Practical tips for students new to Finland

Basic everyday tips

• Drinking water: the tap water in Finland is among the highest quality in the world and totally safe to drink so just fill up your bottle and enjoy!
• Tipping: in Finland there is no tipping culture and tipping is not expected  in restaurants, taxis, bar etc.
• Money: Finland is a frontrunner considering the use of debit and credits cards as well s mobile payments. Hence, cash is rarely needed and even the smallest payments can be handled by card. Online banking credentials or mobile certificate are also often needed for idenfification purposes deadling with authorites.
• Getting on public transport: If you wish to get on a bus, hold out your arm so that the driver knows that you wish to get on that specific bus. Metro and trams stop on each stop. You must have a valid valid ticket before entering the bus, tram or the metro station.
• Food shopping: Grocery stores are open every day. Many vegetables and fruits must be weighted by the customer - there is a product code on the price sign and the same number must be chosed on the scale. There are many milk products in Finland,  e.g. also sour milk so choose your products carefully. Read more at the pages for ExpatFinland.
• Finnish Holidays: find out when there are holidays in Finland. Grocery shops are generally open also then, but smaller shops might be closed. Also read about other celebrations taking place in Finland.
• D vitamin: remeber to take D vitamin supplements during the winter months and to move outdoors during the day when there is more light.
• Phone apps: there are many apps that help your everyday life in Finland - just google and you will find great app lists!

Bank 

In order for your everyday life to go smoothly, it is recommended to open a Finnish Bank Account with online banking services. You can freely choose which bank to become a customer of, but some do offer more services in English. The largest banks in Finland are the following:

• Aktia (service in Finnish and Swedish only)
• Danske bank
• Nordea
• S-Pankki (service in Finnish and Swedish only)
• POP-bank (service in Finnish and Swedish only)
• Ålandsbanken

Note! Even if you are a customer at the bank already in your come country, you will need to open a new account in the Finnish branch of the bank. A Finnish Personal Identity Code is often required, so complete your registration with authorities as soon as possible.

Home Insurance

When you rent an apartment in Finland, you normally need your own home insurance. Check with the housing company/landlord what applies to your apartment. 

The largest insurance companies in Finland are the following:

• Fennia (service in Finnish and Swedish only)
• If
• LokalTapiola
• Pohjola Insurance
• POP Försäkring (service in Finnish and Swedish only)

Note! A Finnish Personal Identity Code is often required, so complete your registration with authorities as soon as possible.

Read more about housing in Finland at InfoFinlands pages.

Electricity Agreement

When you rent an apartment in Finland, you will often need a personal electricity agreement in order to have access to electricity in the apartment. Please obtain an electricity agreement already before moving to ensure that you have electricity in the apartment from day one. Check with the housing company/landlord what applies to your apartment. 

Around 80 electricity companies exist in Finland and you can make an electricity agreement with any of the existing companies. The actual transfer of the electricity is always handled by the local company, which is Helen in Helsinki Helen and Vaasa Sähköverkko in Vaasa, regardless of which electricity company you choose to make an agreement with.

Here are some examples of the largest electricity companies in Finland that you can address to make an electricity agreement: 

• Fortum
• Helen
• Oomi
• Vaasan Sähkö

You can use this comparison engine (the page is in Finnish, use Google translate) to compare electricity prices.

Read more about Finnish housing conditions at Expat Finland's page.

Note! A Finnish Personal Identity Code is often required, so complete your registration with authorities as soon as possible.

Phone subscription

It can be useful to open a Finnish phone subscription when you move to Finland. There are many different operators in Finland. The most common ones are:

• DNA
• Elisa
• Moi
• Telia

There may be a small set-up fee for a mobile phone account, but if you don't have a Finnish credit history you may also need to pay a deposit to open a mobile phone line. Normally all phone subscriptions include Internet access.The deposit can be substantial, but it is fully refundable when either you cancel the service or when the 'trial period' of up to 2 years is over. Read more on Expat Finland's page. Here you can read about national statutory rights when making a phone or internet contract in Finland. 

Note there is also so called prepaid subscriptions without a deposit fee, but those do not include internet access. Read more about that on the operations webpages.