Statistics on Insurance for Work Abroad and Posted Workers
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Number of issued certificates grew largely
Table:
The number of A1 certificates issued by the Finnish Centre for Pensions more than doubled in 2023 compared to in 2022. The growth was mainly due to specifications made to the instructions. As of January 2023, people were advised to apply for an A1 certificate also for short business and education trips.
The A1 certificate states which country’s social security laws are applied to the person to whom the certificate has been issued. The Finnish Centre for Pensions issues the A1 certificates for coverage by Finnish social security.
A total of 31,400 A1 certificates were issued by the Finnish Centre for Pensions in 2023. The Finnish Centre for Pensions issued a total of 34,000 decisions on coverage by Finnish social security while working abroad.
Most certificates were issued to workers. Each year, more than 80 per cent of all A1 certificates issued are for workers. The number of A1 certificates issued for workers (26,500 certificates) more than doubled in 2023 compared to 2022.
The number of certificates issued for civil servants (3,200) more than quadrupled in 2023 compared to 2022.
In 2023, the number of A1 certificates issued to self-employed persons continued the growth that started earlier. In 2023, a total of 980 such certificates were issued. There were no significant changes in the number of certificates issued to other categories of persons compared to previous years.
In 2023, nearly 40 per cent of the certificates issued were for at least two years. The share of certificates granted for long periods more than doubled compared to 2022. As a rule, instead of individual certificates, an employer can apply for a certificate valid for two years covering work in all EU countries for a frequently travelling employee.
Of the issued certificates, 55 per cent concerned working in more than one country. The most common single-country destinations were Sweden and Spain.
Each year, most people who receive a certificate are men. However, in 2023, women’s share of certificate recipients grew from slightly over 20 to 32 per cent.
(Updated on 30 January 2024)
Statistical tables:
Read more on Etk.fi:
EC statistics:
- European Commission Reports on Labour Mobility
- European Commission: Posting of workers – Report on A1 portable documents issued in 2021
Contact us:
Statistics on insurance for work abroad and posted workers
Producer: Finnish Centre for Pensions
Website: Statistics on insurance for work abroad and posted workers
Subject area: Social protection
Part of the Official Statistics of Finland (OSF): No
ISSN: 2669-9052
Description
The statistics contains data on the number of persons posted from Finland to EU countries or countries with which Finland has a social security agreement or who work in several countries.
Data content
The statistics contains data on decisions regarding coverage by Finnish social security.
Classifications
target country, age, gender, personnel group, certificate’s period of validity
Methods of data collection and source
The data is based on solutions issued by the Finnish Centre for Pensions regarding the application of Finnish social security laws.
Update frequency
The data is updated once a year.
Time of completion or release
The data is released during the first half of the year following the statistical year. The time of release is notified each year in the release calendar for statistics https://www.etk.fi/en/statistics-2/statistics/release-calendar/.
Time series
The statistics has been released as of the year 2019. The time series is from the year 2005.
Key words
social insurance, workforce mobility, posted workers, working abroad, EU Regulation on social security, A1 certificate, social security agreement
A1 certificate, certificate of a posted worker
The A1 certificate states which country’s social security laws will be applied to the person to whom the certificate has been issued.
A person posted to an EU/EEA country, Switzerland, the United Kingdom or a country with which Finland has a social security agreement, and who continues to be covered by Finnish social security laws, needs a certificate (an A1 certificate in the EU/EEA area) to accrue pension to Finland. The certificate is issued, upon application, by the Finnish Centre for Pensions.
Age
In the statistics, the age of a person is their age at the end of the statistical year.
Automated decision
A decision on an application which is issued automatically by the processing system, without the input of a handler.
Change in posting status
A notification of change in foreign posting status filed by the employer or employee, for instance because a posting abroad has been terminated earlier than intended.
EU social security regulation
The mobility of persons moving between the EU Member States is regulated by the EU Regulation on social security 883/2004.
The Regulation is applied in EU countries, Iceland, Lichtenstein, Norway and Switzerland. The Withdrawal Agreement or the Trade and Cooperation Agreement between the European Union and the European Atomic Energy Community is applied to the United Kingdom.
Exemption
An agreement between authorities based on which the applicable social security rules determined for a person differ from what is regulated in the EU Regulation on social security or a bilateral social security agreement, for example, due to a long period of work abroad.
