Eligibility
You may be entitled to a rehabilitation subsidy or a disability pension from Kela if you meet the following requirements:
- You have an illness or injury that prevents you from earning a reasonable living. Kela will evaluate how your illness affects your work capacity.
- You are aged between 16 and 64.
- You have obtained a medical statement (medical statement B), that includes a treatment or rehabilitation plan. The plan can also be a document separate from the medical statement. Read more about how to apply for Kela rehabilitation.
- You have lived in Finland for at least the time required by law. However, you do not need to fulfil this requirement if you became incapacitated for work before you turned 19 years old and were living in Finland at the time, or if you have previously received the disability allowance for persons under the age of 16.
- Your other pensions and benefits do not exceed the income limit. Learn more about how your family circumstances and the earnings or benefits you receive affect the amount of your national pension.
You can receive a rehabilitation subsidy or a disability pension from Kela, your authorised pension provider, or both. Learn more about your right to a disability pension under the acts on earnings-related pensions (tyoelake.fi).
How does Kela evaluate your ability to work?
When you apply for rehabilitation subsidy or disability pension, Kela will evaluate your work ability (sometimes called capacity for work) in accordance with the definition in the Finnish National Pensions Act. According to the definition in the National Pensions Act, a person is unable to work if they have an illness or disability that prevents them from earning a reasonable living through work.
Your level of work ability and functional capacity will be assessed by a benefit administrator and a medical adviser at Kela on the basis of the medical statement you have submitted and the information provided in your application. At the same time, they will assess whether you are unable to work according to the definition of incapacity for work found in the National Pensions Act.
Even if you have a diagnosed illness and a medical statement from a doctor stating that you are unable to work, you are not necessarily incapable of work within the meaning of the National Pensions Act. This is because your work ability is assessed in terms of both your previous line of work and any other work that would provide you with a reasonable income. Additional factors taken into account when assessing your ability to work are your age, occupation, education and whether your work ability could be improved through rehabilitation.
It should be noted that the definition of work ability used when deciding whether someone should be granted rehabilitation subsidy or disability pension is different from the definition used when granting sickness allowance. In the case of sickness allowance, work ability is assessed solely in relation to the work you have done previously or work closely comparable to it. This means that even if you have been granted sickness allowance, you may not be granted rehabilitation subsidy or disability pension.
Good to know
- If you have reached the age of 60 and have had a long career, your incapacity for work is assessed in relation to your own work.
- People who are permanently blind or have a mobility disability are entitled to a disability pension even if they work. However, in order to qualify for a disability pension, income from your other pensions may not exceed Kela’s income limit.
- As we process your application, the first thing to resolve is what your possibilities for rehabilitation are.
If you are under 20 years of age
Those under the age of 20 are primarily granted rehabilitation allowance for young persons or rehabilitation allowance for a period of vocational rehabilitation. When a young person applies for rehabilitation subsidy or disability pension, Kela will first investigate their eligibility for either of these primary benefits. It is only after this that their eligibility for rehabilitation subsidy or disability pension is assessed.
If you are under 20 years of age, you can be granted a rehabilitation subsidy or a disability pension in the following situations:
- vocational rehabilitation or the rehabilitation allowance for young persons is not possible for you according to Kela’s assessment
- your vocational rehabilitation has been discontinued because of illness or a lack of results.
When someone over the age of 16 is granted a rehabilitation subsidy or a disability pension, the payment of child benefit and any disability allowance will stop. They can apply for the care allowance for pensioners in place of the disability allowance.