Intake in Finland

Finland has two main student intakes: autumn and spring. The autumn intake starts in August or September, and the spring intake starts in January. Autumn is the bigger one, and most English-taught programmes take new students then.

The intakes in Finland follow fixed application windows on Studyinfo.fi, the country’s official application portal. Many programmes starting in autumn 2027 take applications from 7 to 21 January 2027. The January 2027 round ran from 31 August to 10 September 2026, and it’s now closed. Applicants from outside the EU/EEA and Switzerland also pay a one-time fee of EUR 100 (INR 10,970).

In this article, you’ll find how the Finland intakes work, the dates you need for 2027 and what happened with the Finland January intake 2027 deadline. We’ll also walk through the application steps and how to choose the right start for you.

What Are the Main Intakes in Finland?

The two main intakes in Finland are autumn and January. Autumn is the big one, and most English-taught bachelor’s and master’s programmes start then. January is smaller, and it’s mostly offered by universities of applied sciences (UAS).

In case you’re new to the system, Finland has two kinds of higher education schools. Universities lean towards research. UAS focuses more on practical, job-ready skills. Our guide on the education system in Finland explains the difference well.

This table shows how the two Finland intakes stack up against each other:

Intake	Classes Start	You Usually Apply In	How Many Programmes
Autumn	August or September	January (joint application)	Most English-taught programmes
January	January	Late August to mid-September	A small number, mostly at UAS

One thing confuses a lot of students. The month you apply in is not the month you start. You apply in January to start in autumn, and you apply in late summer to start the next January.

Also, not every course offers both starts. Before you plan your move to study in Finland, open your course page and check which intake it actually runs.

Autumn Intake in Finland

Of all the intakes in Finland, autumn gives you the most choice. Classes start in late August or early September. Study in Finland, the official guide from the Finnish National Agency for Education, lists hundreds of English-taught programmes for autumn 2027.

Many of them take part in the national joint application from 7 to 21 January 2027. You fill in one form and can apply to as many as six programmes in one go. If you’re torn between courses, that’s really useful.

Some universities don’t follow those dates, though. They run their own rounds, and a few of them start taking applications in late 2026.

Some of the best universities in Finland have already put out their autumn 2027 dates, and you can see them below:

University	Programme Level	Autumn 2027 Application Period
University of Helsinki	International master’s	5 to 19 January 2027
Aalto University	Master’s	7 December 2026 to 5 January 2027
Aalto University	English-taught bachelor’s	7 to 22 January 2027
University of Turku	International bachelor’s and master’s	7 to 21 January 2027
University of Oulu	International programmes	7 to 21 January 2027
LUT University	Master’s (rolling admission)	1 October 2026 to 31 March 2027
Oulu University of Applied Sciences (Oamk)	Rolling admission	30 October 2026 to 16 April 2027

Look closely and three things stand out:

• Aalto University closes before the national window opens: Its master’s round ends on 5 January 2027, two days before the joint application begins on 7 January.
• LUT University’s round is already open: It reviews applications as they arrive, and a programme can close early once its seats are taken.
• Helsinki takes master’s students only once a year: University of Helsinki has a single application period for its international master’s programmes.

In short, autumn doesn’t have one deadline for everyone. The date that matters is the one printed on your programme page.

Finland January Intake 2027 Deadline

The Finland January intake 2027 deadline was 10 September 2026, at 3 pm Finnish time. Applications opened on 31 August 2026, so the window was only around 11 days long. It’s closed now.

This round is a lot smaller than autumn. In the last January-start round, 34,700 people applied for just over 10,900 study places. Most of those places were at universities of applied sciences, with only two universities taking part.

The January 2027 round worked like this:

Detail	What It Meant
Application period	31 August to 10 September 2026
Programme choices	Up to six on one application
Results	Turku University of Applied Sciences, for example, shares all results by 19 November 2026
Classes begin	January 2027

If you missed the Finland January intake 2027 deadline, don’t panic. You still have a few routes left:

• Extra rounds in winter: Finnish institutions are allowed to open extra application periods in November and December for seats that stay empty.
• Rolling admission: A few programmes take applications outside the joint rounds, and you can find them by filtering Studyinfo.fi by start date.
• Switching to autumn 2027: The 7 to 21 January 2027 window has many more courses, and you’ll have more time to get your documents in order.

Honestly, a lot of students who miss the Finland January intake 2027 deadline end up better off in autumn. There are more seats and more courses to pick from.

Finland Intakes for International Students: Application Dates

Finland intakes for international students run through three kinds of application routes. The joint application has fixed national dates. Separate applications and rolling admissions are set by each university, and those dates can vary quite a bit.

This table puts the 2027 dates in one place:

Study Start	Application Period	Where It Stands Now
January 2027	31 August to 10 September 2026 (joint application)	Closed
August or September 2027	7 to 21 January 2027 (joint application)	Opens in January
Autumn 2027 (separate or rolling)	Set by each programme, some from late 2026	Some already open

The three routes sound alike, but each one works a little differently:

• Joint application: This is the national round on Studyinfo.fi. Everyone gets the same dates, and you can list up to six choices on one form.
• Separate application: Here, a university runs its own round with its own deadline, like Aalto University does for master’s programmes.
• Rolling admission: Applications are checked one by one as they come in, so seats can fill up well before the final date.

