Frequently asked questions
On this page you can find the most frequently asked questions by topic and their answers. If you can't find the answer to your question, our customer service will be happy to help you.
23 questions related to the topic "self-employed person"
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YEL insurance is the basis for your pension and social security. That is why taking out the insurance is statutory, which means it is obligatory. You cannot replace YEL insurance with voluntary pension insurance. Another statutory payment is the health insurance contribution, paid in connection with taxes.
You may have to take out other insurance, depending on your sector. More information on these sector-specific mandatory insurances is available from non-life insurance companies that offer insurance, such as Pohjola Insurance. Consider supplementing your insurance cover through various voluntary insurances, such as accident insurance.
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As a self-employed person you are responsible for your earnings-related pension insurance. You can take care of insurance by taking out self-employed person’s pension insurance, i.e. YEL insurance, for yourself. YEL insurance is part of an entrepreneur’s pension and social security, which is why it is statutory. You cannot replace the insurance with voluntary pension insurance.
Take out YEL insurance at once when you start working as a self-employed person, no later than within six months of when you started the work, if you meet the following conditions:
- You are aged between 18–67
- You have been self-employed for at least 4 months and work in your company
- You live in Finland
- Your work input is valued at least at EUR 9,010.28 in 2024.
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If you do not take out insurance in time, i.e. within six months of the start of your obligation to insure, the Finnish Centre for Pensions (ETK) will urge you to take out insurance or will take it out on your behalf. In that case, you may need to pay a penalty for non-payment in addition to the regular YEL contribution.
the State Treasury determines the penalty for non-payment. We will send you a separate invoice for the penalty for non-payment after receiving the non-payment decision from the State Treasury.
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You can appeal against the decision within 30 days.
Read more about appealing -
YEL insurance is statutory, which is why the YEL insurance contribution is the same in all employment pension insurance companies. The contribution is always a certain percentage of your YEL income. In 2024, the minimum YEL income is EUR 9,10.28 and the maximum YEL income is EUR 204,625.
The YEL contribution for those under 53 years of age and those over 62 is 24.10% and for people between 53 and 62 it is 25.60% of the confirmed YEL income in 2025. As a new entrepreneur you will receive a 22% discount on your YEL contribution for a period of four years. If your self-employment ends earlier, however, you can use the remaining discount period for another entrepreneurship period. The insurance contribution is fully tax-deductible.
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As a new entrepreneur you will receive a 22 per cent discount on your YEL contribution for a period of four years. If your self-employment ends earlier, you can use the remaining discount period for another period of entrepreneurship. The YEL calculator provides an estimate of YEL insurance contribution and social security level at different YEL income levels. The calculator also allows you to compare how the instalment months and number of instalments impact the YEL contribution.
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The YEL income should correspond to the monetary value of your work input. In other words, your YEL income should correspond to the annual salary you would have to pay for the same work to another person as skilled as yourself.
YEL income does not mean your taxable income or the salary you pay yourself. YEL income is also not your company’s profit or turnover, and it is not dependent on the profitability of your business.
YEL income is always determined on an annual basis, regardless of when your YEL insurance begins. The YEL income is used as the basis for calculating the pension that you accrue from your entrepreneurship and your YEL insurance contribution. The allowances paid by Kela, such as the sickness and parental allowances, are also calculated based on your confirmed YEL income. In addition, the YEL income determines the level of your unemployment security.
The YEL income includes all the work you do as an entrepreneur. You only need one YEL insurance even if you have several companies. You should take out YEL insurance when your work input exceeds the minimum YEL limit of EUR 9,010.28 in 2024.
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As a result of the renewed YEL act in the beginning of year 2023 we are obligated to review your YEL income regularly. This is to ensure that your YEL income is at the recommended level and corresponds to the monetary value of your work input. As a self-employed person, your pension and other social security are based on your YEL income.
You will receive a text message or letter when your YEL income recommendation is available in the our online service. You can accept or reject the recommendation. If you reject the recommendation, we kindly ask you to answer a few more questions.
You can always apply for a change in your YEL income if your work as an entrepreneur changes.
A maximum increase applies If your insurance started before 1 January 2023 and your YEL income has not been changed at your own request after the law has come into force. In that case, your YEL income can be increased by up to EUR 4,000 per review in the first two reviews, when the review is initiated by the pension insurance company.
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YEL insurance is mandatory and it is the basis for an entrepreneur’s pension and social security. Take out YEL insurance once you have started working as a self-employed person. When we confirm your YEL income, we take into account your company’s estimated turnover, the pay level in your sector, the number of hours you work and the possible seasonal nature of your operations.
The YEL insurance secures your income in the event of old age, disability or the death of a family provider. In addition to your future pension, the benefits paid by Kela, such as sickness allowance and parental allowance, are determined based on the YEL income. Kela provides more information on the allowances it pays and how they are determined. A self-employed person’s accident insurance contribution and the compensation for loss of income paid under the insurance are also based on your YEL income. YEL income also determines the level of your unemployment security. As a member of Yrittäjäkassa, you can receive an allowance based on your YEL income.
Read more about social security and pension for the self-employed
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As Ilmarinen’s customer, you can log in to our online service using your personal online banking credentials. To log in, click on the ‘Log in’ button in the upper right-hand corner of the ilmarinen.fi page. In the online service you can see your YEL contribution information and easily check the amount of your YEL income and how much pension you have accrued.
