If you become unemployed or laid off, register as an unemployed job seeker through the labor authority’s E-service on your first day of unemployment at the very latest. Also, register as an unemployed job seeker if your employer has converted your job into a part-time job. You can register even before your unemployment begins. Once you have registered as an unemployed job seeker, keep your job seeker status active by following the TE Office’s instructions. The Unemployment Fund can set your waiting period and pay daily allowance only while your job seeker status has been active.
After about two weeks of unemployment, you can apply for unemployment benefits from the Unemployment Fund or Kela. As a member of the Unemployment Fund for Higher Educated Employees Erko, you will send your application to Erko. You can apply for daily allowance online or by sending the Fund an application by mail. Fill in the application with care and enclose the necessary attachments. Filling out your application properly can speed up its processing time.
Fill in your application beginning with your first day of unemployment so the Fund can determine your possible waiting period. As your unemployment continues, fill in your application either monthly or every 4-calendar weeks (Monday through Sunday). Apply for daily allowance within 3 months of the period you are applying for. Applications that are more than 3 months old are considered late and will be rejected.
Inform the Fund of any changes that happen during your unemployment and that could affect your right to daily allowance such as work, earned income, entrepreneurship, studies, sick leave, or social benefits granted to your family. If necessary, also inform the labor authority of relevant changes such as work, entrepreneurship, studies, or sick leave.
Activating your status as a job seeker
When you become unemployed or laid off, the payment of unemployment benefits requires that you have registered as an unemployed job seeker with the labor authority (formerly known as the TE Office). From now on the labor authority will be your municipality or employment area due to changes at the beginning of 2025.
Your job seeker status with the labor authority is primarily activated through Job Market Finland’s E-service using Suomi.fi identification. If you cannot log in to Job Market Finland, the only way you can activate your status as a job seeker is by personally contacting the labor authority. You can find your region’s labor authority and the relevant contact information through Job Market Finland’s regional pages.
Please also familiarize yourself with the labor authority’s instructions in case of possible error situations concerning the activation of job seeker status.