Social security in brief for persons who have returned to Finland
- If you have been entitled to benefits from Kela already while staying abroad, please report your return to Finland to Kela. After that, you can apply for benefits from Kela via our e-service.
- If your entitlement to benefits from Kela has been interrupted while staying abroad, you can usually be granted benefits from Kela right from the time of your return. Apply for benefits from Kela via our e-service. You must also enclose a notification of moving to Finland. If you need a Kela card, your entitlement to the card will be determined in connection with your application for a benefit, for instance if you claim reimbursement for medical care expenses or medicine expenses. Please remember to file a notification of move with the Digital and Population Data Services Agency if you move to Finland for more than one year. The Digital and Population Data Services Agency will decide whether you can be entered into the Finnish population register and assigned a municipality of residence.
- If you fall ill in Finland and you have a municipality of residence here, you receive medical care in Finland in the public healthcare system for a client fee. Persons who stay temporarily in Finland must prove their entitlement to medical care with a certificate of entitlement to medical care in order to receive medical care for the client fee applied in Finland. These certificates include the European Health Insurance Card and the certificate on entitlement to medical care in Finland issued by Kela. Everyone is entitled to urgent medical care regardless of citizenship, but you will possibly have to pay the costs for the medical care yourself.
- You can receive reimbursement for medicine costs, costs for private healthcare services and travel costs in connection with medical care if you are covered under the Finnish health insurance system or if you have a certificate of entitlement to medical care.
