Does your salary clear the work permit threshold in Finland or Sweden?

Last updated: 16 September 2026

Finland and Sweden both set a pay rule for a work permit, but they are not the same test. Finland names a figure in euros. For a residence permit for an employed person, the Finnish Immigration Service (Migri) says your total gross salary must be at least EUR 1,600 per month in 2026. Sweden sets its figure against the national median salary. Since 1 June 2026 the Swedish Migration Agency asks for a monthly salary of at least SEK 34,470, which is 90 per cent of the median salary in Sweden.

So one salary can clear one country and not the other. The Swedish figure moves when the median salary moves. The Finnish figure is set in euros and stated for the year. Pay is also only one part of each application. Neither authority decides a case on the salary alone, and only the authority can decide it.

The rest of this page sets out what each authority publishes, how the two rules differ, and what normally drives access to public healthcare once someone is employed and registered in either country. It does not tell you whether a given person will be granted a permit. That call belongs to Migri or to the Swedish Migration Agency.

What does Finland require?

Finland publishes a single euro figure. For the residence permit for an employed person, known as TTOL, Migri states that your total gross salary must be at least EUR 1,600 per month in 2026. The figure is a gross monthly amount, so it is the pay before tax rather than what lands in a bank account. Migri reviews the figure, so the number quoted for one year is not a promise for the next one.

There is also a separate route for people employed as a specialist. Migri states that for that permit your salary must be at least EUR 3,937 per month in 2026. The two routes sit side by side, and which one fits a job depends on the work itself, not on a preference. In both cases the employee submits the application and the employer sets out the terms of employment as part of it.

What does Sweden require?

Sweden does not publish a fixed figure that stays still. The salary requirement is a share of the median salary in Sweden, which Statistics Sweden publishes each year. From 1 June 2026 a first-time applicant must have a monthly salary of at least SEK 34,470, which is 90 per cent of that median. When the median salary is updated, the amount in kronor changes with it.

A smaller group of occupations is held to a lower share of the median instead, and those occupations are listed in Swedish law rather than chosen by an employer. Pay also has to be in line with the collective agreement or practice for the job. The Swedish Migration Agency states that the employer starts the application in the e-service and the employee then fills in their own part.

Is the threshold based on gross pay?

In Finland, yes. Migri words its rule as a total gross salary per month, which is the pay before tax is taken off. That matters when a salary is quoted as a take-home figure, or when part of the package is made up of benefits rather than cash. A package that looks large can still fall short once only the gross salary counts.

Sweden works differently. The requirement is expressed as a monthly salary measured against the national median, and the pay also has to match the collective agreement or practice for that job. So the test is not only about clearing a number. How a contract is written can change the answer in either country, which is why the figure on a payslip is not the whole picture.

Do you get state healthcare as an employee there?

In both countries, registration is what normally drives access, not the name of the employer. In Finland, Kela states that if you have a municipality of residence in Finland, you have the right to use public healthcare services. People moving to Finland for a year or more register with the Digital and Population Data Services Agency, which is how a municipality of residence is recorded. Working in Finland can also bring someone within Finnish social security, and Kela sets a minimum level of monthly earnings for that.

In Sweden, the starting point is where you are insured. Försäkringskassan states that if you live in one country and work in another within the EU or EEA, in Switzerland or in the United Kingdom, you are usually insured in the country where you work. It also states that anyone planning to stay in Sweden for at least a year registers their address with the Swedish Tax Agency, so that they are added to the population register.

What that registration gives you in practice is a question for the health service in that country, not for an employer or a permit page. Waiting times, patient charges and the care available for any particular condition are outside what either migration authority publishes. The right answer depends on your own circumstances. Talk to an Expert at Teamed to work through yours, and check any treatment question with the health authority in the country itself.

What decides which one suits you?

Start with the two tests, because they measure different things. A fixed salary is checked against a euro figure in Finland and against a share of the national median in Sweden. Someone can clear one comfortably and sit under the other. The Swedish amount also moves each time the median salary is updated, so a figure that worked last year is worth checking again before anyone applies.

Then look at the practical side. Timing is published by both authorities and changes with the type of employment and how complete an application is. Family members apply on their own terms and are assessed on their own facts. Most of this only becomes clear against a real contract, a real salary and a real start date, which is where a conversation beats a threshold table. For the wider employment picture in each country, see our guides to hiring in Finland and hiring in Sweden.

Teamed runs Employer of Record in 187+ countries, Finland and Sweden among them. Talk to an Expert and we will go through the permit rule, the pay and the registration steps for your own case.

Frequently asked questions

Can my family come with me?

Both countries have separate routes for family members, with their own requirements and their own income tests. Each application is decided on the family’s own facts by the authority in that country. Check the authority’s own pages for the route that fits, and get advice before anyone books a move.

Which country is quicker?

Neither authority promises a date. Both publish current processing information on their own sites, and it moves with the type of employment and how complete the application is. An application that arrives with everything attached is treated faster than one that needs chasing.

Does my employer apply, or do I?

It depends on the country. In Finland the employee applies for the residence permit and the employer states the terms of employment within that application. In Sweden the employer starts the application in the e-service and the employee then completes their own part of it.