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.
