The clock on the maximum period of time for which unemployment benefits can be paid will be stopped from 1 July 2020 until the end of the year for all recipients of an unemployment allowance. Until the end of June, the stopping of the clock only applied to those recipients of unemployment benefits who had been furloughed due to the coronavirus outbreak. In normal times, an unemployment allowance can be paid, depending on each individual’s circumstances, for a period of up to 300, 400 or 500 days, after which labour market subsidies can be sought from the Social Insurance Institution of Finland if there is still no work.
Other temporary changes introduced to the system of unemployment benefits have now also been extended until the end of 2020.
| Emergency measure: | Period of validity / affected individuals: |
| Individuals who lose their job now qualify for an earnings-related allowance as of their first day of unemployment without having to wait for the usual five (5) days. |
This applies to individuals whose five-day waiting period would otherwise begin between 16 March and 31 December 2020. |
| The minimum period of previous employment required to qualify for an earnings-related allowance has been temporarily reduced to three months (13 calendar weeks). However, applicants must have been members of an unemployment fund for the entire three-month period. *) |
This applies to individuals who would otherwise not satisfy the criterion of previous employment, who have worked at least one week of the period that counts towards the minimum length of employment required after 1 March 2020 and who receive their first earnings-related allowance payment no later than 31 December 2020. ** |
| The maximum period of between 300 and 500 days for which an earnings-related allowance can be paid will not be affected by any period of time spent on furlough. |
This applies to individuals furloughed on or after 16 March 2020. For these individuals, the clock on the maximum period of time for which unemployment benefits can be paid was stopped from 16 March until 30 June 2020. |
| The maximum period of between 300 and 500 days for which an earnings-related allowance can be paid will remain intact despite an individual’s not working (for whatever reason). |
The clock on the maximum period of time for which unemployment benefits can be paid will be stopped from 1 July until 31 December 2020. |
| The earnings disregard threshold for an earnings-related allowance has been temporarily raised to EUR 500 per month. |
This applies to application periods that begin between 1 June and 31 October 2020. |
| All full-time employees whose total daily commute exceeds two hours now qualify for a mobility allowance. |
This applies to employment contracts signed between 12 June and 31 October 2020 |
| Self-employed people can apply for labour market subsidies from the Social Insurance Institution of Finland if their income from self-employment has fallen due to COVID-19. |
Labour market subsidies can be paid on these grounds from 16 March until 31 December 2020.. |
| TE Offices will not check furloughed individuals’ income from self-employment or studies. |
This applies from 16 March until 31 December 2020. |
| TE Offices will not interview all job seekers. | This applies from 16 March until 31 December 2020. |
| To account for the exceptional circumstances, unemployment benefits will also be available to the following kinds of individuals who would normally not qualify: |
This applies from 16 March until 31 December 2020. |
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| Job seekers who are unable to make the required amount of progress in their independent studies due to the coronavirus outbreak, in which case their local TE Office can waive the requirement until the end of the year and give them more time to complete their studies |
This applies from 1 August until 31 December 2020. |
*) In respect of family members of self-employed persons, the minimum period of previous employment has been temporarily halved to 26 weeks.
**) For individuals who have not yet used up the maximum period of time for which a basic unemployment allowance can be paid, the lower 13-week limit can only be applied if at least one week of the period that counts towards the minimum length of employment required is worked after 1 July 2020. This is because this emergency measure has been extended to also apply to individuals who were previously receiving a basic unemployment allowance.