Register as an unemployed jobseeker
Register as an unemployed jobseeker before or on your first day of unemployment/layoff in the E-services of Job Market Finland. Entitlement to unemployment benefit is considered to begin from the date on which your register as a jobseeker. Allowance can be paid and the 7-day waiting period calculated only for days during which your job search status is valid.
Example
TE Offices will be closed down, and employment services will be transferred to municipalities on 1 January 2025. Job Market Finland will continue to be the main communication channel between jobseekers and the employment authorities. You can send messages to your municipality or employment area there. Read more
Notify the employment authority if you are studying, run a business, or are part owner of a company. Business activities must be reported even if you do not receive income from the business.
Keep your jobseeker status active as instructed by the employment authority and check your status as needed in Job Market Finland’s E-services.
It is advisable to register as an unemployed jobseeker immediately at the start of your unemployment, even if you are not yet eligible for an allowance because of severance compensation paid by your employer, for example. Note, that you will completely lose your entitlement to earnings-related allowance if you are away from the job market for more than 6 months without an acceptable reason. You will have to accrue your employment condition anew after your absence before you will be entitled to earnings-related allowance again.
Further information on the labour policy statement
Applying for transition security allowance and registering as an unemployed jobseeker
If you are applying for the transition security allowance, register as an unemployed jobseeker within 60 days of the termination of your employment. For further instructions, see Transition security.
Apply for unemployment allowance from KOKO
Earnings-related unemployment allowance is paid by the unemployment fund on the basis of an application. You should apply for the allowance retroactively in periods of 1 month or 4 weeks. You can send your first application after 2 weeks, however. You can also send in your application even if you have not yet received a labour policy statement.
Apply for an allowance via eService and submit the required information as attachments. If you do not have all the documents available when you submit your application, you can send them as attachments later. When we begin processing your application, the handler will contact you if any required information is missing.
You must apply for the allowance within 3 months of the date on which you wish it to be paid.
Example
The 3-month application period applies in all situations. Therefore, you should apply for unemployment allowance within the application period even if
- you do not have all the attachments for the application
- you have not yet received a labour policy statement.
- your earlier applications are still being processed
- you are waiting for some other matter to be resolved.
You should also apply for an allowance for the 7-day waiting period. The fund will count the days of your waiting period, so you do not need to take account of them when making your application.
If you are temporarily laid off, you should always fill in your application for full calendar weeks (Mon-Sun), regardless of your usual application period. Work done during the temporary layoff period is always reviewed on a calendar week basis.
When submitting your application, you should always report any matters that affect your daily allowance payment, such as work hours of salaried employment, earned income, entrepreneurship, illness, studies, or any benefits you have received or applied for. You should also report changes to information you have provided earlier.
More detailed information on applications and handling process:
The application types are first, continuing, and express application