Helsinki benefit for employers

An unemployed Helsinki resident who has been granted any of the following:

• a pay subsidy
• an employment subsidy for ages 55 and above
• the Helsinki benefit card.

• The employer must designate a supervisor to manage the hired person.
• There must be evidence of the employer’s activities for at least one year. This must be demonstrated, where necessary, by presenting minutes or financial statements.
• The employer must not have incurred significant non-payments of tax or statutory payments. Additionally, employers running commercial operations must not be operating a company in difficulty as set out in the General Block Exemption Regulation (MEAE, in Finnish)(Link leads to external service), and the employer must not be the subject of an unpaid recovery order based on a European Commission decision.
• The Helsinki benefit granted to operators engaging in economic activities is de minimis aid (MEAE, in Finnish)(Link leads to external service). The employer must present a summary of de minimis aid received during the current tax year and two previous tax years.
• The employer may not terminate or lay off other employees as a result of being granted the Helsinki benefit. The Helsinki benefit may be granted if the employer has provided work in accordance with the Employment Contracts Act to employees whose employment has been terminated or who have been laid off for financial or production-related reasons, or when there is no re-employment obligation.
• The Helsinki benefit cannot be granted if the employer has previously received the Helsinki benefit for hiring the same person and the support period ended less than three years ago.

• The Helsinki benefit must be applied for no later than within four (4) months of the start of the employment relationship. If the application is submitted after this deadline, the benefit can be granted retroactively for up to four (4) months from the arrival date of the application.
• The Helsinki benefit can be granted for fixed-term or permanent employment. The required minimum duration of a fixed-term employment relationship is one (1) month.
• The Helsinki benefit is granted in accordance with the duration of the employment relationship for a maximum period of 12 months. 
• The hired person’s working hours must be at least 18 hours a week.
• For a pay-subsidised apprenticeship, the Helsinki benefit can be applied for the entire apprenticeship period in periods of 12 months each. If the apprenticeship lasts more than one year, the employer must apply for the Helsinki benefit again upon the end of the first benefit period.
• In an apprenticeship, the total working time must be at least 25 hours per week.
• The salary paid for the work must correspond with the applicable collective agreement. If there is no binding collective agreement in the industry in question, the salary must be at a level regarded as normal and reasonable and based on factors other than just the results of the work.
• The Helsinki benefit application must include the gross salary of the employment contract, holiday pay, and indirect labour costs. The amount of additional costs paid by the employer for the employee depends, among other things, on the total wages paid to all employees during the year and the employee's age. Additional costs may include, for example, insurance costs or the TyEL contribution.
• The employment relationship supported with the Helsinki benefit must fulfil the requirements for working hours and salaries that entitle the employee to the unemployment allowance (Unemployment Security Act 1290/2002, chapter 5, section 4, in Finnish)(Link leads to external service).

• The Helsinki benefit is paid to the employer as a lump sum following the issuing of the decision on the benefit.
• The Helsinki benefit is only paid to a Finnish bank account.
• The employer commits to using the Helsinki benefit for the purposes stated in the decision. If requested by the City of Helsinki, the employer must provide any documents related to the employment and other documents required in the processing of the Helsinki benefit for monitoring the use of the benefit. The use of the benefit is also monitored with random inspections.
• The Helsinki benefit can be recovered from the applicant if it is granted on the basis of incorrect information or utilised for invalid purposes or if the applicant refuses to provide additional information upon request.

• If the hired person’s employment is discontinued or ends ends for example, due to layoff, sick leave, or resignation, please report it immediately in the Helsinki benefit service. You can report a change in the employment by opening the particular decision and selecting "Report changes to employment" at the bottom of the decision.
• The Helsinki benefit can be recovered for the time exceeding the actual duration of the employment relationship.

The Helsinki benefit must be applied for no later than within four (4) months of the start of the employment relationship. If the application is submitted after this deadline, the benefit can be granted retroactively for up to four (4) months from the arrival date of the application.

The employment subsidy for ages 55 and above is a form of financial support that TE Offices or local government pilots on employment can grant to an employer for hiring an unemployed jobseeker over the age of 55. One of the prerequisites for the support is that the jobseeker has been unemployed for at least 24 months during the last 28 months.

Sign in with your online banking credentials or mobile certificate.

When you sign in for the first time, the service will automatically create a personal Helsinki profile for you, unless you already have a Helsinki profile. Add your own email address to ensure you receive the confirmation message.

To sign in to the online Helsinki benefit service as a representative of a company or community, you must have the authority to sign on behalf of the company or community or have been granted the authority to ‘Apply for pay subsidy’ or ‘Applying for grants’ in the Suomi.fi service.

Acting on behalf of an organisation, Suomi.fi(Link leads to external service)

The Helsinki benefit card can be issued to jobseekers whose service needs have been assessed by the City of Helsinki Employment Services.

The card supports jobseeking by letting potential employers know that the jobseeker meets the conditions of the Helsinki benefit.

You can send messages about your application via the online Helsinki benefit service if you notice a mistake in the information that you provided on your application, for example.  

Follow these steps:

• Sign in to the online Helsinki benefit service.(Link leads to external service)
• Open the application that you want to send a message about.
• Click on Open messages.
• Type your message and click on Send.
• The application contact person will be notified via email once the person processing the application has received the message. 

Messages sent via the online Helsinki benefit service are encrypted.

If the employment ends or is interrupted, you are required to report it immediately through the online service.

Follow these steps:

• Sign in to the online Helsinki benefit service(Link leads to external service)
• Go to the Archive.
• Open the decision of the employment that you want to report.
• Select Report a change in employment.
• Fill in the requested information on the form, such as the type of employment change you want to report and billing information. You are required to report early termination or temporary interruption of the employment.
• Send the form.

Please note that the Helsinki benefit may be reclaimed for the period exceeding the actual duration of the employment.