Finland has changed the rules for work-based residence permits. President Alexander Stubb signed an amendment to the Aliens Act on 16 October 2026. The law was published on 20 October as statute 912/2026, and the changes take effect on 27 October 2026.
The amendment carries out the recast EU Single Permit Directive (EU) 2024/1233. Member states had to apply the directive by 21 May 2026, so Finland is about five months late. The Ministry of Economic Affairs and Employment prepared the bill, and Minister of Employment Matias Marttinen countersigned the law.
The changes touch four groups: exploited workers who lose a job, permit applicants, start-up founders, and employers of non-EU staff.
What changes on 27 October
- Longer protection after exploitation. If you become unemployed and there is good reason to suspect you worked in particularly exploitative conditions, Finland adds three extra months to the period in which your permit stays safe from cancellation.
- A firm cap on slow decisions. The standard two-month decision deadline stays. For complex cases, the law now sets a hard ceiling instead of an open-ended delay.
- Clearer employer reporting. Employers now report every new hire who is not an EU or EEA citizen, including family members of EU citizens, plus posted workers.
- A restored right to work. People with a temporary permit granted on "other special grounds" get back a limited right to work, which an earlier amendment left out by mistake.
Extra protection for exploited workers
Since 11 June 2025, Finnish law has protected work permit holders who lose their job before the permit ends. Under the earlier law (255/2025), Migri, the Finnish Immigration Service, does not cancel your permit for three months after your job ends. The period rises to six months for some groups, such as specialists, EU Blue Card holders, and people who have held a work-based permit for at least two years.
The new law adds a fifth paragraph to section 58 a of the Aliens Act. If your working conditions suggest "particularly exploitative" treatment, the protection period grows by three months. A three-month period becomes six. A six-month period becomes nine.
The term comes from the EU Employer Sanctions Directive. The government proposal (HE 80/2026) describes such conditions as terms strikingly worse than those of legally employed workers, for example conditions which harm health and safety or offend human dignity.
Migri decides when the extension applies. According to the proposal, Migri weighs what you tell the agency, plus information from the occupational safety and health authority, the police, or the Border Guard. Once Migri applies the rule, the agency flags your file so your permit is not cancelled during the longer period.
Two limits matter here:
- The extra time only works while your permit is still valid. The protection stops your permit from being cancelled early. The rule does not stretch the permit past the expiry date printed on your card.
- The extension is not automatic. Migri needs grounds to suspect exploitation, so report abuse and keep evidence such as pay slips, rosters, messages, and your employment contract.
The proposal also points to other options for exploited workers. If your permit has longer to run, you have the right to apply for an unrestricted right to work under section 81 a(5). If you need a new permit, section 54 b allows a continuous permit when an employer acted wrongfully, and this permit does not require a job offer. In a ruling on 20 March 2024 (KHO:2024:35), the Supreme Administrative Court said Migri must check this route before cancelling a permit on its own initiative.
New ceilings on processing times
Section 84 of the Aliens Act sets how long the authorities have to decide on a work-based permit. The main rule does not change. Migri must decide within two months of receiving a complete application. The clock starts when you visit a service point to give your biometrics and when you and your employer meet the conditions in section 71.
The old law allowed a longer time in "exceptional circumstances" without saying how long. The directive now requires a precise limit, so the new law sets these ceilings:
- Cases decided by Migri alone: no more than three months when the case is exceptionally complex.
- Two-stage cases: the regional employment authority (elinvoimakeskus) normally issues its partial decision within one month. In a complex case, the deadline becomes two months. Migri must then decide within one month after receiving the partial decision.
- Start-up permit renewals: Business Finland gives its statement on a growth entrepreneur's continuous permit within one month, or two months in a complex case. Migri then has one month to decide.
The proposal says the authority should tell you about an extension, for example through an automatic message in your online file. Migri also needs to justify why a case is exceptionally complex, such as a legal question with no earlier decisions or case law.
One change works against speed. The clock already paused when an authority asked for more information. From 27 October, the clock also pauses while one authority waits for a report from another, for example a police investigation or a labour inspection.
What the deadlines mean for you
- File a complete application. Missing documents stop the clock.
- Book your identity visit at a Migri service point, a Finnish embassy, or an external service provider early, since the two months only start after biometrics.
- Answer requests for more information fast. Each request pauses the deadline.
- Track your case in Enter Finland and save every message about an extension.
What employers must report
Section 82 lists employer duties. When you hire a foreign worker, you must send Migri the worker's details, the length of the employment, pay, working hours, and the collective agreement which applies.
The deadlines stay the same:
- Seven days after the worker starts, or after a posted worker begins work in Finland.
- Fourteen days after a worker fails to start, the employment ends, or the worker stops working for another reason.
- Ten days when an employer files on Migri's paper form for a special reason instead of the online service.
The scope is what changes. Until now, employers did not report hiring the family members of EU or EEA citizens. Employers found this hard to check, and a missed notice counts as an employer immigration offence. From 27 October, nationality decides. If the new hire is not an EU or EEA citizen, you report the hire, even when the worker is married to an EU citizen. The law also now spells out the duty for posted workers, after the labour protection authority flagged confusion over a cross-reference in the old text.
Checklist for employers
- Update onboarding steps so HR checks nationality, not family status.
- Record pay, hours, and the collective agreement before day one.
- Set a reminder for day seven after each start date.
- Track end dates and resignations for the 14-day notice.
A right to work restored
The fourth change fixes an error. Section 45(1)(3) lets Migri grant a temporary residence permit for another special reason. Before amendments on 23 February 2023, this permit carried a limited right to work. The 2023 changes dropped this right by mistake, according to the government proposal. The new wording of section 81 a restores a limited right to work in certain jobs listed in sections 73 and 74 of the Aliens Act.
Debate and next steps
A public consultation ran from 25 February to 8 April 2026. The ministry asked 40 bodies for comments, and 17 replied. Most backed the bill.
Trade unions Akava, SAK, and STTK, Amnesty International's Finnish section, and the Finnish Refugee Advice Centre asked for longer protection periods for all unemployed permit holders. The government kept the three-month and six-month periods. The National Police Board noted the extra protection will often rely on police pre-trial findings, so Migri and the police need to share information smoothly.
Victim Support Finland called for stronger action against abusive employers and wider inspection powers over worker housing. The ministry has a separate project under way (TEM005:00/2026) on preventing labour exploitation in the permit system, so expect more proposals.
What to do now
- If you work in Finland on a work-based permit: learn your protection period, three or six months, and keep records of your pay and conditions.
- If you face abuse at work: contact the occupational safety and health authority or the police, and tell Migri. A report supports the extra three months and other options under sections 54 b and 81 a.
- If you are applying now: expect a decision within two months of biometrics in most cases, and no more than three months for a complex case, plus any paused time.
- If you run a start-up: plan renewals early.
- If you hire foreign staff: review your reporting process before 27 October.
Check migri.fi for updated guidance and the full text of statute 912/2026 in the Finnish statute book before you act on your own case.
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