SYL: Income limits for family reunions would hit Finnish students

The National Union of University Students in Finland (SYL) is troubled by the legislative changes in preparation at the Ministry of the Interior regarding income limits for family reunions. The draft proposes that the income limits would be applied also to Finnish citizens. Current legislation on income limits does not apply to citizens of Finland.

Every year, hundreds of Finnish students participate in studies or traineeships in countries outside the European Union. Studies show that many of these students find a long term partner abroad. “We do not see what the Government wants to accomplish through the proposed changes. If the bill were to be carried in its current form, the low income level of students would make it impossible for their spouse to move to Finland. This kind of legislation would also prevent highly educated couples and families to temporarily live in Finland as their income level would be too low. We worry that the legislation would force Finns with a higher education to move abroad in order to be with their loved ones. We cannot afford this kind of brain drain,” says SYL President Heikki Koponen.

The proposed changes on family reunion are still being drafted, and a government bill has not yet been proposed. SYL appeals to the Ministry of the Interior and the Government: extending income limits to be applied also to Finnish citizens is a change for which we can see only negative consequences.

Contact details:

President Heikki Koponen, firstname.surname@syl.fi, +358 44 906 5007
Social Policy Officer Silja Silvasti, firstname.surname@syl.fi, +358 41 515 2233

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