Qualified medical doctors

This site is aimed at a medical professional, i.e. a doctor, willing to become and to work as a licensed doctor in Finland. The application process depends on your nationality and where you have completed your education.

Different situations are listed below and discussed in detail in separate sections.

 

Note: this site is under update, please be patient.

General

To work as a doctor in Finland you must be licensed by Valvira, Finland’s National Supervisory Authority for Welfare and Health. Applicants may be granted a licence to practice while some applicants may be issued a more limited “authorisation to practice” which means working under the supervision of another licensed doctor before full authorisation.

The licensing process is set out in the Finnish Act on Health Care Professionals. The type of licence you will be granted depends on your nationality and where you trained as a doctor.

Citizenship & country where you trained

If you have completed your medical qualification in an EU/EEA country, your qualification will be in general recognised automatically across all the other member states (this comes from medical and specialist training having been harmonised in the EU/EEA area). However, if your qualification does not meet the requirements under the European Directive on the recognition of professional qualifications, Valvira may request some compensation measures.

If you have completed your medical qualification outside EU/EEA area,Valvira will evaluate your qualification separately. You will also be asked to complete a six-month period of supervised medical practice in Finland and sit a three-part written examination before you can be licensed to practice medicine in Finland. If your qualification has been approved and you have been licensed to practice medicine by an EU/EEA state, then the process is easier.

If you are a medical student studying outside Finland, you may work as a doctor in Finland on a temporary basis, provided that you meet certain requirements. See Medical students.

If you are a licensed doctor and a citizen of the Nordic countries, you are entitled to be automatically licensed in all the other Nordic Agreement countries. See Nordic doctors.