Processing time
The processing time begins on the date that the Finnish Centre for Pensions receives the application and ends on the date that the Finnish Centre for Pensions issues its decision.
Personnel group
The personnel groups referred to in the statistics are employer, sailor, grant recipient, civil servant, flight crew and self-employed person.
The division into personnel groups is based on the EU Regulation on social security and the social security agreements.
Posted worker
A worker whom a Finnish employer sends abroad to work for a fixed period. The pension of a posted worker will accrue under Finnish laws if the conditions for posting set in the EU Regulation on social security or a bilateral social security agreement are met.
Social security agreement
An agreement between two countries that regulates the social security of individuals who are mobile between these countries.
Finland has bilateral social security agreements with Australia, Canada, Chile, China, India, Israel, Japan, Québec, Republic of Korea and United States.
Worker who works in several countries
A person who works regularly in two or more countries.
Quality description: Statistics on insurance for work abroad and posted workers 2023
The statistics on insurance for work abroad and posted workers is published by the Finnish Centre for Pensions.
The Act on the Finnish Centre for Pensions states that the responsibilities of the institution include, for example, the compiling of statistics in its field of operation. The Planning Department at the Finnish Centre for Pensions is in charge of producing the statistics.
The statistics is financed by the Finnish Centre for Pensions.
Relevance of statistical information
The Statistics on insurance for work abroad and posted workers describes the number of workers and other personnel groups posted from Finland to EU and social security agreement countries. The data is based on solutions issued by the Finnish Centre for Pensions regarding the application of Finnish social security laws.
Upon application, the Finnish Centre for Pensions decides whether person is to be covered by Finnish social security laws in situations in which, under the EU Regulation on social security, the person can continue to be covered by Finnish social security laws. A person who continues to be covered by Finnish social security laws will be issued an A1 certificate.
The Finnish Centre for Pensions also decides whether a person can be issued a certificate or a decision on coverage under Finnish social security laws based on the social security agreements in force.
The competence to issue the above-described decisions lies solely with the Finnish Centre for Pensions. Hence, the statistics offers a comprehensive overall view of posted workers and other personnel groups posted from Finland to EU and social security agreement countries.
The statistics does not include persons who
- work in EU or social security agreement countries in a local employment relationship, or
- work in other than EU or social security agreement countries.
The same person can be issued a certificate several times in one year, so no direct conclusions can be drawn on how many persons have gone abroad from Finland to EU and social security agreement countries per year. The Finnish Centre for Pensions does not monitor the actual movement between countries of persons who have received the certificate.
Based on the statistics, it is also impossible to determine whether the persons are (under labour law) posted workers or whether directives or other regulations on posted workers can be applied to them.
The statistics includes the number of received applications and decisions issued, divided by country and personnel groups. The data is classified according to age, gender and target country.
Correctness and accuracy of data
The data of the statistics is based on the total sample of the decisions issued and applications received by the Finnish Centre for Pensions in each given year. The data has been compiled based on implementation data used within the earnings-related pension system.
Flaws detected in the statistics are immediately corrected on the website. A separate bulletin is issued on significant errors.
Timeliness and promptness of published data
The data in the statistics is released once a year at the beginning of the year following the statistical year. The date of publication of the statistics is presented in the Release Calendar on the website of the Finnish Centre for Pensions (https://www.etk.fi/en/research-statistics-and-projections/statistics/release-calendar/).
The data in the statistics is final.
Coherence and comparability of data
The statistics has been released as of the year 2019. The time series has been produced in retrospect as of the statistical year 2005.
The comparability of the time series depends on, among other things, the following amendments:
- The register that the statistics are based on were changed in 2015.
- The number of EU and social security agreement countries has grown.
- The definitions of the personnel groups have changed due to changes to regulations.
- The awareness of the necessity of the certificates has grown. This, for one, has led to a growth in the number of applications for certificates.
The European Commission regularly publishes statistics on the labour force mobility within the EU and on granted A1 certificates. The statistics on the A1 certificates granted by Finland are based on the decisions issued by the Finnish Centre for Pensions. For the main part, they are identical with this statistics.
Availability and clarity of data
The data on the statistics are published annually on the website of the statistics and in the statistical database of the Finnish Centre for Pensions at https://tilastot.etk.fi/.
The description of the statistics is published on the website of the statistics.
The statistical service of the Finnish Centre for Pensions provides additional information about the statistics upon request.