Residence permit application for work in the field of mass media
Apply for a residence permit with this application if you are engaged professionally in the field of mass media and your employer or contractor does not have a place of business in Finland. You must have confirmed employment before you can apply for this permit.
You can apply for this permit if you work as a correspondent, journalist or photographer, for example.
If your employer has obtained employer certification, you can apply for a D visa at the same time as you apply for a residence permit. The D visa allows you to travel to Finland immediately after you have been issued with a residence permit and a D visa sticker has been attached to your passport. Read more about the D visa.
Your spouse and children can apply for a D visa if they are applying for a residence permit on the basis of family ties. Read more on the page Moving to Finland to be with a family member.
This is what you should do
Prepare:
You have a job.
- Your employer must supplement your application by filling in the ‘Terms of employment’ paper form.
You are engaged professionally in the field of mass media.
- You may be a correspondent, a journalist or a photographer, for example.
Your employer or contractor does not have a place of business in Finland.
- If your employer or contractor has a place of business in Finland, apply for a residence permit for an employed person instead.
You have sufficient financial resources for the entire validity period of your residence permit.
- You may work in paid employment or pursue a trade or business without establishing a company
- Your main source of income must be the work for which you are applying for a residence permit.
- If your main source of income is paid employment, your salary must correspond to at least the minimum specified in the relevant collective agreement.
- If there is no collective agreement in your sector or if you will be working part-time, your salary must be at least EUR 1,399 per month in 2024.
- If your main source of income is pursuing a trade or business, or if you are combining paid employment and pursuing a trade or business, you must make at least EUR 1,399 per month in 2024.
- Some of your salary may consist of fringe benefits, such as company car or employer-provided accommodation. The taxable value of your fringe benefits will be taken into account when your salary is assessed. For more information about the taxable values of fringe benefits, see the website of the Finnish Tax Administration (vero.fi) (Only in Finnish and Swedish).
- Read more on the page Income requirement.
- When you apply for an extended permit, the Finnish Immigration Service will assess whether your salary and income have been sufficient.
In addition, you must meet the general requirements for obtaining a residence permit. Read more on the page First residence permit.
Have the attachments translated and legalised if needed.
General attachments
- Valid passport accepted by Finland (um.fi). Present your passport when you submit your residence permit application
- A passport photo complying with the photo guidelines issued by the police (poliisi.fi), or a photograph retrieval code you received from a photo shop
- The passport photo must be no more than 6 months old.
- 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 (pdf) (if you already are in Finland and apply for your first residence permit)
If you pursue a trade or business, add to your application:
- your contracts with clients; or
- an explanation of how you will earn income from pursuing a trade or business if you have not signed any contracts with clients.
Fill in the application:
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 apply for your first residence permit in Enter Finland, you might not need to visit a service point when you apply for an extended permit.
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.
If you apply online via the online service Enter Finland, pay the processing fee:
- with a credit card or with Finnish online banking credentials when you submit the application, or
- when you visit a Finnish mission abroad to prove your identity.
If you apply with a paper application, pay the processing fee:
- when you visit a Finnish mission abroad to prove your identity.
Your employer must fill in the form ‘Terms of employment’ (pdf). Attach the form to your application.
Book an appointment to visit a Finnish mission (embassy or consulate) abroad to prove your identity.
For more information, see the page Proving your identity abroad.
- If you applied online in Enter Finland, you will receive notifications of your application's progress and of possible requests for additional information by email and text message.
- If you applied on paper, you will receive notifications of your application's progress and of possible requests for additional information by email.
Read more on the page Processing of applications
Right to work
- Your right to work gives you the right to perform the work for which you have been granted a residence permit.
- Your right to work begins when you are granted a residence permit. You cannot start working before you get a residence permit.
- If you apply for an extended permit, check if you have the right to work while your application is being processed. Read more on the page Working while your extended permit application is being processed.