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Residence permit for a non-EU employee

Foreign employees who are non-EU citizens and equivalent persons need a residence permit for an employed person if they intend to work in Finland. An alien who has entered the country either with a visa or visa-free is not allowed to engage in remunerated employment in Finland but, rather, has to apply for a residence permit.  A residence permit can be granted on the basis of either temporary work or work of a continuous nature.

In granting the permit, the needs of the labour market are taken into consideration. The aim of the residence permit praxis is to support the possibility of those who are on the employment market to gain employment. Thus, the availability of work force is also supported.

Granting a residence permit for an employed person requires that the alien's means of support be guaranteed. The employment and economic development office will estimate both the labour political requirements and the sufficiency of the means of support.

Changing place of employment

A residence permit for an employed person is usually granted for a certain professional field. The employee can change the place of employment within the professional field for which he or she has been granted a residence permit.

Right to employment on a basis other than a residence permit for an employed person

An alien has an unlimited right to work in Finland if

• he or she has been granted a permanent or continuous residence permit based on grounds other than employment e.g. family ties
• Finland has granted for him or her an EC residence permit for third-country nationals with long-term EC resident status
• he or she has been granted a temporary residence permit based on the need for temporary protection or other humanitarian grounds for immigration
• he or she has been granted a temporary residence permit for a victim of human trafficking
• he or she has been granted a fixed-term Finnish residence permit on grounds that he or she serves as a professional athlete or trainer; works for a religious or non-profit association, or professionally in the field of science, culture, or the arts; works for a company executive or mid-management or holds an expert position that requires special skills; or is engaged professionally in the field of mass communication.
  

  (Note: The right to work concerns only the above-mentioned duties. If a person has been granted a residence permit on the basis of work in one of the above-mentioned duties, and he or she wants to work in a different professional field, he or she needs, as a rule, a residence permit for an employed person.)

An alien has a limited right to work in Finland if he or she

• has been granted a residence permit for study purposes (see Students);
• has been granted a residence permit for various teaching, lecturing and research assignments (allowing work within certain limits for a maximum of one year);
• has arrived in Finland in connection with work related to, for example, a contract of delivery of a machine, e.g. the installation of the machine or training in the use of the machine, and the work lasts for a maximum of six months; or
• participates in a programme subject to an inter-state agreement (for example, Working holiday intended for citizens of Australia and New Zealand), programmes of educational institutions and students' associations supported by the EU, international work camp operations or other equivalent work, or practical training that lasts for a maximum of one year.
• is an au pair (see Entry into Finland as an au pair, pdf)

Right to work without a residence permit

In certain cases, an alien can engage in remunerated employment in Finland without a residence permit. However, he or she must have a valid visa if he or she is required to have a visa  (see Entry documents required of foreign nationals).

Persons who do not need a residence permit for an employed person include

• interpreters, teachers, experts or referees who, upon invitation or under contract, work for no more than three months in Finland;
• professional artists or athletes or assistants to them who, upon invitation or under contract, work for no more than three months in Finland;
• sailors who work on a vessel that is entered in the list of merchant vessels as a vessel operating in international transport or sailing mainly between foreign ports;
• pickers of berries or fruits who work for a maximum of three months in Finland; and 
• permanent employees of a company operating in another EU/EEA country who perform temporary acquisition or subcontract work in Finland, as long as the alien has valid and appropriate residence and work permits in the other country.
• applicants for international protection with valid travel documents for crossing the border who have resided in Finland for at least three months since submitting their application
• applicants for international protection who have resided in Finland for at least six months since submitting their application

Additional information

For further information on applying for a permit, please visit the section Applying for a permit.

Police departments / Permits and licences for foreigners

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