Full-time, part-time or short-term studies

In addition to employment promoting services, earnings-related daily allowance may also be granted for the duration of part-time or short-term studies, if the TE Office provides the unemployment fund with a statement indicating that the studies are not an obstacle for the payment of earnings-related daily allowance.

All incomplete studies must be reported to the TE Office. If you have not finished previously started studies and you become unemployed or you are laid off, notify the TE Office about your studies when registering as a jobseeker. The TE Office will examine the extent of your studies and provide the unemployment fund with a statement on whether your studies are considered to be full-time or part-time studies. If your studies are considered to be part-time studies, they do not prevent the payment of earnings-related daily allowance. If your studies are considered to be full-time studies and cannot be completed as short-term studies, according to the assessment of the TE Office, the studies prevent the payment of earnings-related daily allowance.

If you intend to start studies during unemployment or lay-off, you must notify the TE Office about the studies before the studies begin. The TE Office will examine the extent of your studies and provide the unemployment fund with a statement on whether your studies are considered to be full-time or part-time studies. If your studies are considered to be part-time studies the payment of earnings-related daily allowance can continue. If your studies are considered to be full-time studies the payment of earnings-related daily allowance stops, unless the studies are short-term studies.

The following studies must be reported to the TE Office:

• Studies leading to bachelor's degrees or master's degrees (university of applied sciences) or bachelor’s or master’s degrees from a university.
• Studies the objective of which is the completion of a vocational upper secondary qualification or a part of it
• Preparatory education for work and independent living (TELMA)
• Upper secondary school studies
• Elementary school studies
• Preparatory education for degree education
• Stuedies at an open university or at an open university of applied sciences
• Postgraduate studies at the university
• Completion of further vocational qualification or specialist vocational qualification or vocational qualification unit
• Studies at folk high schools or sports institutes
• Other full-time studies that provide professional skills 

Short-term studies 

You may receive earnings-related daily allowance for the duration of short-term studies if you are at least 25 years old and your studies do not last more than six months. The studies should also improve your professional skills or support your business activities. You may not start new studies leading to an academic degree. However, you may continue previous unfinished studies if at least one year has passed since the discontinuation of the studies. The TE Office will provide the unemployment fund with a statement on your right to earnings-related daily allowance during your studies.

Further information on how different forms of studies affect your right to earnings-related daily allowance is available from the TE Office. It is also recommended that you contact the TE Office if you plan on starting studies during your unemployment or lay-off or you are under threat of unemployment or lay-off.