Kela discovers error in municipal billing of unemployment benefits for immigrants
The Social Insurance Institution of Finland (Kela) has identified a significant error in the municipal billing of unemployment benefits for immigrants, resulting in municipalities being incorrectly charged for expenses that should have been covered by the state. MTV Uutiset reports that the error stems from a misinterpretation of residence permit data provided by the Finnish Immigration Service (Migri).
The issue affects immigrants whose protection period—the duration during which the state is financially responsible for unemployment benefits—has been incorrectly calculated as one year instead of three. Under Finnish law, the state covers unemployment benefits for immigrants for either one or three years, depending on the basis of their residence permit. After this period, financial responsibility partially shifts to municipalities. However, due to the error, municipalities have been billed prematurely for individuals entitled to the longer, three-year protection period, including quota refugees.
Kela has not yet determined the total financial impact of the error, which varies by municipality. Iltalehti notes that the problem does not affect individual Kela clients but has caused administrative inconvenience for local governments. The institution has apologised for the mistake and is working to rectify the billing system.
Corrective measures underway
Kela’s Director of Information Services, Arto Vuori, stated that the primary goal is to ensure accurate future billing. MTV Uutiset reports that this may require changes beyond Kela’s internal systems. The institution is also collaborating with relevant ministries to explore reimbursement options for municipalities that have already made payments based on incorrect invoices.
Iltalehti adds that Kela is investigating the use of residence permit data in its calculations alongside Migri. Further updates on the timeline for system corrections and reimbursement procedures will be provided to municipalities as the investigation progresses.
