Work in Finland

Your child may participate in early childhood education and care

• in a day-care centre
• in family day care
• in group family day care
• at home with a childminder you have employed.

Some municipalities also provide early childhood education and care in other languages.

Early childhood education and care means the systematic education provided in day care. The purpose of early childhood education and care is to support the growth, development and learning of a child under school age. Your child will also learn Finnish and get to know other children in early childhood education and care.

Read about early childhood education and care in more detail on the website of the Finnish National Agency for Education.Opens in a new window.

A child can have a place in early childhood education and care beginning from the month they will be 9 months old. The child can attend early childhood education and care until they reach the age of 7 and start school.

Read about early childhood education and care in Finland in more detail on the InfoFinland website.Opens in a new window.

Contact the party responsible for early childhood education and care in the municipality. 

A place in day care must usually be applied for four months in advance. However, you may receive a place quicker if you have just found work or a study place. 

Early childhood education and care is usually subject to a fee. The fee depends on the family’s income. Early childhood education and care may also be entirely free of charge.

The maximum early childhood education and care fee charged by the municipality for a child attending a day-care centre on five days a week is EUR 295. The amount may be smaller depending on  

• the municipality 
• the family’s income 
• the number of hours the child is in day care every week 
• the number of children from the same family in day care. 

Your child can also go to early childhood education and care in a private day-care centre or a private childminder. Their prices are different. You can ask your municipality of residence for a service voucher for private early childhood education and care. You can use the service voucher to pay part of the fee.

You may get private day care allowance from Kela if your child is cared for by a childminder that you have employed or by a private early childhood education and care provider. Read about private day-care allowance on Kela’s website.Opens in a new window.

Contact the party responsible for pre-primary or basic education in the municipality. Enrol your child according to the instructions you receive from the municipality.

Yes, they can. Children have the right to receive pre-primary and basic education even if they do not yet have an official municipality of residence.

Yes. If your child does not know Finnish well enough to be able to study in an ordinary class when starting school, they usually participate in instruction preparing for basic education. During that time, the child will learn Finnish or Swedish and some other subjects, such as mathematics.

Instruction preparing for basic education usually lasts for a year. After that, the child will be ready to join a normal class.

Municipal basic education and pre-primary education are free of charge. General upper secondary education and vocational education are also free of charge until the age of 18. 

However, some private schools may have fees. 

Note that preschool children often have to spend part of the day in early childhood education and care as well. Children in the first grades of basic education may also have to spend part of the day in day care or in a club. Early childhood education and care, day care and clubs are usually subject to a charge. 

Compulsory education means that pre-primary education, comprehensive school and upper secondary education are compulsory for children and young people living permanently in Finland. After comprehensive school, young people have to study in upper secondary education until they graduate or reach the age of 18. 

Upper secondary education includes general upper secondary school, vocational education and training, instruction preparing for programmes leading to an upper secondary qualification, and education provided by folk high schools to young people of compulsory education age.

Read about education in Finland in more detail on the InfoFinland website.Opens in a new window.

Usually, you can also choose a school organised by a private party for your child. However, your child must complete their compulsory education in some way.

For example, there are international schools in Finland, in which the language of instruction is English. You have to apply for a place in them separately. It may be difficult to be admitted to international schools as they have only a small number of places for pupils and a lot of applicants.

General upper secondary education provides general knowledge and is aimed at the matriculation examination. The purpose of the studies is to prepare the students for studies at a university or a university of applied sciences. Read about general upper secondary education in Finland in more detail on the InfoFinland website.Opens in a new window.

In vocational education and training, students learn the practical skills needed in a specific occupation. The education is aimed at a vocational upper secondary qualification, which enables the student to work in an occupation. After completing the education, it is also possible to apply to a higher education institution. Read about vocational education and training in Finland in more detail on the InfoFinland website.Opens in a new window.

After completing basic education, you can apply for a study place in the joint application system. Applying takes place in the Studyinfo service in February and March.

Institutions may also have continuous application processes, which means that you can apply at any time.

Read about the joint application system in more detail on the page Applying for studies after comprehensive school.Opens in a new window.