Finland

Operating a business

Different types of companies	Number of partners/shareholders	Maximum and/or minimum capital	Liabilities	Registration fees
The Sole Proprietorship (Toiminimi)	1 partner	No minimum capital	Undefined	65€
Co-operative	Minimum 3 founders	Decided by the founders, no minimum capital. Participation shares must be of equal value.	Undefined	330€
General partnership (Avoin yhtiö, Ay)	Minimum 2 partners	No minimum capital	General Partner is personally liable and without limitation for the company's debts and obligations.	155€
Limited partnership (Kommandiittiyhtiö, Ky)	Minimum 2 partners + 1 silent partner	No minimum capital. The silent partner must make a capital investment in the partnership.	At least 1 of the members is liable for the debts and obligations of the company.	155€
Private limited company (Osakeyhtiö, Oy)	Minimum 1 person	2 500 €	Liability is limited to the amount contributed.	330€
Public limited company (Julkinen osakeyhtiö, Oyj)	Minimum 1 person	80 000€	Liability is limited to the amount contributed.	330€

Business setup procedures: When drawing up status, a prior checking is required to confirm that the company's corporate name is available. The founders prepare the articles of incorporation which must be dated, signed and should contain a status proposition for the company. As far as the registration is concerned, a request, made in 2 copies, in Finnish or Swedish, must be sent to the Trade Register, within the 6 months following the signature of the status. A bank certificate should be included, stipulating that the capital mentioned in the status, has been deposited in a bank account. The company is issued its legal entity after registration. The NBPR provides detailed information on setting up a business in Finland.
The competent organization: National Board of Patents and Registration of Finland (NBPR)

Legal weekly duration: Normal working hours may not exceed eight hours per day and 40 hours per week.
Retirement age: Employees can retire with a pension between the ages of 63 and 68.
Working contracts: Contracts can be either permanent contracts that remain valid for the time being or for a fixed term (specified in the contract). Permanent contracts (including permanent part-time contracts) represented 86,4% of the jobs in February 2007; the representation of fixed term contracts (including part-time fixed term contracts) was 13,6%. The number of people working under fixed term contracts is growing rapidly.

Minimum wage: Minimum wages are based on collective agreements; there is no standard minimum wage in Finland. An employer, as a member of the employer organisation which has concluded a collective agreement applicable in the sector, follows the collective agreement. An employer, as a non-member of the employer organisation, is also required to follow the generally binding collective agreement applicable in the sector.
Average wage: The average wage per hour was 13,80 EUR in the manufacturing industry (4th quarter 2006).
Social contributions: Social security contributions paid by employers: A private employer’s social security contribution for 2007 varies being 2,951%, 5,151% or 6,051%. The health insurance contribution of a private employer is 2.05% of salaries and the old-age pension contribution is 0.901%, 3.101% or 4.001% depending on the payment class.
Social security contributions paid by employees: - Health insurance contribution: medical treatment contribution 1.28% and daily allowance contribution 0.75;
- Unemployment insurance contribution: 0.58%;
- Pension insurance contribution: 4.3% for those aged under 53 years and 5.4% for those aged 53 years or more.