How do changes in your income affect your Kela benefits?
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If your income increases or decreases, it may affect the benefits you get from Kela. To find out what types of income affect your benefit, check the decision letter you received for the benefit in question.
A change in your income may also affect the benefits that your partner or roommate receives. In the same way, changes in your partner’s or roommate’s income can affect the benefits you receive. Changes in your parents’ income can also affect your benefits.
Different types of income affect benefits in different ways
Income can mean earnings or investment income, income received from abroad, taxable social security benefits, or grants and scholarships. Kela usually recognises income at the gross amount, i.e. before taxes.
Family benefits
Pregnancy allowance or parental allowance is not paid for days when you are working. Working on Sundays or midweek holidays does not affect your pregnancy allowance or parental allowance because these daily allowances are only paid for working days (Mon–Sat). You do not have to report your earnings or any work you do on Sundays or midweek holidays.
If you work on days other than Sundays or midweek holidays, you must report the days you work to Kela.
A change in income can affect the amount of the care supplement that can be paid with child home care allowance or private day care allowance.
Read more about how income affects the care supplement paid with child home care allowance.
Read more about how income affects the care supplement paid with private day care allowance.
If you cannot use OmaKela, apply for a review of your care allowance on the form Claim – Child home care allowance – Private day care allowance WH 1e (PDF). Fill out the form and send it together with any supporting documents to us at Kela, PL 10, 00056 KELA.
When there is a change in the income of a person who is liable for maintenance payments, it may be necessary to also adjust the child support payments. This, in turn, can affect the child maintenance allowance paid by Kela. If you have questions or concerns about the confirmation of child support, contact the child welfare officer of your wellbeing services county.
If your income decreases and you have child support debt, you may have the right to an exemption from payment.
How to apply for an exemption from the payment of child support debt.
Student benefits
Your income affects the number of months per year for which you can get financial aid for students. You do not have to notify us if your income changes, but you must make sure that your income does not exceed the specified annual income limit. If it does, you will have to pay back all or some of the financial aid paid to you.
If you are under 18 years of age or you live with one or both of your parents, their income may reduce or increase the amount of financial aid for students paid to you or prevent you from getting it.
Read more about the effect of your income on financial aid for students.
Read more about the effect of your parents’ income on financial aid for students.
If you have an outstanding student loan and your income decreases, you may have the right to interest assistance. You can get interest assistance only if your income does not exceed a specific income limit during the four months preceding the payment of interest.
Unemployment benefits, general housing allowance and social assistance
Your income affects the amount of unemployment benefits you can get, specifically labour market subsidy and basic unemployment allowance.
If your income has changed, report the change in your next unemployment status report.
Your general housing allowance must be reviewed if your income or the income of your household changes.
Sickness benefits
Changes in income can affect your right to rehabilitation allowance or the amount of the allowance. Tell Kela in your own words about the change in your income either by sending a message in OmaKela or in a letter.
If you cannot use OmaKela, report changes in your income by sending an informal letter to the address Kela, PL 10, 00056 KELA.
If you are paid rehabilitation allowance for young persons or rehabilitation allowance for pensioners, your earnings during a period of vocational education are not deducted from your rehabilitation allowance, and you do not have to report them.
Tell us if you start paid work. Your earned income may affect your right to receive a disability pension while you are employed. Even if the pension is not paid out at all while you work, you do not need to discontinue your pension. Your pension can be suspended for at least three months and up to two years, which means that you will not be paid a pension during that time.
Read more about working while on a disability pension.
You must also notify Kela if you begin to receive some other pension or compensation or if the amount you are paid changes.
If you cannot use OmaKela and
- you start paid work, report it using the form Tarkistushakemus – Työkyvyttömyyseläke, EV 267 (PDF, in Finnish)
- you begin to receive some other pension or compensation or the amount you are paid changes, report it using the form Application for review – National pension / Guarantee pension, E 285e (PDF).
Fill in the form and send it together with any supporting documents to us at Kela, PL 10, 00056 KELA.
Pensions and housing allowance for pensioners
Nearly all earnings-related pensions and other pensions that are paid on a continuous basis affect the amount of the old-age pension available from Kela. Your old-age pension must be reviewed if there is a change in the amount of your other pensions.
The amount of the guarantee pension is reduced by nearly all other pension income you receive from Finland and from abroad. Your guarantee pension must be reviewed if there is a change in the amount of your other pensions. Earnings do not usually affect the guarantee pension, apart from a few exceptions.
The surviving spouse's pension paid by Kela consists of two components: a starting pension and, in some cases, a continuing pension. The continuing pension consists of a basic amount and an additional amount.
The additional amount of the continuing pension is affected by almost all of your income, including wages and salaries, pensions paid by an authorised pension provider, benefits paid by Kela, and rental and dividend income. The higher your income is, the lower is the additional amount payable. Your assets do not, however, affect the additional amount.
Report changes that affect the additional amount of the spouse's pension.
Almost all your income and assets will have an impact on how much housing allowance for pensioners you can get. If you have a partner, your housing allowance will also depend on your partner's income and assets.
Report changes that affect the housing allowance for pensioners.
Benefits for conscripts
Your income and expenses determine whether you can get conscript’s allowance and how much your conscript’s allowance will be. If you have any income during your time in military or non-military service, the amount of your conscript's allowance is reduced by the equivalent of your net income. When calculating the conscript’s allowance, an exempt amount is applied to wage and salary income and income from self-employment. That means that you can earn a specific amount per month during your service without it affecting your conscript’s allowance.
Notify Kela if there are changes in your income or in the income of your partner who is entitled to conscript’s allowance.
If you cannot use OmaKela, use the form Hakemus – Sotilasavustus SA 1 (PDF, in Finnish) to apply for this benefit. Fill in the form and send it together with any supporting documents to us at Kela, PL 10, 00056 KELA.
Do you still have questions?
Call Kela
All your available income and assets affect the amount of social assistance you can get.
Report changes that affect your social assistance.