Moving to Finland as an International Student

Finland runs one of Europe's most respected education systems, teaches hundreds of degrees entirely in English, and lets graduates stay on for years to look for work. The trade-off for non-EU students is real money up front — tuition, a residence permit, proof of savings, and private health insurance — all of which must line up before you board the plane. This guide walks through the whole journey, from picking a programme to staying after you graduate, with the official figures confirmed against Finnish government sources.

Universities vs Universities of Applied Sciences

Finnish higher education has two parallel tracks, and knowing the difference saves you from applying to the wrong place. Universities (yliopisto) are research-oriented and award bachelor's, master's and doctoral degrees — think the University of Helsinki, Aalto, Tampere, or the University of Eastern Finland. Universities of applied sciences (ammattikorkeakoulu, usually shortened to AMK or UAS) are more practical and career-focused, with strong industry links and degrees aimed at direct employment.

Both are publicly funded, both are genuinely high quality, and both teach plenty of programmes in English. The choice comes down to whether you want a research and theory grounding (university) or a hands-on, profession-ready route (UAS). For many international applicants the deciding factor is simply which institution offers the specific English-taught programme they want.

Applying Through Studyinfo

Almost all admissions to Finnish degree programmes run through one national portal: Studyinfo (Opintopolku), at opintopolku.fi. You browse English-taught programmes there, then submit applications through the same system rather than to each university separately.

The main intake for degrees starting in the autumn is the joint application, usually held in January, according to Studyinfo's application-period pages. In a single joint application you can list up to six programmes in order of preference. There are also smaller separate application rounds run by individual institutions, so always read each programme's own page for its deadline and requirements.

A few practical points confirmed from official sources:

• Application fee: non-EU/EEA applicants generally pay an application fee, while EU, EEA and Swiss citizens are exempt, per Studyinfo.
• Entrance requirements vary by programme — some use entrance exams, some use prior grades, many require an English-language test result. Check each programme's page.
• Apply early and have your documents (transcripts, language certificate, passport) ready before the round opens, because deadlines are firm.

Tuition Fees and Scholarships

This is where EU and non-EU students part ways sharply.

EU, EEA and Swiss citizens study free of charge at Finnish higher education institutions. Non-EU/EEA citizens pay tuition for English-taught bachelor's and master's degrees. The exact fee is set by each university and varies a lot between institutions and programmes, so there is no single national figure to quote — you will find the precise amount on each programme's page at Studyinfo and on the university's own admissions site.

The good news is that scholarships are widespread. According to Study in Finland, many universities offer scholarships to fee-paying non-EU/EEA students, ranging from partial discounts to full waivers of tuition, sometimes with a living-cost top-up. These are usually applied for as part of the same admission process, and the criteria (grades, motivation, sometimes a deposit) differ by institution. Read the scholarship section of every programme you apply to — for many students it is the difference between affordable and not.

Doctoral study is a different world again: PhD researchers are often employed or funded and typically do not pay tuition. If that is your path, the funding and permit picture is closer to that of a researcher than a degree student.

The Student Residence Permit

If you are a non-EU/EEA citizen, you need a residence permit for studies before you can live in Finland for your degree. EU/EEA and Swiss citizens do not need a permit; if staying over three months they register their right of residence with Migri instead.

You apply through Enter Finland, Migri's online service, and then prove your identity and give biometrics at a Finnish mission abroad or a service point. Migri grants two permit types here:

• An A permit (continuous) for higher education degree studies.
• A B permit (temporary) for some other studies and for exchange students.

The A permit matters because continuous residence counts towards a permanent permit and citizenship later, while the B permit does not in the same way.

What the permit costs

As of 2026, Migri lists the residence permit for studies processing fee as 600 euros for an electronic application (400 euros for a minor) and 750 euros for a paper application (430 euros for a minor). Always check migri.fi for the current fee before paying, as these are reviewed periodically.

Proving you can support yourself

Migri requires proof of sufficient funds. As of 2026, the income requirement for students is at least 800 euros per month at your disposal for living costs, which works out to about 9,600 euros for the first year, on top of any unpaid tuition. That amount falls if your institution provides accommodation:

• 400 euros per month if you get free accommodation.
• 270 euros per month if you get free accommodation and free meals.

You attach a bank statement covering the past six months showing the money is in your own personal account. Verify the current thresholds on Migri's income-requirement page, since they are reviewed each year.

Health Insurance: Get This Right

Health insurance trips up more student applicants than almost anything else, because a wrong policy means a rejected permit. For non-EU/EEA students it is a hard prerequisite.

According to Migri, as of 2026 your private insurance must cover:

• Medical expenses up to 120,000 euros if your studies last less than two years, or
• Pharmaceutical expenses up to 40,000 euros if your studies last two years or more.

