Government bills16
- HE 62/2025 vpPassed with amendments
Tightening conditions for permanent residence permits
Obtaining a permanent residence permit in Finland will, as a rule, require six years of residence as well as skills in Finnish or Swedish and work experience. However, the permit can be obtained faster with sufficiently high income, excellent language skills or by completing a higher education degree in Finland.
2 Dec 2025 · 7 votes114 jaa56 ei - HE 51/2024 vpPassed with amendments
Raising tuition fees for non-EU students
Tuition fees for higher education students from outside the EU and EEA will have to cover the actual costs of education, and an application fee of 100 euros will be introduced for them. In addition, avoiding tuition fees by changing residence permit grounds will be prevented, and protection for students participating in commissioned education will be improved.
15 Nov 2024 · 3 votes103 jaa45 ei - HE 232/2021 vpPassed with amendments
Easing residence permits for students and researchers
Students from outside the EU and EEA will be granted a residence permit for the entire duration of their studies at once. The post-graduation or post-research residence permit for jobseeking and starting a business will be extended to two years.
8 Apr 2022 · 3 votes90 jaa58 ei - HE 160/2022 vpPassed with amendments
Expanding study attainment registration
Attainment data for training funded by the Service Centre for Continuous Learning and Employment and for basic education in the arts can be recorded in national registers. This will make previously acquired competence more easily visible in further studies and working life.
3 Nov 2022 · passed without a vote - HE 70/2022 vpLapsed
Stricter driving licence conditions for 17-year-olds
Seventeen-year-olds could obtain a passenger car driving licence with a guardian's consent without a separate exemption. However, the driving rights of underage drivers would be restricted by prohibiting night driving and carrying more than one passenger.
5 Apr 2023 · no votes - HE 249/2022 vpPassed with amendments
Centralising construction qualification verification
The qualifications of designers and site managers in construction projects will be demonstrated with a fixed-term certificate of qualification issued by an authorised body. The change will remove the need to prove education and work experience separately for each construction project and building permit.
24 Mar 2023 · passed without a vote - HE 293/2022 vpPassed with amendments
Reform of pilotage rules and licences
The obligation to use a pilot for vessels operating in Finnish waters will be clarified, and the pilotage certificate system will be reformed. Administrative fines will be imposed for breaches of pilotage rules instead of criminal sanctions.
8 Mar 2023 · passed without a vote - HE 192/2021 vpPassed with amendments
Expanding the use of learner IDs
The use of the learner ID will be expanded so that it can be used as a general identifier in all early childhood education and care and teaching activities instead of the personal identity code. At the same time, the study attainments and qualifications of the European School of Helsinki will be incorporated into the national data repository for education.
14 Dec 2021 · passed without a vote - HE 191/2021 vpPassed with amendments
Facilitating vocational education exports
Finnish vocational qualifications can be exported abroad more flexibly by adapting qualification requirements to conditions in the target countries. At the same time, fee-based educational cooperation between educational institutions in Finland will be clarified.
10 Dec 2021 · passed without a vote - HE 229/2016 vpPassed
Reforming student aid and increasing loans
The study grant for higher education students will be cut and the government guarantee for student loans will be increased, alongside students moving primarily under the general housing allowance. At the same time, the maximum aid period for higher education studies will be shortened and means-testing of student financial aid will be removed for some upper secondary students.
19 Dec 2016 · 2 votes101 jaa64 ei - HE 260/2018 vpPassed with amendments
Expanding vocational education study records
Personal study plans for vocational education and training will be stored in the national study register. This will speed up data transfer and make studies smoother, particularly when a student changes educational institutions or completes studies in the workplace.
8 Apr 2019 · passed without a vote - HE 72/2017 vpPassed with amendments
National register for study records
A national data repository and online service will be created in Finland, allowing citizens and authorities to see completed studies in basic education, general upper secondary education and vocational education and training in one place. The reform will speed up applications for study places and benefits and remove the need to submit paper certificates.
29 Nov 2017 · passed without a vote - HE 46/2017 vpPassed
Internships in Finland for foreign-trained doctors
Persons who have graduated as doctors in an EU or EEA country will be able to complete the professional practical training required for their degree in Finland, regardless of the year they began their studies. Valvira (the National Supervisory Authority for Welfare and Health) will grant them a restricted right to practise as a doctor under the direction and supervision of another doctor for the duration of the training.
29 May 2017 · passed without a vote - HE 204/2016 vpPassed
Standardised classification of qualification levels
An eight-level framework for qualifications and competence modules will be established in Finland, linked to the European system. The reform will make Finnish qualifications easier to compare both domestically and internationally.
22 Dec 2016 · passed without a vote - HE 207/2016 vpPassed
Easing pilotage requirements for small vessels
The obligation to use a pilot will be eased for small vessels, towing combinations and icebreakers. At the same time, the organisation of pilotage examinations will be transferred from the authority to maritime educational institutions.
15 Dec 2016 · passed without a vote - HE 22/2015 vpPassed with amendments
Streamlining recognition of professional qualifications
The recognition of professional qualifications acquired abroad between EU and EEA countries will be accelerated and simplified. The reform introduces a European Professional Card and an electronic alert system for bans on practising a profession.
1 Dec 2015 · passed without a vote