In the first half of the year, the Finnish economy showed signs of recovery, economic growth picked up and consumer confidence improved. However, at the same time, unemployment increased. There have also been further changes in the structure of the unemployment: the number of recipients of earnings-related daily allowance has decreased while at the same time, the number of recipients of labour market subsidy (from 1 May 2026: general social security benefit) has increased compared to 2025. Continuation of the war in Ukraine, together with instability and military strikes Middle East, remain a source of uncertainty in the global economy.
The Fund posted a surplus for the first half of the year, a result of higher income and lower expenses. Unemployment insurance contributions were increased by 0.6 percentage points for 2026 from a historically low level after two years of substantial decreases. The measure boosted the Fund’s income. The spending cuts set out in the Government Programme reduced earnings-related unemployment security expenses. As a result, the Fund’s financing expenses were lower than in previous years even though unemployment increased.
In April, we submitted a preliminary estimate of the level of unemployment insurance contributions for 2027 to the Ministry of Social Affairs and Health. According to our estimate, the total amount of unemployment insurance contributions could be kept unchanged or increased by a maximum of 0.3 percentage points.
The liquidity of Employment Fund remained good throughout the first half of the year. To strengthen our long-term liquidity, we extended and increased our revolving credit facilities in May.
The projects to change the legislation pertaining to Employment Fund continued during the first half of the year. They included the reform of the Act on the Financing of Unemployment Benefits, combination insurance and shortening of the lay-off notice period. The working group also reviewed the mechanisms reducing cyclical fluctuations in the Finnish economy and such matters as the role of Employment Fund in cyclical policy.
The legislation on combination insurance, which made progress during the first half of the year, will slightly expand Employment Fund’s financial responsibilities. However, the practical impacts of the new legislation will not be felt until 2029.
Legislation on the shortening of the lay-off notice period was approved by Parliament in January. Shortening of the lay-off notice period is expected to increase the expenses of Employment Fund, and the estimates vary from negligible sums to up to EUR 40 million.
Following the abolition of the training compensation scheme, we paid the last training compensations, totalling about EUR 16 million, in early 2026.
The report of the tripartite working group appointed in autumn 2025 confirmed that the business cycle buffer of Employment Fund functions appropriately and ensures the stability of unemployment security funding in changing economic situations. According to the working group, there is no need to make any significant changes to the system. The term of the working group ended in April 2026.
During the first half of 2026, we continued to implement Employment Fund’s strategy and closely monitored its progress using a set of indicators. Providing customer-oriented services for the digital age in a reliable and high-quality manner, and boosting productivity and efficiency are our strategic goals.
We continued to update our unemployment insurance contribution services, the aim of which is to ensure a smoother customer experience and efficient services. The reforms are supported by the strengthened IT capabilities introduced last year, which create a sustainable basis for the long-term development of our services.
We paid the last adult education allowances during the first half of the year. Shutdown of systems will continue until the end of 2026. In April, we published a summary of the adult education benefits, which provides an overview of the implementation, use and impacts of the benefits from the early 2000s until the abolition of the scheme.
We have made progress towards our goals and updated and developed our services during the first half of the year. Cooperation with our stakeholders has run smoothly. We have launched new partnerships and successfully continued existing stakeholder work. The fact that satisfaction among the Fund’s personnel has improved and customer satisfaction has remained high also shows that the year 2026 has got off to a good start. All this would not have been possible without our employees and thus, I would like to thank all of them for their excellent work.
Karo Nukarinen
Managing Director
Employment Funds Managing Director Karo Nukarinen
