Apply for the right to use the interpreter services for persons with disabilities
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You have the right to use the interpreter services for persons with disabilities if
- you have a hearing impairment, a vision and hearing impairment or a speech impairment and you need an interpreter because of it
- you can express yourself with the help of an interpreter and you use a functioning communication method
- you have a municipality of residence (kotikunta) in Finland.
Examples of communication methods:
- Finnish sign language or Finnish-Swedish sign language
- sign-supported speech in Finnish or Swedish
- speech interpretation
- text-to-speech and speech-to-text interpretation
- other communication methods used by persons with a speech impairment, such as communication with pictures.
How to apply for the right to use the services
- Fill in the form Vammaisen henkilön tulkkauspalveluhakemus TU 1 (PDF, in Finnish).
- Save the blank form to your device. Do not fill in the form directly in the browser because some of the information may not be saved that way.
- Open the form with Adobe Reader and fill it in.
- Save the completed application to your device. Note that the application must be in PDF format.
- Send your application in the OmaKela e-service (available in Finnish and Swedish):
- Log in to OmaKela and select Tee hakemus tai ilmoita muutoksista (Submit an application or report changes).
- Select Vammaisten tulkkauspalvelu (Interpreter services for persons with disabilities) and choose the benefit you are applying for.
- If you submit your application in OmaKela, you do not need to sign it.
- If you have supporting documents, send them via OmaKela after you have submitted your application. If they are paper documents, you can photograph or scan them. Check the list of supporting documents you need to send.
- Visit OmaKela to see if Kela has made a decision on your application.
You can also use Finnish sign language to apply for the right to use the interpreter services for persons with disabilities. You must book an appointment to submit your application.
Book an appointment in the remote service (available in Finnish and Swedish).
Book an appointment in another way.
If you cannot use OmaKela, mail your application to Kela. Save the form Vammaisen henkilön tulkkauspalveluhakemus TU 1 (PDF, in Finnish) to your device and fill it in after saving it. Print out the completed form and send it and the supporting documents to Kela, PL 10, 00056 Kela.
You usually have to apply for the right to use the interpreter services only once. You have to submit a separate application if you want to apply for more hours of interpreter services or for interpreter services for your studies, a remote interpretation device or an interpreter for travel abroad.
You will get instructions on how to book a help session on how to use the interpreter services for persons with disabilities with the decision Kela issues to you on your right to use the interpreter services.
Things to remember when you apply for the right to use the interpreter services for persons with disabilities
- If you have a hearing impairment, fill in the form Asiakastietolomake TU 10 (PDF, in Finnish).
- If you have a speech impairment, fill in the form Asiakastietolomake TU 11 (PDF, in Finnish).
- If you have a vision and hearing impairment, fill in the form Asiakastietolomake TU 12 (PDF, in Finnish).
- Please also send us a copy of a statement issued by a social welfare or healthcare professional or another professional that has the following information:
- what kind of disability or condition you have and why you need an interpreter
- the situations in which you need interpretation
- which communication methods you use
- an assessment written by the issuer of the statement that tells us how having access to interpreter services could help you.
Tell the Centre for Interpreting Services for the Disabled if
- your email address changes
- your phone number or other contact information changes
- your communication methods change
- you move abroad
- you get interpreter services based on another Act than the Act on Interpretation Services for Persons with Disabilities (for example the Employment Accidents Insurance Act, the Motor Liability Insurance Act or the Basic Education Act)
- your health status changes and you no longer need interpreter services.
Contact the Centre for Interpreting Services for the Disabled to report changes.
You can also use the customer information form to report changes.
You will usually lose your right to use the interpreter services for persons with disabilities if
- you move abroad
- you get interpreter services based on another Act than the Act on Interpretation Services for Persons with Disabilities
- your health status changes and you no longer need interpreter services.
How to submit a customer information form
- Fill in the right customer information form (asiakastietolomake).
- If you have a hearing impairment, fill in the form Asiakastietolomake TU 10 (PDF, in Finnish).
- If you have a speech impairment, fill in the form Asiakastietolomake TU 11 (PDF, in Finnish).
- If you have a vision and hearing impairment, fill in the form Asiakastietolomake TU 12 (PDF, in Finnish).
- Save the blank form to your device. Do not fill in the form directly in the browser because some of the information may not be saved that way.
- Open the form with Adobe Reader and fill it in.
- Save the completed form to your device. Note that the application must be in PDF format.
- Submit your customer information form in the OmaKela e-service (available in Finnish and Swedish):
- Log in to OmaKela and select Tee hakemus (Submit an application).
- Select Vammaisten tulkkauspalvelu (Interpreter services for persons with disabilities) as the subject of your message and attach the form to the message.
- If you submit your form in OmaKela, you do not need to sign it.
If you cannot use OmaKela, mail your customer information form to Kela. Save the form to your device and fill it in after saving it. