The start-up grant is discretionary support for a new entrepreneur. Its purpose is to secure an entrepreneur’s livelihood at the starting phase of new full-time entrepreneurship when the income generated by the company is still low.
The start-up grant is granted for six months from the time you start as a full-time entrepreneur or expand your part-time business to full time. You may receive an ex ...
When planning business operations and applying for a start-up grant, contact the employment authority in your region. Submit your grant application before starting full-time business operations or expanding your part-time business into full-time activity. You can apply for the payment of the start-up grant after receiving a decision. If you need support after the time covered by the first decision, you can submit an extension application for the start-up grant. Submit the extension application to the employment authority in your region during your valid start-up grant period.
Apply for a start-up grant and its payment primarily using an electronic form in the e-service. If you cannot use the e-service, use the printable form and submit the form to your employment authority. If you have applied for a start-up grant using a printable form instead of an e-service, use the printable form also to apply for payment.
Log into the e-service with your personal banking IDs, a mobile certificate or a certificate card. Complete the application and attach the required documents. The service’s internal instructions will help you fill in the application. In the e-service, you can submit an application, respond to requests for supplementary information concerning the application, supplement your application and receive decisions concerning your case.
The start-up grant is paid monthly and retrospectively. Apply for the payment of the start-up grant from the employment authority within two months of the end of the payment period.
You can get advice on starting a company and using the E-service from the Enterprise Finland Advisory Service.
Be prepared to discuss your planned business and business idea, the competitive situation among companies in the area, your readiness to become an entrepreneur, and the support you need to start your business with the expert.
If necessary, you may be offered preparatory training for entrepreneurship. An external business service provider may be requested to provide an assessment of your business plan.
In order to receive a start-up grant, you must live in Finland and establish your business in Finland. You cannot receive the grant if you have started full-time business operations or expanded your part-time business into full-time operations before the grant application has been received by the employment authority. However, you can apply for an extension included in the maximum duration of the start-up grant.
You can receive a start-up grant to support your entrepreneurship if
The employment authority assesses whether you have sufficient capabilities for running a business and whether the operations meet the prerequisites for a profitable business. You may also be subject to other conditions to receive a start-up grant.
In the assessment of the start-up grant extension application, it will be evaluated whether your business has started as planned and how profitable the operation has been.