Parental income

The income of your parents may affect your eligibility for financial aid and the amount you can get.

Students in upper secondary education

If you are under 18 years of age and live with your parents, their income may reduce or increase your financial aid or prevent you from getting it. You are considered to be living with your parent if the two of you live in the same flat or house. See whose income affects financial aid.

In the following situations, financial aid is not affected by parental income:

• You are 18 years or above and are living independently, i.e., not living with your parent(s).
• You are married.
• You have guardianship of a minor child.

Parental income does not decrease the basic amount of the study grant or the housing supplement nor hinder the granting of these benefits to students under 18 years of age who do not live with their parents. If you are under 18 and live on your own, and do not yet get financial aid payments, apply for financial aid.

However, for students who live on their own, parental income will affect the following:

• under age 18, entitlement to supplementary allowance for the purchase of study material
• at age 17, increase to the basic amount of the study grant
• under age 17, entitlement to government loan guarantee.

However, please note that not all upper secondary level students are eligible for the supplementary allowance for the purchase of study materials. This is the case for example if you are entitled to free education. More information about the supplementary allowance for the purchase of study materials.

The below tables show how parental income affects financial aid. The tables do not take into account the housing supplement, which is available only to a small segment of students. The housing supplement is not affected by parental income or the student’s age. Learn more about the housing supplement for students.

You cannot get other types of student financial aid if child benefit is paid for you. Learn more about the financial aid and housing benefits you can get.

If no child benefit is paid for you and your parents’ total annual income is less than 64,400 euros, you can get study grant payments and are eligible for a government guaranteed student loan. Learn more about financial aid benefits you can get.

The study grant and housing supplement are not granted if the amount of either or both combined would be less than 8.40 euros per month. If you are under 18, live with a parent and do not get study grant payments, you cannot get a government guarantee for the student loan.

Higher education students

You can use the calculator linked below to calculate the estimate the amount of the study grant, housing supplement and loan guarantees you can get based on information you enter into the calculator. You do not have to be logged in to use it.

You can get the study grant at a higher rate if

• you are 17 years old or live with your parent(s), and
• your parents' income does not exceed 41,100 euros per year.

Your parents' income cannot reduce your financial aid or make you ineligible for it. It does not affect the government guarantee for a student loan or the housing supplement for students. The housing supplement is only available to students who are studying abroad or in the Åland Islands and who live in rental accommodation. Students in higher education cannot get the supplementary allowance for the purchase of study materials.

Reporting income

Information about your parents' income is provided to Kela by the Tax Administration, so you do not have to report it to Kela. Kela will use information for the most recent completed tax year to check your parents’ income. For example in 2022 Kela checks your parents' income for 2020.

Kela adjusts your financial aid automatically once per year based on tax information received from the Tax Administration. Tax information is updated at the beginning of each year. For example, information for tax year 2021 will be used starting from January 2023.

If your parents' total current income is at least 20% lower than in the most recent completed tax year, the current income can be used to calculate your financial aid. In that case, do as follows:

1. Explain in the application for financial aid or the notification of changes why the income is now lower.
2. Include documented proof of the current income of each of your parents. We usually check the incomes for the coming 12 months.

   • Kela obtains information on earnings and benefit income from the national incomes register. Kela uses this data when processing claims and applications. You will be contacted if additional information is required.
3. If your parent is insured under the Self-Employed Persons' Pensions Act (YEL) or the Farmers' Pensions Act (MYEL), no documentation is needed about their current income from self-employment. In such cases, we will use the reported YEL or MYEL incomes.

If your parents' income is now higher than it was before, you do not have to report it to Kela.

What types of income affect financial aid?

Financial aid is affected by your parents'

• taxable earnings and capital income according to the Income Tax Act. Taxable income usually refers to gross income from which no deductions have been made. The income concept is the same as in the income review concerning the student’s own income.
• foreign income if comparable income would be taxable in Finland. Report your parents' foreign income in the application for financial aid or the notification of changes.

More information is available from the Tax Administration.

Whose income affects financial aid?

Financial aid is affected by the income of

• your biological parent(s) or
• your adoptive parent(s).

The income of foster parents or grandparents does not affect financial aid.

If your parents are divorced or permanently separated, Kela checks the income of the parent with whom you are living or with whom you last lived. If you last lived with both of your parents, Kela checks both of their incomes.

If you are under 18 and living with your parent and your parent's new married spouse, the income of the new spouse affects your financial aid. If you parent has a live-in partner, the partner's income does not affect financial aid.

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