Finland is an attractive destination for international talent in many ways, but getting started here is often difficult. The Finnish Startup Community proposes a two-week service guarantee that would cover the entire chain of essential services needed when moving to Finland.
A safe society, a well-functioning education system, clean nature and a high quality of life make Finland attractive. Finland has also been ranked the happiest country in the world for several years, which is a clear competitive advantage. However, this alone is not enough if getting everyday life started is cumbersome.
Last week, the Confederation of Finnish Industries called for a significant increase in labour immigration. According to the Finnish Startup Community, a key solution is a two-week service guarantee for international specialists and their families. The aim is to ensure that the practical matters required to start work and everyday life can be handled quickly and smoothly.
“Finland is attractive to international talent, but if starting life in a new country is slow or uncertain, people will choose another country,” says Riikka Pakarinen.
Obtaining online banking credentials is slow
At present, the key services related to moving to Finland often form a long and fragmented process. Work permits, personal identity codes, bank accounts, municipal registration and settling in with one’s family do not proceed as one coherent process.
“It is about the whole package. Opening a bank account, finding a school place for children and ensuring that a spouse can find work all determine how successfully a person can settle in Finland. Making these things work smoothly is particularly important,” Pakarinen says.
One particularly significant problem is the slow process of obtaining online banking credentials. In Finland, online banking credentials are not only used for banking, but are required for almost all everyday transactions and services. They are needed to access public services such as taxation and social security, healthcare, and a wide range of everyday services from renting a home to taking out insurance or obtaining a mobile phone subscription. Without online banking credentials, it is in practice difficult for a person moving to Finland to manage many of the essential tasks involved in starting a new life in the country. This is a key example of why the entire chain of arrival services needs to function quickly and as one seamless whole.
“A two-week service guarantee is a concrete way to ensure that a person moving to Finland can start work and get everyday life up and running within two weeks. Finland needs to be functional and welcoming from the very beginning,” Pakarinen says.
Specialist expertise is needed
Strengthening Finland’s attractiveness also has significant economic benefits. According to Sitra, an additional 10,000 immigrants would reduce Finland’s long-term fiscal sustainability gap by around one percentage point, or approximately three billion euros.
At the same time, Finland faces both high unemployment and shortages in certain specialist skills. For startup companies, access to talent is a key prerequisite for growth.
“Not all of the skills companies need can be found in Finland. That is why companies must also be able to recruit talent internationally. Startup teams are often small, and every individual contribution matters. Sometimes success can depend on the specific expertise of a single person,” says Riikka Pakarinen.
She adds that, at the same time, Finland must ensure that jobseekers already on the labour market are helped into employment more effectively.