Sick leave by country / Finland
Sick leave and sick pay in Finland
Who pays when someone is ill, how much, for how long, and what the certificate rules are — in plain English, whether you run a team in Finland or work on one.
In Finland the employer pays full salary for the day the employee falls ill and the nine working days that follow, provided the employment has lasted at least a month (half pay if less). Kela’s sickness allowance then takes over — after a waiting period that matches the employer period — at an income-based rate for up to 300 working days. Collective agreements usually extend employer-paid sick leave to one or two months or more.
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How it works
Section 11 of chapter 2 of the Employment Contracts Act obliges the employer to pay full salary for the day of falling ill and the nine following working days (Monday to Friday) if the employment has lasted at least one month, or 50% if it has not, unless the illness was caused deliberately or by gross negligence. Almost every collective agreement lengthens this, commonly to four to eight weeks depending on service. Kela’s sairauspäiväraha is payable after a waiting period of the day of illness plus nine weekdays — so it normally begins exactly when the statutory employer period ends — at a rate calculated from annual earnings (about 70% for average incomes, less for higher ones), for up to 300 weekdays (Monday to Saturday) for the same illness; when the employer keeps paying salary, Kela pays the allowance to the employer instead. Certificate rules are left to the workplace: many allow self-certification for one to three days and require a certificate from a nurse or doctor after that.
Worth knowing: The waiting period for Kela’s allowance and the employer’s statutory pay period are designed to coincide, so a Finnish employee normally moves from full pay to the allowance without a gap in cover, though with a drop in income.
If you run a team in Finland
Pay full salary for the statutory period — and for the longer period your collective agreement requires — then apply to Kela for the allowance for any days you continue to pay salary. Set out in the staff rules when a certificate is due. Sick leave does not reduce annual holiday, which accrues for up to 75 working days of sickness per holiday-credit year.
If you work in Finland
Report sick to your employer the same day and follow your workplace’s certificate rule. Your salary continues for the statutory or agreed period; if your sickness lasts longer, apply to Kela for sickness allowance within two months. Check your collective agreement — it almost certainly gives you more than the ten-day legal minimum.
Sickness and annual leave
Under the Annual Holidays Act, up to 75 working days of sick leave per holiday-credit year count as time worked for holiday accrual. An employee who falls ill before or during annual holiday may ask to postpone the holiday from the first day of sickness, subject to a six-day threshold for some absences.
The annual leave entitlement itself is covered on our Finland annual leave page — 25 working days minimum.
Keeping the record straight
Sick pay rules turn on dates: the day the illness started, the day the certificate was due, the day the employer's obligation ends and the benefit takes over. In Finland those dates decide who pays and how much, and they have to be provable months later — to a payroll auditor, an insurer, or the employee. A shared spreadsheet rarely survives that; a tracker like Leavo records each absence with its dates and approvals alongside annual leave, so the record exists before anyone asks for it. We compare the options in our leave management software guide, and the policy side — carryover, payout, accrual — in our guides.
Sick leave in Finland: common questions
How long does the employer pay?
By law, the day of falling ill plus nine working days at full pay after one month of service, or half pay before that. Collective agreements typically extend it to four to eight weeks or longer depending on service.
How much is Kela’s sickness allowance?
It is calculated from your annual earnings on a progressive scale — around 70% for typical incomes and a smaller share for higher ones — and paid for weekdays, Monday to Saturday.
Do I need a doctor’s certificate from day one?
Not by law. Workplace rules and collective agreements decide; many allow one to three days of self-certification and require a nurse’s or doctor’s certificate afterwards. Kela requires a medical certificate for its allowance.
What happens if I fall ill during my annual leave in Finland?
Under the Annual Holidays Act, up to 75 working days of sick leave per holiday-credit year count as time worked for holiday accrual. An employee who falls ill before or during annual holiday may ask to postpone the holiday from the first day of sickness, subject to a six-day threshold for some absences.
Source
Primary source: Employment Contracts Act (55/2001), chapter 2, section 11; Health Insurance Act (sickness allowance). Rates and caps change — often every January or April — and collective agreements frequently improve on the statutory scheme. Confirm against the current text before acting. See our methodology.