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Yes, as we do not automatically get your changed contact information elsewhere. As an entrepreneur, you can update your own address, email and phone number or the recipient of your YEL invoice conveniently in our online service under My YEL contact information.
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If you wish to switch from paper invoices to electronic invoices, choose an online invoice or an e-invoice. Online invoices arrive in your company’s invoice handling system and e-invoices will be sent to your personal online bank. You will begin receiving online invoices once you agree on it with your online invoice operator.
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As Ilmarinen’s customer, you can log in to our online service using your personal online banking credentials. To log in, go to the upper right-hand corner of the ilmarinen.fi page. In the online service, you can see the situation concerning your paid and unpaid YEL contributions, save a copy of the invoice (PDF) and apply for an extended term of payment. You can find the information under ‘List of contributions’.
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As Ilmarinen’s customer, you can log in to the self-employed person’s online service using your personal online banking credentials. To log in, go to the upper right-hand corner of the ilmarinen.fi page. In the online service, you can see the situation concerning your paid and unpaid YEL contributions, save a copy of the invoice (PDF) and apply for an extended term of payment. You can find the information under ‘List of contributions’.
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All your invoice information can always be found in our online service, where you can see your up-to-date payment situation. You can also print an invoice copy and pay the invoice in our service. At the same time, it is good to check in our service that your address and other contact information are up to date.
You will receive your YEL invoice from us as an electronic online invoice when your invoice is paid by a company and your e-invoice address can be found in the online invoice address registry (verkkolaskuosoite.fi).
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You can terminate your insurance for the duration of the family leave, if you will not be working at all during this time. Parental allowance is applied for from Kela. Parental allowance is determined based on the earned income under your YEL insurance. Do not terminate your YEL insurance if you work during your leave and your work input exceeds the confirmed YEL income lower limit (EUR 9,010.28 in 2024). In that case, make sure that the income under your YEL insurance corresponds to your work input during the leave.
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If your illness is short, keep your YEL insurance in effect. If you need to, you can apply for an extended term of payment for your YEL contributions in our online service.
If your disability lasts several months, you can terminate your YEL insurance to end on the day you fell ill. You can submit the termination notification in our online service. If you get back to being an entrepreneur after your illness, take out new YEL insurance.
If you apply for compensation from the self-employed person’s voluntary accident insurance, remember that the YEL insurance must be in force on the date of the accident or manifestation of the occupational disease.
Read more about what happens when a self-employed person falls ill
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Terminating your YEL insurance may come to question if your self-employment has ended completely or become so minor that your YEL income is lower than the lower limit specified for YEL insurance. If you no longer work in your company, you can terminate your YEL-insurance even if you don't close your business yet. Your company’s legal form, ownership structure or your position as an entrepreneur may also have changed so that you no longer need YEL insurance.
Terminate your YEL insurance by logging in to our online service with your personal online banking credentials or with a mobile certificate.
Read more about terminating YEL insurance
Are you also thinking about terminating TYEL insurance for your employees? Read more about terminating TyEL insurance
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It is possible to receive your YEL insurance letters and invoices in OmaPosti service. If you would also like to have your pension insurance letters and invoices sent there, you should elect to have your post directed to the OmaPosti service.
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You can get your YEL insurance decisions either by post or electronically on the Suomi.fi or OmaPosti services.
You can get decisions on your YEL insurance sent to the above-mentioned electronic services if you have activated either one of them. If you use both services, your post will generally be sent to the Suomi.fi Messages. To ensure that you receive notifications of new documents, make sure that you have given your current valid email address to the Suomi.fi Messages service. Log in to Suomi.fi to activate the Messages service.
When you buy YEL insurance, letters related to the starting of your insurance will be sent to the Suomi.fi or OmaPosti services. When applying for a change to your YEL income, applying for flexible YEL contributions or terminating your YEL insurance, our decision will be sent to one of these two services.
YEL invoices can be sent either by post or electronically.
Electronic invoices arrive quickly and are environmentally friendly. They are also easy to archive. You can choose whether you want the electronic invoice sent to your company’s invoice handling system or your online bank.
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According to Keva’s instructions, a pension insurance contribution should always be paid on work carried out in the public sector, even if the entrepreneur would not be obligated to take out YEL insurance due to the small scale of their activities. This is why your public sector customers may ask for a YEL insurance certificate.
If you have not taken out YEL insurance, the municipality will charge a JuEL insurance contribution on assignments. The share of the JuEL insurance of the invoice is some 6–8%.
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You need to have YEL insurance if the same seasonal activities continue annually and other YEL insurance conditions are met. Keep your YEL insurance in force continuously and year-round.
Estimate your YEL income based on the amount of work during your work months. If, for example, you work five months during the year, your YEL income is equal to the value of your work input during these months.
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The law was specified in terms of how entrepreneur's YEL income should be assessed. The basis for determining the YEL income remained unchanged. YEL income should correspond to the salary or compensation that should be paid if the entrepreneur's work was done by another equally skilled person instead of the entrepreneur.
In addition, pension companies check the level of the entrepreneur's YEL income every three years. The pension company establishes the YEL income and takes into account all information about the scope and quality of the entrepreneur's work input in the overall discretion.