Certificate 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?

You must have confirmed employment before you may apply for a certificate. 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 certificate 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 1,399 euros per month in 2024. 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.

You cannot get a certificate for seasonal work if you live permanently in another EU Member State or in Iceland, Liechtenstein, Norway or Switzerland. Instead, apply for a residence permit for an employed person. 

Your passport must still be valid for 3 months after your residence permit for seasonal work has ended.

Information about the terms of employment

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

• If you apply for a certificate 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.

Processing fee

• If you apply for a certificate in Enter Finland, you can pay in Enter Finland. Your employer can also pay for your application in Enter Finland for Employers.
• If you apply with a paper application or it is not possible to pay in Enter Finland, attach a copy of the payment receipt to your application. Pay the processing fee into the bank account of the Finnish Immigration Service before you submit the certificate request:
  • DanskeBank FI59 8129 9710 0117 35 or
  • Nordea FI86 1804 3000 0154 04.
  • Write your name and the reference ‘Certificate for seasonal work’ in the message field.

• Valid passport accepted by Finland (um.fi): your passport must still be valid for 3 months after your certificate 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).