Each Finland intake for international students also comes with a document deadline. It usually falls a little after the form closes. At University of Turku, for instance, your attachments are due one week after the application deadline, and late documents can sink an application.

Suggested Read: PhD in Finland

How to Apply for an Intake in Finland

You apply for all the intakes in Finland online, through Studyinfo.fi. If you’re from outside the EU/EEA and Switzerland, there’s a one-time fee of EUR 100 (INR 10,970). That one payment covers every application you send for the same study term.

The process takes six steps:

1. Find your programme: Search Studyinfo.fi for courses at your degree level that start when you want to start.
2. Read the programme page carefully: It lists the entry rules, the application period and the date your documents are due.
3. Check the application route: Find out whether the course uses the joint application, a separate round or rolling admission.
4. Prepare your documents: Get your transcripts, degree certificate, passport and English test score ready before the window opens.
5. Submit the form and pay the fee: Send everything before the deadline. If you want a scholarship, you’ll usually ask for it on this same form.
6. Accept your offer: Confirm your place by the date in your offer, then apply for your residence permit on Enter Finland.

Once the offer comes in, keep these rules in mind:

• You can only accept one place per term: The choice is final, and your other applications for that term are cancelled.
• Deferring is hard: You can skip your first year only for set reasons, like your own illness, military service or parental leave.
• Your permit takes time: Finland’s immigration service (Migri) decides most first student permits within a month, though some take up to three months.

These are the main costs and checks for a student visa for Finland, which is officially called a residence permit for studies:

Permit Detail	Amount or Rule
Online application fee	EUR 600 (INR 65,820)
Paper application fee	EUR 750 (INR 82,275)
Money you must show	EUR 800 (INR 87,760) a month, or EUR 9,600 (INR 10,53,120) a year
Work during studies	Up to 30 hours a week on average

If you haven’t paid your tuition yet, the first year’s fee also needs to be in your bank account when you apply. Many students miss this, so sort it out early.

Suggested Read: Validity of IELTS Score

How to Choose the Right Finland Intake

Choosing between the Finland intakes mostly depends on three things: your course, your documents and your budget. Autumn has the widest range of programmes. January works for a smaller group of students whose course happens to start then.

Find your situation in this table and see which intake suits you:

Your Situation	Better Intake	Why
Your course starts only in autumn	Autumn	Most English-taught programmes begin in August or September
You missed the September 2026 round	Autumn 2027	January seats are limited, and autumn has far more courses
You haven’t booked your English test yet	Autumn	You’ll have more time before the January 2027 windows
You want a master’s at University of Helsinki	Autumn	It takes international master’s students only once a year

Next, think about money. Students from outside the EU/EEA usually pay EUR 9,000 to EUR 20,000 (INR 9,87,300 to 21,94,000) a year in tuition. Our guide on Finland university fees gives you the full picture.

Living costs matter just as much. Study in Finland suggests keeping EUR 900 to EUR 1,200 (INR 98,730 to 1,31,640) a month, which is more than the legal minimum. You can read more on the cost of living in Finland.

Go through this checklist before you settle on a Finland intake for international students:

• English test: Book your IELTS, TOEFL or PTE early. Scores last two years and must still be valid during the application period.
• Scholarships: Many universities only let you request a scholarship on the admission form itself. University of Helsinki, for example, offers 50% or 100% waivers on master’s tuition of EUR 13,000 to EUR 18,000 (INR 14,26,100 to 19,74,600) a year.
• Permit time: Leave yourself one to three months for the residence permit before classes start.
• Part-time work: You’re allowed to work up to 30 hours a week on average. Study in Finland still warns students not to count on that pay for tuition, so read about jobs in Finland before you plan your budget around it.

Suggested Read: Erasmus Mundus Scholarship

Conclusion

The intakes in Finland come down to two starts, autumn and January. For most students, autumn is the one to aim for, since many programmes take applications from 7 to 21 January 2027. The January 2027 round is done, and it closed on 10 September 2026.

If you’re aiming for autumn 2027, here’s what to do next:

• Shortlist your programmes: Pick up to six on Studyinfo.fi and write down each one’s start date.
• Mark the early deadlines: Aalto University’s master’s round closes on 5 January 2027, and some rolling rounds are already open.
• Get your papers ready: Book your English test now and collect your transcripts.
• Plan your money: Budget for tuition, the EUR 100 (INR 10,970) fee and EUR 800 (INR 87,760) a month in living funds.

Still unsure which Finland intake fits your course, or which deadline applies to you? Book a free 1:1 counselling session with upGrad’s study abroad experts. They’ll help you shortlist programmes, check your documents and plan the rest of your study abroad journey.