Student loan for adult students
If you receive adult education allowance, you can get a student loan guarantee from Kela. The adult education allowance is available from the Employment Fund (tyollisyysrahasto.fi). Please contact the Employment Fund for details.
Apply to the Employment Fund for the adult education allowance.
Discontinuation of adult education allowance
Adult education allowance, including the loan guarantees associated with it, will no longer be available for studies beginning in autumn 2024 or thereafter. In order for you to qualify for adult education allowance, your studies and the allowance payment period must both begin by 31 July 2024. You must also be on full or partial study leave during the period for which you are applying for adult education allowance as well as make progress with your studies.
Eligibility for the loan guarantee
You can get a loan guarantee from Kela if you receive adult education allowance for an uninterrupted period of at least 8 weeks. You can get the loan guarantee for months in which there are at least 18 calendar days for which you are paid adult education allowance. The loan guarantee can be granted on the basis of the data in the initial decision issued by the Employment Fund.
Your income or property do not affect your eligibility for the adult education allowance.
The loan guarantee for adult students is subject to the same conditions as the loan guarantee available under the financial aid system. Take a close look at the interest and repayment terms. You cannot get a loan guarantee if you receive other assistance that disqualifies you for student financial aid.
Amount
The full loan guarantee under the financial aid scheme for adult students will be EUR 850 per month. If you complete part of your studies abroad for example as an exchange student, the loan guarantee is EUR 1,000 per month.
How to apply
- Apply to the Employment Fund (tyollisyysrahasto.fi)for an adult education allowance.
- Apply online for a loan guarantee for adult students. Log in to the e-service (in Finnish and Swedish only) using your bank ID or a mobile ID.
- The Employment Fund informs Kela directly of your adult education allowance. Loan guarantee in connection with adult education allowance can be granted on the basis of the data in the initial decision issued by the Employment Fund.
- When you want to see if your claim has been decided, visit our e-service OmaKela.
- A written decision on your application will be sent to you by post. You can also view the decision on our e-service.
Alternatively, you can complete and print out the application form for a government student loan guarantee under the adult education allowance scheme, OT 12 (PDF, in Finnish). Send the application and any supporting documents by mail. The address is Kela, PL 10, 00056 KELA.
Please do not apply for both an adult education allowance and regular student financial aid (i.e. study grant) at the same time. If you receive a decision from the Employment Fund denying you adult education allowance, you can apply to Kela for student financial aid. Tell in your application for student financial aid when you applied to the Employment Fund for an adult education allowance. Kela can grant you financial aid retroactively earliest from the beginning of the month in which you submitted an application for adult education allowance to the Employment Fund.
When to apply
The earliest that you can get a loan guarantee is the beginning of the month preceding your application. For example, if your application arrives at Kela in October, you can be get a loan guarantee from the beginning of August.
Different application deadlines for the adult education allowance and for student loans
You can apply to the Employment Fund for an adult education allowance retrospectively for six months from the date you file the application, but you must apply to Kela for the loan guarantee before that. A student loan guarantee for adult students can be granted from the beginning of the month preceding that in which your application is received.
For example, if you take a study leave and begin a course of study in July, you have until January the following year to apply for the adult education allowance, but your application for a loan guarantee for July must reach Kela by the end of August of the current year. You cannot be given a decision on the loan guarantee until the Employment Fund has decided your application for the adult education allowance.
Other assistance for adult students
Besides the adult education allowance, you can finance your studies with
- financial aid for students
- an unemployment benefit
- apprenticeship training: te-services.fi
- assistance related to rehabilitation.
If you complete a university degree within the target time and you have taken out more than €2,500 in student loans, you can get a student loan compensation, if you started your first course of university study on or after 1 August 2014.