• Persons who have reached the qualifying age, who have resided in Finland for a considerable amount of time and whose earnings-related pension income falls below the pension threshold.

• Entirely tax-financed out of the state budget.

• The ‘Social Insurance Institution of Finland’ (Kela) manages the scheme and the payments.

Qualifying conditions

• Retirement age is 65 for persons born before 1965; the retirement age of persons born after 1964 will be linked to life expectancy in accordance with the earnings-related pension.
• Minimum of 3 years of residence in Finland after the age of 16; 40 years of residence in Finland (between the age of 16 and 65) required for full national pension. The national pension can be paid out to persons residing abroad.
• Benefits are tested against 50% of the statutory earnings-related pension (työeläke) and other Finnish or foreign earnings-related pensions (including survivor’s pension). If the total earnings-related pension exceeds EUR 1,368.21 (for singles) or EUR 1,226.13 (for cohabiting persons) per month (in 2020), the national pension is no longer available.
• The formula for calculating eligibility for this benefit and the amount of national pension is the following: full national pension – 0.5* (amount of the person’s earnings-related pension – EUR 56.04).

Early retirement

• Available at the age of 63 for persons born before 1958 and at the age of 64 for persons born between 1958 and 1961 (reduction of 0.4% per month).
• Not available for persons born after 1961.

Deferred retirement

• In general, the claiming of a national pension can be deferred with positive (permanent) adjustments to pension benefits (0.6% per month after the age of 65) with no upper age limit. Both the age and the percentage differ from the earnings-related pension. For persons born in 1962 or after, the retirement ages for claiming the national pension and an earnings-related pension will be the same. The positive (permanent) adjustments will be 0.4% per month.

• Pension-tested, flat-rate pension benefit for those with insufficient levels of an earnings-related pension.
• The full flat-rate national pension for persons with less than EUR 56.04 of other pension income and 40 years of residence (between the age of 16 and 65) is EUR 662.86 per month for persons living alone and EUR 591.79 per month for married or cohabiting persons (in 2020); proportionate shortening of benefits for shorter residence periods (i.e. if years of residence are less than 80% of the time between the age of 16 and 65).
• Benefits are considered as taxable income; due to pension deduction regulations, pensions below EUR 11,575 per year are not taxed.

• Persons who have reached the qualifying age, who legally reside in Finland and whose pension income is below the threshold (EUR 827.78 in 2020).

• Entirely tax-financed out of the state budget.

• The ‘Social Insurance Institution of Finland’ (Kela) manages the scheme and the payments.

• Retirement age is 65 for persons born before 1965; the retirement age of persons born after 1964 will be linked to life expectancy in accordance with benefits of the earnings-related pension.
• Minimum residency in Finland is 3 years (after the age of 16).
• Persons must be residing in Finland at the time of claiming/receiving the benefit.
• Benefits are strictly pension-tested; a person is eligible for the guarantee pension if the total gross pension income is below the threshold (EUR 827.78 per month in 2020).
• All other pensions must be claimed before the right to claim a guarantee pension can be exercised.
• If persons decide to claim the national pension before the standard retirement age of 65, the guarantee pension will be also paid early at a reduced rate (reduction of 0.4% per month).

• Pension-tested, flat-rate benefit.
• Benefits top up difference between the individual’s pension income (from any other source, including earnings-related and national pension benefits) and the minimum pension level.
• The full guarantee pension equals the minimum pension level, which is set at EUR 834.52 per month/person (in 2020).
• Benefit calculation is not based on marital/household composition of individual. (As cohabiting persons receive a lower national pension, they may receive a higher guarantee pension to ensure the same minimum pension level per person.)
• The benefit is not paid if it amounts to less than EUR 6.75 per month/person.
• Benefits are considered as taxable income; due to pension deduction regulations, pensions below EUR 11,575 per year are not taxed.