- The employment authority initiates the assessment for immigrants who are unemployed jobseekers under the Act on the Organisation of Employment Services.
- The municipality initiates the assessment for immigrants who are not unemployed jobseekers or imminently entering the labour market. Learn more about the assessment target groups.
The wellbeing services county takes part in preparing the assessment at the request of the employment authority/municipality when the immigrant needs services that require coordination of the services of the employment authority/municipality and the wellbeing services county.
Since life circumstances are fluid and multidimensional, it is not always clear-cut if it is the municipality or the employment authority that is responsible for carrying out the immigrant’s assessment.
The basic premise underlying the Act is that the employment authority prepares the assessment for jobseeker customers, however. The employment authority cannot shift this responsibility to the municipality.
Assessment in employment services
The assessment is carried out for immigrant customers of the employment services as a part of the jobseeker’s service process. The initial interview included in the assessment is conducted by experts of the employment authorities. More specific measures (such as determination of level of literacy or Finnish/Swedish language skills) may also be carried out as an outsourced service.
The initial interview included in the assessment is often conducted by an expert in integration promotion. This ensures that the service process is initiated in accordance with the customer’s service needs.
Assessment in other municipal services
The assessment is carried out by the municipality for immigrants who are not unemployed jobseekers and are not immediately seeking to enter the job market. Under the Integration Act, the municipality shall prepare an assessment for the persons referred to in section 2, subsection 3 or 4 of that Act, i.e. beneficiaries of international protection and their family members, as well as for persons receiving social assistance on a non-temporary basis, persons receiving child home care allowance, immigrants who entered Finland as unaccompanied minors, victims of human trafficking and persons otherwise in need of assessment.
The municipality may also prepare an assessment at the request of the immigrant concerned or for persons regarding whom contact referred to in the Integration Act has been made, when the municipality determines them to be in need of assessment. This provides the municipality with an opportunity for early identification of the need for services promoting integration and other services, particularly in respect of persons who might otherwise be wholly excluded from measures promoting integration.
Based on the assessment, the municipality may refer immigrants to, for example, services provided by the municipality and other available services or to the activities of CSOs. The assessment prepared by the municipality may also be used to support students and workers settling in the municipality, for example.
Read more:
Government Decree on the Assessment of Skills and Integration Service Needs (in Finnish)
Act on the Organisation of Employment Services (in Finnish)
Social Assistance Act
