The United Kingdom will withdraw from the EU when the EU–UK withdrawal agreement enters into force on 1 February 2020. The withdrawal agreement dismantles all cooperation based on the UK’s EU membership in an orderly manner and provides for a transition period until the end of 2020, during which the relationship between the EU and the UK will continue under the current EU rules.

The free movement of persons, goods and services between the EU and the UK will continue until the end of the transition period. The withdrawal agreement safeguards only the status and rights of those EU citizens who already reside in the UK at the end of the transition period and continue to live there permanently and, correspondingly, the status and rights of UK citizens residing in EU countries at the end of 2020.

Most matters related to unemployment benefits and job seeking will remain unchanged until the end of 2020. During the transition period, the EU and the UK will negotiate on the future of social security of persons who move between the countries. Information about the end of the transition period and its impact on unemployment benefits and job seeking will be communicated at a later date.

Working abroad may affect your right to unemployment benefits in Finland. When working abroad you are usually covered by the unemployment security of the country you work in, subject to certain conditions. In accordance with EU legislation on the coordination of social security, you can transfer periods of employment and insurance from one country to another. During the transition period EU legislation on social security will be applied to UK cases.

If you are completely unemployed you can travel to look for work in another EU/EEA country, such as the UK, for a period of up to three months and receive earnings-related daily allowance from Finland. It is possible to receive daily allowance during the job search if you have been registered as an unemployed jobseeker in Finland for at least four weeks. You will need a special document (PD U2) issued by your unemployment fund for the job search. You will also need to register as a jobseeker in the target country within seven days of becoming unavailable in the Finnish labour market. The PD U2 document indicates the maximum daily allowance period for the job search abroad and the date before which you must register as a jobseeker in the target country. Ask your unemployment fund or the TE Services for more detailed instruction on what to do if you need to return to Finland or you get employed abroad.

If you are a posted worker sent from Finland to work in an EU country your A1 certificate granted by the Finnish Centre for Pensions remains unchanged during the transition period.

Benefits or income paid from another EU/EEA country or Switzerland primarily have the same effects on your daily allowance as corresponding benefits or income paid in Finland. Social security benefits are mainly treated the same as corresponding Finnish benefits, either as benefits that prevent the payment of daily allowance or benefits that reduce the amount of daily allowance. More information about the effects of benefits paid from the UK will be made available at a later date.  

If you are travelling to the UK to work or look for work, you should contact your unemployment fund and the TE Services to find out what you need to do and check with immigration authorities for information about your rights of residence are after the transition period.

Further information:
https://www.kela.fi/web/en/brexit
https://migri.fi/en/brexit/en
https://www.etk.fi/en/pension-services/insurance-while-working-abroad/brexit/