Why fulfilling the work requirement makes a difference

Many believe that fulfilling the work requirement only matters if you are a member of an unemployment fund and qualify for earnings-related unemployment allowance, but this is not the case. If you can fulfil the work requirement, it will make a difference for you even if you get general social security benefit from Kela. Whether you fulfil the work requirement can have a direct effect on how much benefit you can get and how soon you can get it.

What is the work requirement?

You must have enough work history to qualify for earnings-related unemployment allowance (ansiopäiväraha). This is called fulfilling (or meeting) the work requirement (työssäoloehto).

If you fulfil the work requirement and you are a member of an unemployment fund, you will get earnings-related unemployment allowance. If you do not fulfil the work requirement, you will get general social security benefit (yleistuki) from Kela.

You fulfil the work requirement for employees if you have accumulated a total of 12 months of work history in employment that counts towards the work requirement during a reference period of 28 months.

You do not have to do any calculations or check if you fulfil the work requirement. When reviewing your application, Kela or your unemployment fund will check if you have enough work history to fulfil the work requirement for employees.

The work requirement is different for self-employed people.

The work requirement also affects your general social security benefit

Although fulfilling the work requirement is more important for earnings-related unemployment allowance, it also affects general social security benefit paid by Kela.

For example, if you already meet the work requirement when you apply for general social security benefit, it will affect your qualifying period (odotusaika) and how your parents’ income affects the amount of benefit you can get.

That is why we recommend that you work towards fulfilling the work requirement if you can, regardless of whether you belong to an unemployment fund.

Any work history makes a difference even if you do not fulfil the work requirement

If you do not have a degree, you will have to complete a qualifying period when you apply for general social security benefit. The qualifying period is 21 weeks, and it applies if you do not have a vocational qualification or a higher education degree when you become unemployed.

Factors that can help make your qualifying period shorter include full calendar weeks you work in employment that counts towards the work requirement.

This means that you can get general social security benefit sooner if you worked before you became unemployed even if you do not have enough work history to fulfil the work requirement.

Your parents’ income will not affect your general social security benefit if you fulfil the work requirement

Your parents’ income may reduce your general social security benefit if you live with them and you do not fulfil the work requirement.

Once you fulfil the work requirement, your parents’ income will no longer affect your general social security benefit. This means that you may get more general social security benefit in some situations if you fulfil the work requirement.
 

Work that counts towards the work requirement also counts towards an obligation to work

Working towards fulfilling the work requirement also helps if an obligation to work (työssäolovelvoite) has been imposed on you.

Employment services can impose an obligation to work on you if you repeatedly fail to fulfil the obligations they set for you while you are unemployed. An obligation to work means that you will not get unemployment benefits until you have fulfilled the obligation.

You can fulfil your obligation to work for example by working for 12 weeks in employment that counts towards the work requirement.

This means that employment that counts towards the work requirement can also help restore your right to unemployment benefits if employment services have imposed an obligation to work on you.

The work requirement is not a one-off thing

The work requirement is not something you can fulfil once and for all. In fact, you may have to fulfil it more than once during your working life. If you work between periods of unemployment or if you find a part-time job while you are unemployed, your new job may count towards the work requirement.

You do not have to try to estimate when you have fulfilled the work requirement again. Kela or your unemployment fund will check your progress towards the work requirement when processing your application.

The most important thing is to stay registered as an unemployed jobseeker with the employment services while you are unemployed and to keep regularly submitting unemployment status reports to Kela in the OmaKela e-service (available in Finnish and Swedish).
 

PS: Are you both an employee and a business owner?

If you work as an employee while also running your own business, the income you earn from your paid employment and your business may both count towards your work requirement in the future. The Government has proposed a law that would introduce a new combined unemployment insurance scheme. If Parliament approves the amendment, the new combined insurance scheme may begin to apply to the way the work requirement accumulates as of 1 January 2028.

Read more about the potential change.