Employment voucher for young people moves forward: Public consultation opens

The Ministry of Economic Affairs and Employment will hold a public consultation from 7 to 23 November 2025 on a draft government decree setting out provisions on a government grant, which the employment authorities could use to help companies hire unemployed young people under the age of 30. This grant is also known as the employment voucher or recruitment subsidy. It would be awarded to businesses to cover half of the young person’s salary for six months.

The draft decree on the employment voucher is based on the autumn government budget session, where it was agreed that Finland needs a fast-acting tool to prevent prolonged youth unemployment. The purpose of the employment voucher is to make it easier for young people to find work in companies by temporarily lowering recruitment costs.

Who grants the employment voucher (recruitment subsidy) and who is eligible?

Uusimaa Economic Development Centre would grant the subsidy to employment authorities to support the hiring of young people. The employment authority would then sign an agreement with the company on how the subsidy will be used. To receive the subsidy, the company would have to commit to hiring a young person from the target group for at least six months. The target group includes unemployed people under 30 who have been without work for at least six months during the seven months before the agreement is signed. However, young people who have only completed primary and lower secondary education syllabus would be excepted from this rule. For them, the requirement would be at least three months of unemployment.

How many young people could be hired with the recruitment subsidy?

The supplementary budget proposal includes an appropriation of EUR 30 million for a discretionary government grant for this purpose. This is expected to support the hiring of around 3,300 to 4,400 young people for six months during 2026–2027. The regional distribution of the government grant would be based on the employment authority’s estimate of how many young people could be hired with the grant and how many companies in the area could potentially offer jobs to the target group.

The decree will be finalised after a public consultation. The Government is expected to decide on the decree in December 2025, and it would enter into force immediately. After that, employment areas could apply for the recruitment subsidy from Uusimaa Centre for Economic Development, Transport and the Environment (Uusimaa Economic Development Centre from 1 January 2026 onwards). Hiring with the recruitment subsidy would begin in early 2026 once Uusimaa Economic Development Centre has awarded the funding to employment authorities.

The draft decree is open for comments on the public consultation service Lausuntopalvelu from 7 to 23 November 2025. Everyone is welcome to share their views on the decree.

Inquiries:
Teresa Salminen, Special Adviser to the Minister of Employment, tel. +358 295 047 318 (questions to the Minister of Employment)
Janne Savolainen, Chief Specialist, Ministry of Economic Affairs and Employment, tel. +358 295 047 344, email [email protected]
Ville Heinonen, Chief Specialist, Ministry of Economic Affairs and Employment, +358 295 047 215, email: [email protected]