Working in Finland: checklist for immigrants

EEA countries' citizens 

• Registering at the local police, if you plan to stay in Finland for longer than three months. Citizens of Nordic countries must only register after having resided in the country for six months, at their specific city's magistrate. 

Employees from outside EEA countries 

• Residence permit for employees. The permit application can be submitted to a Finnish embassy abroad, or an employment office or police station in Finland. The employment office evaluates the need for foreign labour when handling the matter.
• Information about other residence permits that allow one to work in Finland, please see here>>. 

All immigrants to Finland 

1. Registering at the specific city's magistrate. You will also receive a social security number from the city magistrate. You will need to bring your passport and employment contract. Receiving a social security number takes approximately two weeks. A social security number is required for receiving a tax deduction card and for opening a bank account.

2. Tax deduction card from the tax office, by telephone or on the Internet. A social security number, and an employment contract from where the tax authority can see your salary, are required for receiving a tax deduction card.

3. Opening a bank account at any bank. A passport is needed for opening a bank account. A Finnish social security number eases the procedure of opening a bank account.

4. Social security. Finnish social security is applied for at Kela. Additional information is available from the social security pages of the In To Finland service point . Kela office locations can be found from the Kela web pages.

Additional information about moving to Finland is available from the In To Finland service point website and from the Info Bank.