Work
Work calculators 2026: notice periods, overtime pay, collective agreement pay and certificates
This section covers everyday questions about a job: when employment ends after notice, how soon a lay-off can start, what overtime and Sunday work pay, what a collective agreement says you must be paid at least and what different occupations typically earn. Notice periods come from the Employment Contracts Act, which changed twice in 2026, and overtime pay from the Working Hours Act.
In the restaurant and food trade the job often starts with a certificate. The hygiene passport is required of anyone handling unpackaged perishable food; the alcohol serving passport of whoever is present as the licence holder representative. Both can be practised here free of charge.
The practice tests follow the format and the pass mark of the real exam, but they are not the official questions: they are written from the topics the authorities publish, and every answer carries an explanation with its source.
Key figures 2026
- 14 days
- notice when you resign
- 7 days
- lay-off notice from 1 June 2026
- 34/40
- hygiene passport pass mark
- 80 %
- alcohol passport pass mark
Notice period calculator 2026
Work out your notice period and last working day in Finland from the length of your employment, whether you resign or your employer gives notice. Lay-off notice is 7 days from 1 June 2026.
Overtime pay calculator 2026 (Finland)
Work out overtime pay under the Finnish Working Hours Act: the first two hours of daily overtime +50%, further hours +100%, weekly overtime +50% and Sunday or public holiday work +100%. For hourly and monthly pay.
Hygiene passport Hygieniapassi practice test
Practise free for the Finnish hygiene passport Hygieniapassi test: 40 true-or-false statements in the same format as the real test. Every answer comes with an explanation and its source.
Alcohol serving passport practice exam (anniskelupassi)
Practise free for the Finnish anniskelupassi exam: 30 questions on age limits, serving hours, prohibitions and supervision. Every answer comes with an explanation and its source.
Collective agreement minimum pay in Finland 2026
What an employer must pay at least: retail pay groups A–D, KVTES municipal level pay, construction hourly rates and the hospitality and cleaning tables for 2026, with evening, night, Saturday and Sunday rates.
Salaries by occupation in Finland
Find an occupation and compare your pay: median, average and pay range for almost 600 occupations and occupational groups. Statistics Finland, Structure of Earnings 2024.
Notice periods and lay-offs in 2026
If you resign, the notice period is 14 days, or one month after more than five years. If the employer gives notice, it ranges from 14 days to six months by length of employment. The period starts running on the day after notice is given.
Since 1 June 2026 a lay-off must be announced at least seven days in advance; previously it was 14 days. A collective agreement may still require longer.
Overtime and Sunday work
The first two hours of daily overtime are paid at the normal rate plus 50% and further hours at plus 100%. Weekly overtime carries a 50% premium and Sunday work 100%.
Church holidays, Independence Day and May Day are paid like Sundays. If Sunday work is also overtime, both premiums are paid.
Minimum pay under a collective agreement
Finland has no statutory minimum wage; the floor comes from the sector’s collective agreement. The TES calculator covers the pay tables for retail, hospitality, cleaning and property services, the municipal agreement KVTES and construction.
In retail, professional work (group B) pays at least €2,101 a month outside the Helsinki region and €2,185 in Helsinki, Espoo, Kauniainen and Vantaa from 1 August 2026, once you have a year of experience. In construction a skilled worker earns at least the group IV rate of €17.12 an hour, and a personal pay component always comes on top.
Pay by occupation
According to Statistics Finland, the median total earnings of full-time employees were €3,615 a month in October 2024. The salaries by occupation calculator shows the median, average and pay range for almost 600 occupations and groups, along with the medians for women and men and pay by sector.
These statistics are not minimum wages: they show what occupations actually paid. The minimum comes from the collective agreement pay table.
Which certificate do I need?
The hygiene passport belongs to food law and Ruokavirasto: it is needed by anyone whose work involves unpackaged perishable food, once three months of such work have built up. The alcohol serving passport belongs to the Alcohol Act and Lupa- ja valvontavirasto, and is required of whoever is present as the licence holder representative.
Neither certificate replaces the other, and many people need both: a waiter who also plates food is the typical case. Both are valid indefinitely and never need renewing.
How the hygiene passport test runs
The test has 40 statements answered true or false. Passing takes 34 correct, the time is 45 minutes, and a wrong answer costs no points. It is taken on site under supervision at a tester approved by Ruokavirasto – it cannot be done online.
The statements fall into six areas of knowledge: microbiology, hygienic handling and temperatures, personal hygiene, cleaning, own-check and legislation. Temperatures are where people most often come unstuck.
How the alcohol serving exam runs
The decree requires at least 30 questions and 80 per cent of the maximum score. Neither the question type nor the time is laid down, and there is no national question bank, so the exam varies by institution: 30–40 questions and 45–60 minutes are typical.
The topics are limited to four: serving prohibitions, staff duties of supervision and order, the serving area and serving hours. Marketing is not examined at present, because the authority recommends leaving it out until the guidance is updated.
Articles on this topic
- Finnish employment law changes 2026: dismissal, lay-offs and fixed-term contracts
- What employers must pay in Finland: the collective agreement floor in 2026
- Alcohol serving passport in Finland 2026 (anniskelupassi): who needs it and how the exam works
- Finnish hygiene passport 2026: who needs it and how the test works
FAQ
How long is the notice period in Finland in 2026?
When you resign, 14 days, or one month after more than five years. When the employer gives notice, from 14 days to six months by length of employment. Notice periods did not change in 2026, but lay-off notice was cut to seven days from 1 June 2026.
How much is overtime paid in 2026?
The first two hours of daily overtime are paid at the normal rate plus 50%, further hours at plus 100%. Weekly overtime carries a 50% premium and Sunday work 100%. A collective agreement may give more.
What is the minimum wage in Finland in 2026?
There is no statutory minimum wage. The floor comes from the sector’s collective agreement: retail group B, for example, pays at least €2,101 a month outside the Helsinki region from 1 August 2026, and the lowest hospitality group €1,903. In the municipal sector pay follows KVTES, in construction the hourly rate table.
What is the median salary in Finland?
According to Statistics Finland, the median total earnings of full-time employees were €3,615 a month in October 2024 and the average €4,075. Occupations differ widely, and the salaries by occupation calculator shows the median for yours.
Are these the official exam questions?
No. Both practice tests are written from the topics the authorities publish, and every explanation names its source. The real questions are either confidential or written by each institution.
Can the exams be taken online?
The hygiene passport test is always taken on site under supervision at an approved tester. The alcohol serving exam is run remotely under invigilation by some institutions, and costs more when it is.
What do the certificates cost?
The hygiene passport price is set by the tester, the alcohol one by the institution. For the alcohol passport, the exam alone usually costs 50–65 euros and training with the exam 85–155 euros.
How long are they valid?
Both indefinitely. Neither needs renewing, and both follow the person rather than the job.
Is the alcohol serving passport required of every waiter?
No. The Act requires it of whoever is present as the licence holder representative whenever the premises are open to customers. An employer may still ask for it more widely, and many do.
Do the three months start again at a new job?
No. The time accumulates across all jobs, previous ones included.
What languages can the exams be taken in?
The hygiene passport test uses official forms in Finnish, Swedish and English, and other languages through an interpreter. The alcohol exam offers a wider choice depending on the institution, including English, Russian, Arabic and Vietnamese.