Congratulations on your admission! You can apply for student financial aid and general housing allowance when you start a new course of study. If you are in upper secondary education, you can also apply for school transport subsidy. If you begin studying in a Finnish higher education institution, you must pay a student healthcare fee.
You can apply for financial aid in OmaKela as soon as you accept your offer of admission. You can apply for financial aid even if you do not yet know where and how you will live while in school.
Use the online financial aid calculator to check your eligibility for financial aid and to get an estimate.
Have you finalised your living arrangements? Apply for general housing allowance
You can use the OmaKela e-service to apply for general housing allowance as soon as you have a rental agreement and know you income for the coming spring. General housing allowance is granted to the entire household as a whole.
Use an online calculator to see whether you are eligible for general housing allowance and how much you could get. Currently, the calculator will let you estimate your housing allowance in 2022. Estimates for 2023 will become available in January.
If you are studying abroad or in the Åland Islands, you may be eligible for a student housing supplement. Additionally, it can be paid to students who are enrolled in a tuition-based programme at a Finnish folk high school or sports institute and live in the school dormitory. The same application is used as for student financial aid.
Are you in upper secondary education? Remember to apply for school transport subsidy
If you are in upper secondary education, you can apply for school transport subsidy if your commute to school is long and you have at least 10 travel days per calendar month. The terms of eligibility are somewhat different for students entitled to free education. Use an online calculator to check your eligibility for school transport subsidy.
Higher education students, remember to pay the student healthcare fee
If you are registered as attending with a Finnish higher education institution, you must pay a student healthcare fee to Kela for each term. See Kela’s website for more information about the healthcare fee and who must pay it.
There is no bill for the fee, so you must make sure to pay it in the OmaKela e-service.
Additional information for customers
- Were you admitted to higher education? How to apply for Kela benefits (in Finnish)
- Students in upper secondary education – How to apply for Kela benefits (in Finnish)
- Information on how to apply for housing allowance for shared housing (in Finnish)
- How to pay the healthcare fee in higher education
- Kela on Instagram
HT
Source: Kela
