End of employment

If you have been granted a residence permit on the basis of work and your employment ends, you need to find a new job. Your permit will not be withdrawn immediately: you will have a protection period during which you can look for a new job.

Protection period means that when the employment relationship that was the basis for your residence permit ends, you will have either 3 or 6 months to find a new job. Withdrawal of permit will not be initiated during that period. The protection period is not applicable in situations where your permit may be withdrawn for reasons other than ending of employment.

If your employment has ended and you cannot find a new job within the required period and you do not have any other legal grounds for residing in Finland, you must leave Finland at the latest when your residence permit expires. If your residence permit expires before the protection period ends, you must leave Finland already when your residence permit expires.

Your employer must submit an announcement about end of employment if your employment relationship ends before your residence permit granted on the basis of work expires. For more information, see the page Employer’s role and obligations. The Finnish Immigration Service may start to consider the withdrawal of your residence permit if your employer submits an announcement about end of employment.

Protection period of 3 or 6 months 

The duration of your protection period depends on:  

• how long you have lived in Finland and 
• for what type of employment your residence permit has been issued. 

You will have six months to find a new job if you have one of the following permits:  

• residence permit for a specialist 
• EU Blue Card
• residence permit for work in top or middle management 
• residence permit on the basis of intra-corporate transfer for a specialist or manager 
• you have held some other work-based residence permit for at least two years.
  • This could be, for instance, a residence permit for an employed person. 

You will have three months to find a new job if you have held one of the following permits for less than two years:

• Residence permit for an employed person
• Research completed in Finland
• Degree or qualification completed in Finland
• Work in the service of a religious community
• Work in the field of culture or the arts
• Mass media
• International organisations and cooperation between states
• Preparation of a company’s arrival in Finland and supervision of orders
• Delivery of a machine or system
• Athletes and coaches
• Consultants
• Visiting teacher, lecturer or instructor
• Intergovernmental agreement

Changing jobs

If your employment has ended and you cannot find a new job, you must leave Finland when your residence permit expires, at the latest. For more information, see the pages Changing jobs and Work in Finland.

Having trouble at work? See the page Problems at work.