General Employee Pay Regulations in Finland
Minimum wage
There is no minimum salary in Finland. The Employer and the employee may agree in the employment agreement on how the work is to be compensated. However, this freedom may be restricted by the salary provisions in the applicable collective agreement. If there is no collective agreement with which the employer must comply, the employer and the employee may agree on the pay. If no agreement is reached, the regulation stipulates that the employer must pay the employee a salary considered usual and reasonable for the work in question. Published statistics — such as wages, salaries, and labour costs (Statistics Finland) — can be used as a reference in determining an appropriate level of pay.
Payment requirements
Salaries must be paid into a bank account designated by the employee and be available to the employee on the due date.
Salaries may be paid in cash but for compelling reasons only — for instance, if the employee doesn’t have a bank account or the employer doesn’t have the employee’s bank details. The employer must obtain a receipt signed by the employee or some other means of verifying payment if salaries are paid in cash.
Payday
Salaries must be paid on the last day of each pay period — a payday — unless otherwise agreed in the employment/collective agreement. That typically happens to be the last day of the month.
The due date for salary payment is brought to the preceding weekday if the due date is one of the following:
- Sunday
- church holiday
- Independence Day
- May Day
- Christmas Eve
- Midsummer Eve
- Saturday
