Student Financial Aid

You are entitled to meal subsidy in student restaurants if you are a university degree student. You will get a student discount by

• presenting a valid student ID card issued by SAMOK or SYL (digital student cards also accepted)
• presenting a meal subsidy card issued by Kela
• paying for the meal with the Lyyra payment sticker.

If you do not have a student ID card but are completing studies that qualify you for the meal subsidy, you can get a meal subsidy card from your school. The meal subsidy is not available with a post-graduate student ID card or a VR/Matkahuolto student card.

Kela can grant financial aid to students of higher educational institution for full-time studies.

Student financial aid includes:

• study grants
• state guarantee for a student loan
• housing allowance for students (starting 1 August 2017, available only to those who are studying abroad)Students renting an apartment in Finland can claim general housing allowance starting 1 August 2017.

You can apply for student financial aid online (in Finnish) at www.kela.fi/asiointi or with paper form (OT2e) from Kela.

Study grant can be granted from the beginning of the month in which you have applied for it. You will get the decision from Kela.

Student financial aid may also be granted for the summer months (June, July and August).

Please, apply for student financial aid for summer at Kela’s website with the online application or the application form (Notification of student’s change of circumstances – Otm).

You can also get financial help with studies abroad as an exchange student or double degree student. Please notify Kela about your studies abroad by filling in Notification of student’s change of circumstances.

Please read more at Kela.fi

Students in higher education who receive financial aid are required to complete at least 5 credits for each month of aid. You must also complete at least 20 credits during an academic year.

Further information

Kela will monitor the progress of studies annually (September-October). If you have not progressed sufficiently with your studies and have not acceptable reasons for that, Kela can cancel or claim back your student financial aid.

Your income affects the number of months per year for which you can get financial aid. You must make sure that you do not exceed a set limit for annual income.

If you notice that you exceed the income limit you can cancel your student financial aid or return some of the money to Kela by the end of May the next year. Please read further information on Kela’s website.

If you get ill during your studies, you can go on sick leave.  If your illness lasts over 2 months it is not reasonable to use your student aid months. It is recommendable to change your study grant to sickness allowance. The requirement for receiving a sickness allowance is that you belong to Finland’s social security system. Please contact Kela in order to apply for sickness allowance.

You can study during the sickness allowance period. You can complete the maximum of 40 % of the academic year’s or semester’s studies.

If you are planning to study during your sickness allowance period please contact your student counsellor to change your personal study plan.

Please read further information on Kela’s website.

• you have registered with the TE Office as a jobseeker and your job search is valid
• you are aged 25 or over
• the TE Office’s assessment indicates that you need education or training, and the studies will improve your vocational skills and your chances in the job market
• before you started the studies, you have made an agreement with the TE-office in your employment plan that your studies will be supported by unemployment benefit.

Further information