Financing your studies

You are eligible to receive student financial aid (opintotuki) from Kela if:

• you are registered in the Population Information System (väestötietojärjestelmä) as a permanent resident of Finland,
• you have the necessary residence permit (oleskelulupa) and
• your reason for being in Finland is something other than studies.

If you move to Finland for studies, you cannot receive student financial aid. Exchange students, for example, will not receive Finnish student financial aid.

The student financial aid comprises the study grant, government guarantee for a student loan and student housing supplement. Student financial aid is applied for from Kela.

You can receive student financial aid if:

• you are studying in a general upper secondary school.
• you are studying in a university of applied sciences or completing vocational continuing education.
• you are studying in an institute of higher learning.

You are eligible for the study grant if you are over 17 years old. You must be enrolled as a full-time student. Read on the Kela website as to what full-time study means in general upper secondary school and vocational education or higher education. You can work alongside your studies. The pay you receive for your work may reduce the amount of student financial aid you receive.

Kela pays the study grant into your bank account on a monthly basis. Many factors affect the size of the study grant. The size of the grant is determined, among other things, by your age, whether you live independently or with your parents, if you are married or have children who are minors. You can confirm the size of your study grant on the Kela website or Kela Customer Service.

A student loan is not mandatory. You can only take out a certain maximum amount. You can choose the amount of the student loan you wish to take out. The loan is guaranteed for the student by the Finnish government. Apply for a loan at a bank after receiving a decision on the government guarantee from Kela. You must pay back the student loan once you have finished your studies.

You can receive a student housing supplement if you are entitled to student financial aid. You can receive a housing supplement for a rental home or right-of-occupancy home. You can only receive a housing supplement for the months when you are in active study.

The amount of student housing supplement depends on your rent and the municipality you live in. The maximum amounts, according to each municipality, are EUR 216, 248 and 296 per month. Your housing supplement is reduced if you live in an apartment owned by your parents, abroad or in student halls of residence.

If you are not eligible for the student housing supplement, you should check whether you are eligible for a general housing allowance. You can apply for it, for example, if you live with your child or your spouse’s child, or if you have used up all your student financial aid months. Read more on the InfoFinland page Housing allowance. 

School transport subsidy (koulumatkatuki) compensates the costs of school transport. You are eligible for school transport subsidy if you are studying and living in Finland and your school trip is long.

In some situations, you may be eligible for school transport subsidy if you are studying in a general upper secondary school, vocational institute or in preparatory education. You must have at least 10 transport days per month and your school trip must be long enough to qualify for support. Ask your school whether you are entitled to receive school transport subsidy.

If you are studying at an institute of higher education, you can also receive meal subsidy (ateriatuki). Meal subsidy is only available in the cafeterias of educational institutes. It means that students pay less for the meals than other customers. You do not need to separately apply for the meal subsidy, it is deducted from the price of the meal. You simply need to present your student card when paying for your meal.

You are not eligible for meal subsidy if you are in Finland for practical training (työharjoittelu) related to a foreign study programme.

Foreign students can apply for different grants to Finnish higher education institutions. Each Finnish higher education institution has its own grant system for students who come from outside the EU/EEA area and who have been accepted to complete a bachelor’s or master’s degree in the English language.

The grant may be dependent, for example, on your study success. The grant may cover the whole tuition fee or a part thereof. Some grants may also cover other costs. In some cases, the grant is tied to a certain level of success in your studies. Usually, you can apply for a grant at the same time you apply for a study place.

The special Erasmus Mundus master’s degree programmes also have their own grant systems. The Finnish National Agency for Education has EDUFI Fellowship scholarship programmes for postgraduates who come to Finland to complete their doctoral thesis. American students can apply for the Fulbright scholarship.

Read more about grants and scholarships at Studyinfinland.fi.