The primary benefit for students is the student financial aid, which includes the study grant, the housing supplement and the government guarantee for student loans.  Studies do not always go as planned, though, and you may run out of months of student aid or fall ill. In these kinds of situations, studying is still possible using other benefits than student aid. Our specialist, Tiia Niemi, has some tips and instructions for the most common problems that students may encounter – read them here.

If you run out of months of student aid:

You can apply for an extension to your student financial aid period

If you have used up all your months of student aid, you can apply for an extension to your student financial aid period. The extension may be granted if your studies have been delayed because of a valid reason. Falling ill during your studies, for instance, is considered sufficient reason for a delay. The maximum length of extension you can get is nine months.  

The extension granted to you does not affect the maximum period of eligibility for student aid granted for your entire degree. If you have received the extension between your bachelor’s and master’s degrees, make sure that Kela is not deducting the extension months from the months of aid for the master’s degree.  

If you are applying for an extension to your student aid period, remember that you can only get student aid up to the end of your entire maximum period of eligibility. This period is either 54, 64 or 70 months, depending on when you started your studies.  

For example: You have completed both a bachelor’s and a master’s degree and used a total of 48 months of student aid on them. You decide to complete another higher education degree and start your new studies on 1 August 2024. You can only get six months of student aid for your second degree, because the maximum period of eligibility for studies starting on 1 August 2017 or later is 54 months.  

Basic social assistance is a last-resort benefit  

Basic social assistance is not meant for financing your studies. It is a last-resort benefit, which means that you must apply for all other possible benefits granted by Kela or other institutions before it. You must use any personal savings you may have and liquidate any funds and shares you own before you can receive social assistance. If you have the opportunity to get an extension to your student aid period or to take out a student loan, you must first apply for the benefit or take out a loan. If you live together with your spouse, their income will also be taken into account. If you apply for basic social assistance as a student, Kela may ask you to secure your subsistence during your studies in other ways, by working, for instance.  

However, you may be entitled to receive basic social assistance if you are not entitled to any other benefits. If, for instance, your studies have been delayed due to a serious illness to you or a member of your immediate family, Kela may grant social assistance for a maximum period of one year to help you complete your studies. When making the decision, Kela always uses its discretion and considers your situation in life as a whole.   

Students may receive general housing allowance in specific situations  

Low-income households can get general housing allowance for rental or owner-occupied apartments. When applying for the allowance, however, remember that the benefit is household-based. If you live in the same apartment with another person and have a shared rental agreement, Kela may consider you to belong to the same household. In this case, both of your incomes would affect the amount of housing allowance. To avoid this, people living with a roommate should make separate rental agreements.  

Students were moved back to the housing supplement of student aid on 1 August 2025. After this date, students entitled to student aid can no longer receive general housing allowance. However, students who are guardians of a child remain covered by general housing allowance. If you are not entitled to student aid due to your months of student aid having been used up, for instance, you can apply for general housing allowance for your housing costs.   

Read more on Kela’s website (in Finnish): Running out of months of student aid?  Here’s what to do.  

If you fall ill:

You can continue your studies on sickness allowance  

When you fall ill as a student, you may receive a sickness allowance. You can study to a limited extent on sickness allowance: up to 40% of the recommended pace for studies in an academic term or year. In higher education institutions, this translates into 3 credits in a month, 12 credits in an academic term and 24 credits in an academic year. You can claim sickness allowance for 300 weekdays, or around one year.  

Kela recommends that you apply for sickness allowance when your illness lasts over two months. This way, you are not needlessly using up your months of student aid and will get an extension to the target time for the student loan compensation. You cannot receive sickness allowance and student aid at the same time, so you should make sure that you are not paid too much in benefits, as Kela may recover any overpaid benefits later.    

Read more on Kela’s website (in Finnish): Riina took a sick leave from her studies: ‘I wish I had known about this option before’  

The goal of rehabilitation is re-entering the workforce  

If your study ability is impaired by a long-term illness or disability, you can study on rehabilitation allowance or rehabilitation subsidy. The aim of the rehabilitation is to help you complete a higher education degree and take part in working life.  Higher education studies may constitute vocational rehabilitation that is supported with a rehabilitation allowance.  The rehabilitation subsidy is a fixed-term disability pension for situations in which you are unable to study or work for a longer period of time. The benefit is granted for a fixed term, during which your work ability is monitored. You are allowed to study while receiving the rehabilitation subsidy. If you complete an entire degree, you must inform Kela.  

If you are unemployed:

Unemployment benefit is generally not for students  

Generally speaking, full-time students are not entitled to unemployment benefits. Full-time studies refer to studies that lead to a degree and have the student completing an average of five credits per month. Consequently, you cannot switch to unemployment benefits to finance your studies even if you run out of months of student aid.  

If, however, your studies have been suspended for a longer period and you have registered as an unemployed jobseeker with employment services, you may consider independent study on an unemployment benefit.  In this case, you must be over 25 years of age and make an agreement on the studies in advance with the employment services. Your studies must also improve your prospects on the labour market.  

Read more: Studying while unemployed  

ASK FOR HELP if you have challenges with your finances  Do not hesitate to contact Kela or the social services in your municipality if issues related to your subsistence feel challenging. HYY’s specialists are also happy to provide advice on any issues related to subsistence and Kela you may have. Ohjaamo also offers help with many issues to under 30-year-olds.  

CHECKLIST 

• Plan the duration of your studies as well as how you intend to finance them to the extent you can  

• Ask for help from Kela or HYY’s specialists  

• Apply for benefits in time  

• Always submit all requested documents    

Tiia Niemi 
Specialist in social policy