Register data for research use

The Pension Register contains information on old-age pensions, disability pensions and other pension benefits granted as earnings-related pensions.

The Earnings and Accrual Register contains information generated in connection with insuring work for which earnings-related pensions accrue: periods of employment and self-employment, as well as unsalaried periods due to, for example, unemployment, studies and parenthood.

The privacy notices of the Finnish Centre for Pensions’ register data (in Finnish) are posted on the website of the Finnish Centre for Pensions. Model descriptions of the field lists of the research data sets are also available.

Descriptions of field lists:

• Content of Pension Register data items compiled for research purposes (pdf)
• Content of Earnings Register data items compiled for research purposes (pdf)

Read more on Etk.fi

• Register descriptions
• Data Protection

Read more:

• Pensions Register (Data resources catalogue, aineistokatalogi.fi)
• Pension-insured employment in Earnings Register (Data resources catalogue, aineistokatalogi.fi)

The Finnish Centre for Pensions cannot issue a permit for register data if the extraction of research data is covered by the Act on the Secondary Use of Health and Social Data (hereinafter Act on Secondary Use).

When the data of controllers covered by the Secondary Use Act are aggregated, Findata is responsible for the processing of the data permit application and the application for amendments to a previous permit and the permit decision. When assessing a competent authority, all data relating to the research and covered by the act are considered. The application for a permit will follow Findata’s instructions, and the permit and selection of data comply with Findata’s instructions. If Findata processes the permit, the total cost estimate of the permit decision and the data sampling is calculated by Findata.

Findata is responsible for the data permit or the appeal permit if the following register data of the Finnish Centre for Pensions are merged with

• the data of a private sector social and health care service provider, or
• data saved in the Kanta service.
• social and health data of an authority referred to in the Act on Secondary Use.

The authorities listed in the Act on Secondary Use are the following:

• Regional State Administrative Agencies (AVI),
• Kela (the Social Insurance Institution of Finland),
• Finnish Medicines Agency (Fimea),
• National Supervisory Authority for Welfare and Health (Valvira),
• Finnish Social and Health Data Permit Authority Findata,
• Ministry of Social Affairs and Health (STM),
• Finnish institute for health and welfare (THL), and
• Finnish Institute of Occupational Health (TTL).

As regulated in the Act on Secondary Use, the Finnish Centre for Pensions provides free guidance to researchers and releases the data according to Findata’s instructions. Data extracted based on the Act on Secondary Use must be released to a secure operating environment as referred to in the Act.

A secure operating environment is required for all purposes of use specified in the Act on Secondary Use for which a data permit is needed. These purposes of use include scientific research, statistics, teaching, as well as planning and reporting duties of an authority.

Read more:

• Findata Permits

If the extraction of the research data is not subject to the Act on the Secondary Use of Health and Social Data (hereinafter Act on Secondary Use), the data permit and data extraction is done according to the instructions of the Finnish Centre for Pensions.

Permit application

Address a freely formulated permit application to the Finnish Centre for Pensions and include the following information:

• the title of the research, the name of the research organisation and principal researcher (and the signature of the principal researcher), an up-to-date list of the research team and the research plan;
• name of controller (university, research institution or individual researcher);
• description of required register data;
• statement on how the data will be linked with other datasets;
• statement on how the data will be protected against unauthorised use (data protection);
• where the research or research article will be published;
• how and when the research data will be destroyed or archived.

In the research plan, justify the need for individual-level personal data and explain why the research cannot be conducted without these data.

If individual-level data are not required, the necessary information will be provided in the form of statistical data, in which case no permit application procedure is needed. If the research data is small and includes only statistical data (no personal data), access can be granted for free as an information service.

Privacy protection is also ensured for statistical datasets.

Submit the signed application (including attachments in pdf format) to the address tutkimusaineistot(at)etk.fi or by post to the address listed below.

Finnish Centre for Pensions
Planning Department
Statistics Manager
FI-00065 ELÄKETURVAKESKUS, Finland

Data permit

The Finnish Centre for Pensions grants the permission to private and public pension providers’ data in pension and earnings- and accrual registers for scientific research purposes. The permit of use is granted for a fixed period and for the necessary register data required by the research plan.

The data’s period of use and restrictions of use are stated in the terms and conditions of the permit. Before the data is delivered, the researchers must sign a non-disclosure agreement. The permit decision is delivered to the applicant by e-mail (as a pdf file).

The Finnish Centre for Pensions charges direct staff and IT costs for the permit decision and for register data extraction. An estimate of the costs is given in advance.

Processing time

The permit application is processed without delay. On average, the permit process takes one month. Preparing the application document carefully before submitting the application speeds up its processing.

The data are extracted from the Pension Register and Earnings and Accrual Register in accordance with the provisions of the permit. On average, the research data is delivered in one month.

However, if required documents are missing or if the research requires permit decisions and data extractions by several registrars, the whole process may take from one month to one year.

The Finnish Centre for Pensions charges direct staff and IT costs for the permit decision and for register data extraction. An estimate of the costs is given in advance.

If Findata processes the permit, the total cost estimate of the permit decision and the data sampling is calculated by Findata.  When Findata processes the permit, the Finnish Centre for Pensions issues a cost estimate for the extraction costs from its registers in accordance with the secondary legislation.

Fees of the Finnish Centre for Pensions in 2025

Register data extraction and delivery or other required data processing

*The basis of calculation is the price of a person-workday. Processing the data permit takes approximately one workday.

** One register data extraction takes approximately one workday, and the costs includes computational IT service costs.

More on other sites:

• Regulation (EU) 2016/679) of the European Parliament and of the Council on the protection of natural persons with regard to the processing of personal data and on the free movement of such data, and repealing Directive 95/46/EC (General Data Protection Regulation)
• Data Protection Act (finlex.fi)
• Act on the Openness of Government Activities (finlex.fi)
• Act on the Secondary Use of Health and Social Data (in Finnish, finlex.fi)