Degree seeking students at the University of Helsinki reside in Finland with a variety of residence permit types (see below), but most students have a residence permit based on studies. You can check your residence permit type and status on your residence permit card.
A residence permit may either be for a fixed term or be permanent. A fixed-term residence permit is granted as a temporary (marked with B) or a continuous (marked with A) residence permit. The first residence permit is always issued for a fixed term. A permanent residence permit bears the letter P.
List of the most typical current residence permits or other legal justifications of residence of foreign students in Finland:
For a more exhaustive list of residence permit types for residence and employment in Finland relevant to the university context, please see the the Q&A in Flamma that the HR wrote for the University’s international staff.
Q5: What kind of residence permit can I apply for after graduation?
A: After graduation, students have the right to apply for
a) a residence permit on the basis of work after completing a degree completed in Finland or
b) a permit to look for a job or start a business, which gives them the opportunity to stay in Finland for maximum two years. This permit can be used in three parts and each part must last at least six months.
If you have a residence permit to look for work, you can work without restrictions regardless of your field of study. If you apply for an extended permit before your previous residence permit expires, you can start working immediately after you have found a job or started a business. It is recommend you should apply for this permit before your residence permit for studying expires if you are staying in Finland. The permit can be applied for later on too, but within five years from the date when your residence permit for studies expired.
The Government has suggested changes to the stages after graduation: on certain conditions, students could be entitled to a permanent residence permit in Finland. Please see question 8 for more information.
Q6: What permit types relevant to students are affected by the regulations suggested in the Government Programme?
A: The Government plans that "With respect to education-based residence permits, a practice will be adopted in which a person’s permit will be revoked if they resort to Finnish social assistance. Kela will be obligated, upon request and on its own initiative, to provide information on such matters to the Finnish Immigration Service, taking into account data protection legislation."
Apart from this, the Government Programme does not propose any changes to residence permits that would specifically concern persons who have a residence permit based on studies. No changes have either been suggested to the residence permit to look for a job or residence permit based on work after completing a degree in Finland (see question 5).
The other proposed changes (see questions 7, 8 and 9) would concern students only after they have graduated, eg. as getting a permanent residence permit will partly become more difficult and the 3-month rule would come into effect when the person has a residence permit based on work.
Please see also question 3 regarding residence permits and the liability to pay for tuition.
Q7: What does the 3-month and 6-month rule mean for me after graduation?
A: The phrasing in the 3- and 6-month rule ”when employment ends” means the unexpected end of employment (resignation or termination during trial period, lay-offs, bankruptcy). Fixed-term contracts ending as planned and permits based on them do not currently include a ”grace period” of 3 or 6 months to look for further work. For researcher and student permit holders it is important to realize, that they still have the possibility to apply for the permit to look for work (please see link or below for more details).
With certain conditions, a person at the end of employment is given 6 months time instead of 3, before the permit is terminated. At least the following conditions apply for 6 months time:
- Residence permit for specialists and startup entrepreneurs (including EU Blue Card holders)
- for all employees who have lived in Finland for longer than two years with a work-based residence permit
Employee can seek work on other sectors that have been verified as labour shortage sectors throughout Finland under the same permit. It would still be necessary to apply for a new residence permit for work in sectors other than these.
Verified labour shortage sectors are to be determined annually. In 2024 they include: nurses, practical nurses and physicians, nursery school and special education teachers, home care assistants, application designers and social work specialists.
The changes are planned to be processed in the Finnish Parliament in spring of 2025, and to be in force on 1.1.2026.
Q8: How are the conditions of getting a permanent residence permit and a Finnish citizenship proposed to be changed?
A: Currently it is possible to get a permanent residence permit (marked with a P on the residence permit card) after having a fixed term, continuous permit (marked with A) type permit for four years. Usually the type B is combined with a short-term permit of an employee.
Based on the proposal, in the future it would be possible to obtain a permanent residence permit based on a six-year period of residence, with some additional requirements to the current ones. These include
- sufficient language skills (oral and written B1 in Finnish or Swedish) demonstrated in a language test, and
- a two-year work history immediately before applying
However, the proposal suggests that a person of working age could obtain a permanent residence permit based on a four-year period of residence
- with a minimum annual income of EUR 40,000; or
- if the person has completed a Master’s degree recognized in Finland and has a two-year work history; or
- has particularly good skills in the Finnish or Swedish language (C1) and a three-year work history
The Ministry of the Interior however also plans that persons who have completed a higher or lower university degree in Finland and have an A2 skills in Finnish or Swedish can get a permanent residence permit without without a specific length of stay in Finland. At the moment there is no further information on this.
The Project on the reform of legislation on the issue of permanent residence permits (in Finnish) has been started in the Ministry of the Interior in February 2024.
Q9: How are the conditions of getting Finnish citizenship proposed to be changed?
Regarding the Finnish citizenship, a new law has come into force on 1 October 2024.
The required period of residence in Finland for Finnish citizenship is to be increased from 5 years to 8 years).
Citizenship in 5 years is possible in the following situations:
Applicants meets the language skills requirement (level B1 / 3). One may be granted Finnish citizenship, if one fulfils the language skills requirement and:
- has fixed ties with Finland as difined in the law in question, and
- has an actual home and apartment is and has been in Finland for the last five years.
In addition, applicants aged 15–17, Spouses of Finnish citizens, Stateless persons or Applicants who have received international protection can attain citizenship within 5 years.
The applicant may reside outside Finland for one year in total during the required period of residence, of which no more than three months during the year before attaining citizenship. Acceptable amount of days spent abroad (without affecting the counted period of residence) will be reduced.
Read more: Period of residence becomes longer when amendments to Citizenship Act enter into force on 1.10.2024
The (new) law on Citizenship: 359/2003 (in Finnish and Swedish only)