Report absence data regardless of whether an employee has had absences.
Only report absence data for your employees who are in an employment relationship or public-sector service relationship. No data is reported, for example, for board members or recipients of non-wage compensation for work.
You can report absence data in a separate report or in conjunction with the payment of wages. In either case, report the data by submitting an earnings payment report.
The data should be reported no later than in the next earnings payment report following an absence. For example, data about absences in January must be reported in the February report at the latest. As a result, data users have access to absence data sufficiently quickly.
Reporting absence data to the Incomes Register is voluntary, but recommended. You may start reporting absence data to the Incomes Register at any time, including in the middle of the calendar year.
Always enter the time period for reporting absences even if there were no absences.
Report the employee’s time period for reporting absences in conjunction with each payday. Report the data even if the employee was not absent.
The time period for reporting absences is the period over which you are reporting absence data. As a rule, enter the data on every earnings payment report.
Enter the following data for the time period for reporting absences:
Start date: The day until which absence periods were previously reported. For example, the day following the end date of the previous reporting period.
End date: The day until which absences are known by the payer.
If an employee has not had any absences, all you need to do is enter the time period for reporting absences. If there have been absences, also enter paid and unpaid periods of absence.
If an absence has been agreed for a future time period, such as parental leave or a rehabilitation period, only report it when all the absences preceding that time period are also known.
Ensure that the time period for reporting absences continues irrefutably from one report to the next.
When you report the time period for reporting absences in every earnings payment report, data users have full access to absence data in the Incomes Register without needing to request separate certificates for absences.
If there have been absences, report the time period for reporting absences and the periods of absence
If an employee has been absent, report not only the time period for reporting absences but also the periods of absence. Report paid and unpaid periods separately.
Only report full-day absences. Report part-time absences if sick leave that lasts at least one full day has begun in the middle of a workday.
An unpaid absence is a continuous absence during which an employee will not receive wages. If there have been several periods of absence, report each of them separately.
Enter the following data for each unpaid absence:
Reason for absence: Report only one reason for each period of absence.
Start date of absence: Enter the start date of each continuous period of absence.
If the absence continues and the reason remains the same, you can give the same start date in a later report and change the end date of the absence.
End date of absence: Enter the end date of each continuous period of absence.
If the absence continues indefinitely, enter the end date of the employment relationship or, for example, the last day of the calendar year as the end date.
In addition, always specify the time period for reporting absences. Make sure that the period of absence reported is included in the time period for reporting absences.
The start date of the time period for reporting absences must be the same as or earlier than the start date of the period of absence. Similarly, the end date must be the same or later.
For example, if one of your employees is absent on 15–17 January and on 31 January, the start date of the time period for reporting absences must be 15 January or earlier and the end date must be 31 January or later.
In other words, the time period for reporting absences means the period over which you are reporting absence data. In contrast, the periods of absence reported indicate when your employee was absent.
Also, ensure that the time period for reporting absences continues irrefutably from one report to the next.
A paid absence is a continuous absence, during which an employee will receive wages. If there have been several periods of absence, report each of them separately.
Enter the following data for each paid absence:
Reason for absence: Report only one reason for each period of absence.
See our detailed guidance for the options available as reasons for absence: Section 4: Paid absences
Wages paid during the absence: Specify the part of wages that was paid during the absence.
Start date of absence: Enter the start date of each continuous period of absence.
If a continuous absence is still continuing and you have already applied for compensation for the absence from the Social Insurance Institution of Finland (Kela), enter the day following the end date of the previous period as the start date of the new period.
In other words, do not report the same absence again for the period for which you have already applied for compensation from Kela.
End date of absence: Enter the end date of each continuous period of absence.
If the absence continues indefinitely, enter the end date of the employment relationship or, for example, the last day of the calendar year as the end date.
If you are submitting a reimbursement application to Kela at the same time, enter the date until which you can report wages as the end date of the absence. If the paid absence continues after this date, also specify ‘Absence continues, until when’.
Number of days of absence: Enter the number of working days included in the period of absence.
Include the following working days in the number:
the days on which the employee was absent for the entire working day and received wages; and
the days on which the employee was absent for part of the day due to part-time child care leave or rehabilitation.
Also, specify ‘Absence continues, until when’, meaning the estimated end date of the absence if you know that the paid absence will continue after the period of absence you have reported but you cannot yet report the total wages for the duration of the absence.
If the period of absence you have reported covers the entire duration of the absence, do not enter the estimated end date.
If required, also specify Kela’s reimbursement application data.
In addition, always specify the time period for reporting absences. Make sure that the period of absence reported is included in the time period for reporting absences.
The start date of the time period for reporting absences must be the same as or earlier than the start date of the period of absence. Similarly, the end date must be the same or later.
For example, if one of your employees is absent on 15–17 January and on 31 January, the start date of the time period for reporting absences must be 15 January or earlier and the end date must be 31 January or later.
In other words, the time period for reporting absences means the period over which you are reporting absence data. In contrast, the periods of absence reported indicate when your employee was absent.
Also, ensure that the time period for reporting absences continues irrefutably from one report to the next.
Employer: submit a reimbursement application to Kela at the same time
As an employer, you can apply for compensation from Kela using the Incomes Register’s earnings payment report.
