Residence permit application for persons employed as a specialist
Apply for a residence permit with this application if you work as a specialist or as a teacher and have a contract of employment with an employer operating in Finland or have accepted a binding job offer. A specialist is a person who comes to Finland to work with expert tasks that require special expertise (highly skilled worker). You are also usually required to have a higher education degree.
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Expected processing time for electronic application
First permit 1 month /
extended permit 1–2 months
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Expected processing time for paper application
First permit 1 month /
extended permit 1–2 months
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Electronic application fee
First permit 380 € / extended permit 160 €
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Paper application fee
First permit 480 € / extended permit 430 €
Specialist
Watch a video about the residence permit for a specialist (duration approximately 15 minutes, only in English).
This is what you should do
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Make sure you meet the requirements for the residence permit you are applying for.
Make sure you meet the requirements for the residence permit you are applying for.
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Make sure you have all the attachments needed. If necessary, have them translated and legalised. The processing time may be longer if you have not filled in your application sufficiently.
Make sure you have all the attachments needed. If necessary, have them translated and legalised. The processing time may be longer if you have not filled in your application sufficiently.
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Fill in your application.
Fill in your application.
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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.
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.
5
If you are abroad, visit a Finnish mission (embassy or consulate). If you are already in Finland, book an appointment at a service point of the Finnish Immigration Service.
If you are abroad, visit a Finnish mission (embassy or consulate). If you are already in Finland, book an appointment at a service point of the Finnish Immigration Service.
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Wait for a decision. The Finnish Immigration Service will contact you if necessary.
Wait for a decision. The Finnish Immigration Service will contact you if necessary.
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Read what happens after you have applied. Check the estimated processing time of your application here. You can follow the processing of your application with the help of our chatbot Kamu. In addition, you will usually receive automated messages at the different processing stages of your application.
Read what happens after you have applied. Check the estimated processing time of your application here. You can follow the processing of your application with the help of our chatbot Kamu. In addition, you will usually receive automated messages at the different processing stages of your application.
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You should wait for the residence permit in the same country or locality where you submitted your application and proved your identity.
You should wait for the residence permit in the same country or locality where you submitted your application and proved your identity.
General requirements for entry into Finland
Make sure you meet the general requirements for entry into Finland before you submit an application.
You can only get a residence permit if you are able to travel to Finland and stay in the country legally. To do this, you must have a passport that is valid throughout the time your residence permit is valid.
Requirements
You must also meet the following requirements:
You must have confirmed employment before you may apply for a residence permit for a specialist. 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.
Specialists for example include:
- IT experts
- experts in some field of specialisation who have a higher education degree
- other persons with a higher education degree whose work requires expert knowledge
If you apply for a residence permit as a specialist, your gross income must be at least EUR 3,000 per month. If you are employed as a specialist but your salary is lower than that, you need to apply for a residence permit for an employed person.
Taxable fringe benefits provided by the employer can be counted towards the specialist’s salary. These fringe benefits may be, for instance, a company car or a housing benefit. In assessing your salary we may, however, consider it conspicuous if the fringe benefits account for an exceptionally large proportion of your salary. The amount of fringe benefits is usually considered exceptionally large if the fringe benefits account for more than half of your salary, or if their amount exceeds the taxable value of a full board benefit as determined by the Tax Administration. You must present a certificate or other reliable documentation of the taxable value of your fringe benefits. Daily allowances or other similar compensations for travelling or for the costs caused by residing in Finland will not be counted towards the employee’s salary.
The salary required for a specialist for the duration of a one-year residence permit is approximately EUR 36,000, regardless of how many days you will stay in Finland during the validity of your permit. When you apply for an extended permit, the Finnish Immigration Service will check how much you have been paid in salary and for how long you have stayed in Finland during the validity of your previous residence permit.
If you do not have a higher education degree or your salary is smaller but you still want to apply for a residence permit for a specialist, your application must clearly explain why your work is an expert task that requires special expertise.
Right to work
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You have the right to work as a specialist. Check your right to work if you wish to change jobs.
- If you are in Finland when you are applying for a residence permit, you have the right to work as a specialist already before you get a residence permit. In this case, you must reside in Finland legally (you have a valid visa or you are allowed to stay in Finland without a visa). However, your right to work will end after three months at the latest, or even earlier if your visa expires.
- If you apply for an extended permit, check if you have the right to work while your application is being processed.
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
- Colour copies of the passport page containing personal data and of all passport pages that contain notes
- Document showing that you are legally staying in the country where you submit the application
- Form MP_1 (if you already are in Finland and apply for your first residence permit)
Application-specific attachments
- Certificate concerning the principal terms and conditions of employment; or
- Consultancy agreement
- Certificate of fringe benefits from the employer/client
- Commission agreement with a Finnish client (must be included if the employer is a foreign company that has no office in Finland)
- Job description
- Certificate of a higher education degree
- Your latest pay certificate (only if you apply for an extended permit)