary documents.

You can fill in the application online in Enter Finland. The fee for an online application is lower than for a paper application.

If you cannot use Enter Finland, fill in a paper application. You will find a link to the application at the bottom of the page.

You can only apply for your first residence permit for seasonal work abroad. If you already have a certificate or visa for seasonal work and you want to continue doing seasonal work after the expiry of your certificate or visa, you can apply for a residence permit for seasonal work while you are in Finland.

2

Pay for your application in the online service Enter Finland, at a Finnish mission (embassy or consulate) or at a service point of the Finnish Immigration Service.

3

If you are abroad, contact one of the Finnish missions (embassy or consulate) abroad. If you are already in Finland, book an appointment at a service point of the Finnish Immigration Service.

4

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

5

Read what happens after you have applied.

Please notice that if your seasonal work will last for 6–9 months, your application for a residence permit for seasonal work will be processed in two stages. This means that an Employment and Economic Development Office (TE Office) will first assess, among other things, whether you have sufficient financial resources and whether labour force is available in Finland or within the EU/EEA for the work in question within a reasonable time. Secondly, following this, the Finnish Immigration Service makes its decision.

Right to work

You cannot start working before you are granted a residence permit for seasonal work.

A residence permit for seasonal work is always bound to a specific employer. This means that you are only allowed to work for the employer whose name is marked on your residence permit. If you want to add a new employer of seasonal workers to a valid residence permit for seasonal work, you can apply for the addition of a new employer. Read more on the page New employer.

If you are applying for a first residence permit for seasonal work while your certificate or visa for seasonal work is still valid, or if you are applying for an extended permit, check whether you have the right to work while your application is being processed.