Students criticise ‘inhumane’ residence permit proposals

Student organisations have criticised a proposal by the Ministry of Economic Affairs and Employment sent out for public comment in January that will make it possible for authorities to revoke the residence permit of a foreign student who receives social assistance from the state.

While the ministry’s stated purpose is to improve monitoring of permits to prevent their misuse, the National Union of University Students in Finland (SYL) says the measure is “excessive” and “inhumane”, while the National Union of Students in Finnish Universities of Applied Sciences (SAMOK) said the proposal relies on a harmful “deterrence” effect.

According to the ministry’s press release, the new rule, which would apply to students arriving in Finland from outside the EU and EEA countries, is part of a set of government measures that aim to prevent situations where international students have difficulties making ends meet in Finland.

This latest proposal follows a tightening of other rules affecting foreign students, in particular in relation to minimum income requirements and family reunification rules, announced at the end of last year.

The Finnish Migration Agency announced in September 2023 that it would begin post-decision monitoring of foreign students in order to ensure that the permit conditions were being adhered to.

‘More binding’ regulation

“The purpose of the [latest] proposal is to ensure that students in Finland fulfil the conditions of their residence permit by providing for their livelihood themselves.

“The Finnish Immigration Service would receive information on social assistance of students directly from Kela [the Social Insurance Institution of Finland, a government agency that provides basic economic security for everyone living in Finland],” the ministry’s press release said.

It notes that while the immigration service already obtains information on the use of social assistance by students as part of post-decision monitoring, a single payment of social assistance has not led to the cancellation of the permit. “Going forward, regulation would be clearer and more binding,” it states.

As part of its automated post-decision monitoring, the Finnish Immigration Service processed over 37,000 residence permits between September 2023 and December 2025. A student had applied for social assistance in 333 cases.

The assistance benefit, known as toimeentulotuki in Finnish, is given to people as a last resort when they cannot cover basic living expenses.

In its response to the ministry’s plan, the SYL said it would constitute “an unreasonable penalty for the international student in the event of unforeseen life circumstances”.

SYL said the legislative proposal was “excessive”, as applying for social assistance was a marginal phenomenon among international students, with only 0.9% having applied in 2025.

SYL pointed out that the construction and management costs of a new, automatic monitoring system would likely exceed the target savings.

In addition, the deterrent-based control method was “ethically unsustainable”, it said.

“The fear of deportation raises the threshold to seek help in a crisis situation, which deteriorates students’ well-being and exposes them to abuse. SYL views that the legislative proposal is in conflict with Section 19 of the Constitution and heavily disadvantages students with families,” SYL said.

It also argued that the legislative proposal hampered the government’s own educational and labour immigration goals, according to which the aim is to attract international students to Finland and have them stay in the country after graduation.

The SYL also reminded the government that its decision to charge full tuition fees to third-country students had increased the payment and debt burden on international students.

“To ensure well-being and to prevent the need for last-resort support, SYL proposes a critical assessment of tuition fees, a scholarship system that respects the autonomy of national higher education institutions, and an examination of how international students could be covered by an incentive scheme that guarantees income and financially supports graduation and staying in Finland.

“These measures could prevent the need to apply for social assistance as a last-resort measure,” it argued.

Increased insecurity

Samuli Leppämäki, higher education policy special advisor in SAMOK, confirmed to University World News that the organisation had “strongly criticised” the proposal, arguing that it relies on a harmful “deterrence effect” rather than supporting international students.

“The government has a stated goal to triple the number of international degree students by 2030 and to have 75% of them stay and find employment in Finland.

“We point out that this proposal directly contradicts these goals by increasing insecurity, particularly for vulnerable groups like students with families. The proposal uses the figure of 333 students relying on basic income support. We consider this an extremely marginal number that indicates temporary, individual emergencies rather than systemic abuse.

“Furthermore, the proposal's assessment ignores the compounding financial strain of the upcoming full tuition fees slated for autumn 2026 and decreasing grant opportunities.”

Like the SYL, SAMOK believes the proposal possibly contravenes the constitution, which guarantees the right to essential subsistence and care.

“It forces students to choose between keeping their permit and getting essential help – for instance, taking a sick child to the doctor. As an alleviation recommendation, we suggested a ‘reasonableness clause’ for temporary hardships,” Leppämäki said.

“The proposal suggests building a new automated data-sharing interface between Kela and the Finnish Immigration Service (Migri).

“We view this as an expensive and disproportionate investment relative to the small number of cases. A possible new service would probably cost more than the money saved from a social benefit that is only sought for a singular month at a time.

“Overall, we suggested that the Immigration Service should instead focus its resources on shortening its prolonged processing times so that the students who have applied for residence permits and been accepted to a Finnish HEI could have their decisions in a fair timeframe from the application,” Leppämäki said.

‘Racial logics’

Meanwhile, VisaHQ recently reported on a Horizon Europe project led by the University of Birmingham that found that racism was embedded in migration, labour-market and welfare legislation across six EU states, including Finland.

Launched on 26 February 2026, the 180-page report, Racial Logics of Irregular Migration in Europe, highlights how policy design – rather than individual prejudice – creates tiers of “deserving” and “undeserving” migrants.

"In Finland, media narratives are also shaped by geopolitical anxieties and racialised perceptions of threat," the report stated.

“Ukrainian refugees are depicted as war victims welcomed into Finnish homes and granted municipal rights.

“In contrast, asylum seekers from Afghanistan and African countries are portrayed as illegal border crossers, with emphasis on their masculinity and presumed danger. Echoing Polish media, they are also framed as instruments of hybrid warfare.”

According to VisaHQ, these narratives “translate into practice», for example, via the push-back law at Finland’s eastern frontier – which allows Finnish officials to turn back asylum at the border without processing their applications – and the new six-year residency requirement for permanent residence permits that “make long-term settlement harder for non-European migrants”.