The profile of housing benefit recipients in Finland changed significantly in 2025 after students were transferred to a separate housing support system, leaving unemployed people and low-income households as the main beneficiaries of general housing assistance.
Data from Finland’s Social Insurance Institution, Kela, shows that 240,400 households received general housing benefit in December 2025, representing a decline of 141,600 households, or 37 per cent, compared with the same period in 2024.
The decrease followed a reform introduced in August 2025 that moved most students from the general housing benefit scheme to a separate student housing supplement.
As a result, the number of recipients of the student housing supplement rose sharply to 147,500 in December 2025, compared with just 7,300 a year earlier.
According to Kela, the change significantly altered the age distribution, employment status and household composition of people receiving general housing assistance.
Unemployed Households Become Main Beneficiaries
Unemployed people now account for the largest share of households receiving general housing benefit in Finland.
In December 2025, unemployed households represented 62 per cent of recipients, compared with 37 per cent in December 2024.
Meanwhile, working households accounted for 18 per cent of recipients.
Before the reform, students constituted a substantial proportion of beneficiaries, representing 35 per cent of households receiving general housing benefit in December 2024.
Kela research manager Signe Jauhiainen said the reform had changed the composition of those relying on the scheme.
“After students moved to the housing supplement, recipients are mainly unemployed and low-income workers,” Jauhiainen said in the agency’s release.
The figures indicate that general housing benefit is increasingly concentrated among households facing employment and income challenges, although the overall decline in recipients largely reflects the transfer of students to the separate support system.
More Families With Children Receive Housing Support
The reform also changed the composition of beneficiary households.
The proportion of single-person households receiving general housing benefit fell from 72 per cent in 2024 to 65 per cent in 2025.
In contrast, families with children increased their share from 21 per cent to 28 per cent over the same period.
The shift reflects the fact that many student households without children moved to the separate student housing supplement, while families with children continued to qualify for general housing benefit, subject to the applicable eligibility requirements.
Although younger adults remain an important group among recipients, their overall share has declined.
People aged between 20 and 24 accounted for just under 10 per cent of general housing benefit recipients in December 2025, compared with more than 20 per cent a year earlier.
The changes suggest that the general housing benefit scheme is increasingly serving households outside the student population.
Major Cities Continue to Record High Benefit Rates
Regional differences in housing benefit receipt persisted across Finland in 2025, with larger cities and some smaller municipalities recording relatively high proportions of beneficiaries.
Among residents under the age of 65, the share receiving general housing benefit reached 14.2 per cent in Vantaa and Outokumpu, while Lahti recorded 13.6 per cent.
In Helsinki, Jyväskylä, Turku and Tampere, the proportion stood at approximately 13 per cent.
Jauhiainen said the reform had reduced the prevalence of general housing benefit in university cities, where students had previously accounted for a substantial share of recipients.
“Previously, housing benefit was common in university cities. Now the shares have decreased, but receipt remains more common in larger cities and reflects differences in unemployment,” she said.
The figures indicate that employment conditions and household income continue to influence demand for housing assistance, even after the change in student support arrangements.
Finland’s Housing Benefit Spending Declines
Finland’s total expenditure on housing benefits also decreased in 2025, according to Kela.
The agency paid €2.07 billion in housing benefits during the year, representing a 13.7 per cent decline from 2024.
General housing benefit expenditure fell to €1.23 billion, down 26.8 per cent from the previous year.
Meanwhile, spending on the student housing supplement increased substantially, reaching €165 million in 2025, compared with €14.9 million in 2024.
The sharp increase in student housing supplement spending reflects the transfer of students into the separate support scheme following the August reform.
The figures demonstrate how the policy change redistributed housing assistance between the two programmes, while overall spending declined.
Policy Reform Reshapes Finland’s Housing Support System
The changes in Finland’s housing benefit system highlight how adjustments to social support programmes can influence the number and characteristics of people receiving assistance.
Although the number of households receiving general housing benefit fell substantially in 2025, the decline should be understood in the context of students moving to a separate scheme rather than as evidence that housing assistance needs have fallen by the same proportion.
With unemployed people, low-income workers and families with children making up a larger share of general housing benefit recipients, employment conditions and household finances remain important factors shaping demand for public support.
Kela’s figures provide an overview of how Finland’s housing assistance system has changed following the reform, with the general housing benefit scheme now serving a different population from the one it supported before August 2025.
