Profile

Residence permit for seasonal work

Route status

Active as of 2026-08-21[6][7]

Open to new applications under the rules recorded below.

Residency route facts

Identity

Identity
Official name (local)Oleskelulupahakemus kausityötä varten as of 2026-08-22[6]
Heading of the Finnish-language edition of this route's own page on migri.fi, transcribed as published. Migri's Finnish headings are application-form titles rather than permit names; this field carries the statutory permit name where an act supplies one, and the authority's published heading where it does not.
Official name (English)Residence permit for seasonal work as of 2026-08-21[5][6]
Legal basisSeasonal Workers Act (Finland) – section not stated by the source as of 2026-08-21[5][6]
Instrument typeresidence permit as of 2026-08-21[4][7]

Who can apply

Who can apply
Nationals not served by this routeEU, EEA, EFTA as of 2026-08-21[1][5]
Migri states this permit is not needed by citizens of an EU Member State, Iceland, Liechtenstein, Norway or Switzerland, nor by British citizens resident in Finland on a permanent basis before 31 December 2020.

Permit terms

Permit terms
Initial durationNot established from a qualifying source
Migri states the ceiling (9 months in any 12-month period) but no term for an individual permit; in practice it follows the employment. Recorded unknown rather than equated with the ceiling.
RenewableYes as of 2026-08-21[6]
An extended permit is possible only for a holder of a valid seasonal work permit who will continue seasonal work directly after it expires. Any gap between employment relationships means leaving Finland and applying again from abroad.
Maximum total durationup to 9 months as of 2026-08-21[5][6]
Seasonal work permits may be granted for a maximum of 9 months during a 12-month period.
Work rightsemployment only as of 2026-08-21[6]
The holder may work only for the employer named on the permit. A further employer can be added by a separate application.

Permanent residence and citizenship

Permanent residence and citizenship
Counts toward permanent residenceNot established from a qualifying source

Requirements

Requirements
Job offer requiredYes as of 2026-08-21[6]
Confirmed employment – usually an employment contract – in a sector counting as seasonal work, before applying. Where the applicant will work for more than one employer, details and attachments are required for all of them.
Salary threshold
    • Measured against: collective agreement
    • Amount: Recorded at the source, but not reducible to a single value[2]
      The primary floor is the applicable collective agreement's salary – a per-sector figure Migri does not publish.
    • Measured against: set by decree or programme rules
    • Amount: EUR 1,463 per month as of 2026-08-21[2]
      Gross, 2026, where no collective agreement covers the sector or the work is part time.
Labour-market testYes as of 2026-08-21[3][6]
Applies where the employment relationship lasts 6 to 9 months; below six months it does not. One of only two Finnish permits to which labour market testing applies at all.
Employer sponsorshipYes as of 2026-08-21[6]
Job-search routeNo as of 2026-08-21[6]

Process

Process
Where to apply fromfrom abroad only as of 2026-08-21[6]
A first permit must be applied for abroad before arriving, with one exception: a holder of a seasonal work certificate or visa who intends to continue seasonal work directly may apply in Finland before the certificate or visa expires.
Statutory processing time90 days as of 2026-08-21[6]
Migri undertakes to decide within 90 days of receiving a correctly completed application and all documents required by the Seasonal Workers Act.
Fees
    • Kind: application
    • Amount: EUR 530 as of 2026-08-21[6]
    • Charged per: application
    • Paid by: applicant
    • Condition: First residence permit, online application via Enter Finland.
    • Kind: application
    • Amount: EUR 630 as of 2026-08-21[6]
    • Charged per: application
    • Paid by: applicant
    • Condition: First residence permit, paper application.
    • Kind: renewal
    • Amount: EUR 230 as of 2026-08-21[6]
    • Charged per: application
    • Paid by: applicant
    • Condition: Extended permit, online application via Enter Finland.
    • Kind: renewal
    • Amount: EUR 430 as of 2026-08-21[6]
    • Charged per: application
    • Paid by: applicant
    • Condition: Extended permit, paper application.
Stages
    • Label: Under 3 months, visa-required nationality: seasonal work visa from a Finnish mission (issued by the Ministry for Foreign Affairs, not Migri).
    • Label: Under 3 months, visa-free nationality: certificate for seasonal work from Migri, which proves the right to work but does not extend the visa-free stay.
    • Label: 3 to 9 months: residence permit for seasonal work from Migri – the instrument recorded here.

Physical presence

Physical presence
none statedto keep the permit as of 2026-08-21[6]
Migri's route page states no residence or presence condition for keeping this permit. Recorded none_stated on that basis, not as a positive statement that absence is unlimited. Continuity of residence bites later, at the permanent-residence and naturalisation stages, which are recorded at country level.

Family inclusion

Family inclusion
Family members may be includedNo as of 2026-08-21[5][6]
Migri states in terms, on both pages, that family members of seasonal workers cannot get a residence permit in Finland on the basis of family ties. The only positively-sourced exclusion of family reunification in this record.

Your next step

Read the requirements above considering your own situation: the income multiple, the absence limits, who you can bring. Check the country record for the reference figure those amounts are calculated from, and for anything that has changed recently.

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Verification

Verification
Sources cited7
of which official (tier 1)7
Oldest as-of date2026-08-21
Newest as-of date2026-08-22
Reviewed on2026-08-22
Schema version1.1

Sources

  1. [1] First residence permit
    Finnish Immigration Service (Maahanmuuttovirasto, Migri) · official portal · Tier 1 · Accessed 2026-08-20
  2. [2] Income requirement for persons who apply for a residence permit on the basis of work
    Finnish Immigration Service (Maahanmuuttovirasto, Migri) · official guidance · Tier 1 · Accessed 2026-08-20
  3. [3] Labour market test
    Finnish Immigration Service (Maahanmuuttovirasto) · official guidance · Tier 1 · Accessed 2026-08-21 · Archived copy
  4. [4] Residence permit types
    Finnish Immigration Service (Maahanmuuttovirasto, Migri) · official guidance · Tier 1 · Accessed 2026-08-20
  5. [5] Seasonal work
    Finnish Immigration Service (Maahanmuuttovirasto) · official portal · Tier 1 · Accessed 2026-08-21
  6. [6] Residence permit application for seasonal work
    Finnish Immigration Service (Maahanmuuttovirasto) · official portal · Tier 1 · Accessed 2026-08-21
  7. [7] Residence permits on the basis of work
    Finnish Immigration Service (Maahanmuuttovirasto) · official portal · Tier 1 · Accessed 2026-08-21

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