The deductible (excess) must not exceed 300 euros, the policy must be valid when you arrive, and for studies over a year it must be valid without a break for at least a year. There can be no restrictions limiting its validity. Buy a policy that explicitly states it meets Finnish residence permit requirements; many international student insurers sell products built for exactly this rule.

This is also the gap to plan for in your first weeks. Until you are registered, have a municipality of residence, and (if eligible) sit within Finland's public system, your private student or travel-health insurance is what protects you — so confirm it is active from the day you land, not the day term starts. A travel-and-health insurance policy aimed at students and long-stay expats, such as SafetyWing, is a common way to cover that arrival window and any travel before your Finnish cover kicks in.

Are Students Covered by Kela?

A common misunderstanding: arriving to study does not automatically make you part of Finland's social security system run by Kela (Kansaneläkelaitos, the Social Insurance Institution). According to Kela, studying alone is generally treated as a temporary stay, so students usually are not entitled to Kela benefits or national health insurance on the basis of being a student. That is precisely why private insurance is required.

There are nuances — having a genuine permanent home and ties to Finland, or working enough hours, can change your status — so check your own situation with Kela directly. If you study at a higher education institution and register for the term, you can use the Finnish Student Health Service (FSHS / YTHS), and higher-education students pay a healthcare fee to Kela each term to fund it (EU/EEA, Swiss and UK students are exempt from that fee). FSHS is not the same as full Kela coverage, but it does give you access to student-specific health, dental and mental-health services at a low cost.

Working While You Study

You can work, within limits. According to Migri, if you hold a student residence permit you may do paid work in any field, averaging 30 hours per week measured across the calendar year — meaning you can work more in busy weeks (and full-time during holidays) as long as the yearly average stays within the limit. Work that is part of your degree, such as a required internship or thesis work, generally falls outside the cap.

EU/EEA and Swiss students have no working-hour restrictions at all.

One honest caveat that Finnish institutions themselves stress: do not plan to fund your studies through part-time work. English-only roles can be competitive, and the 800-euros-a-month requirement exists precisely because you are expected to arrive with money already saved. Treat earnings as a top-up, not a budget line.

Student Housing

Housing is the single biggest living cost and the thing to sort earliest. Most university cities have a student housing foundation offering subsidised flats well below market rent — in the Helsinki region the big one is HOAS (Helsingin seudun opiskelija-asuntosäätiö), serving Helsinki, Espoo, Vantaa and Kauniainen.

How HOAS works, per its own site:

• You become eligible once you have a place in a full-time degree programme in the Helsinki metropolitan area; exchange students apply through a separate route.
• You submit an application, set the rent level you can afford, and keep it active by updating it monthly while you wait.
• An offer comes when a suitable flat is available. Wait times vary from a few weeks to over a year, so apply the moment you are accepted.
• Rents on offer span a wide range, from roughly 337 to over 1,000 euros a month depending on the unit and location, with studios commonly in the mid-hundreds.

Other cities have their own foundations (for example in Tampere, Turku, Jyväskylä and Oulu) with the same idea: apply early, expect a queue, and have a backup such as a private rental or a short-term sublet for your first weeks. Student housing is cheap precisely because it is in demand.

After Graduation: Staying in Finland

Finland actively wants graduates to stay, and the rules reflect that. According to Migri, once you complete a degree in Finland you can apply for a residence permit to look for work or start a business, granted for up to two years.

The key features:

• It comes with an unrestricted right to work, so when you land a job you do not need to apply for a new permit.
• You must have held (or have) a study or research permit and have completed your degree in Finland.
• You still need to show funds — Migri's 800 euros per month standard applies, which for a two-year permit means roughly 19,200 euros at your disposal over the period, as of 2026.
• Under Migri's current rules you can apply within five years of your study or research permit expiring — and you can apply from outside Finland — so you no longer have to lodge it while your study permit is still valid.

This window — graduate, get up to two years to job-hunt with full work rights, then convert to a work-based permit — is one of the strongest reasons internationals choose Finland over some neighbours. If you keep accumulating continuous (A-permit) residence and meet the conditions, it can eventually lead to a permanent residence permit and, in time, citizenship. Check the current criteria on Migri, since the rules around permanent permits have been changing.

A Realistic Cost Picture

Put the pieces together before you commit. As a non-EU/EEA degree student you are looking at: tuition (variable, potentially offset by a scholarship), the residence permit fee (600 euros online as of 2026), proof of around 9,600 euros for your first year, compliant private health insurance, plus the application fee for Studyinfo. EU/EEA and Swiss students skip tuition, the permit fee and the application fee entirely, which dramatically changes the maths.

None of these figures should be a surprise on arrival. The whole Finnish system is built around proving, up front, that you can support yourself — so the students who have the smoothest first year are the ones who treated the funding, insurance and housing applications as seriously as the admission itself. Confirm every euro figure on the official Migri and Studyinfo pages at the time you apply, because the thresholds are reviewed regularly.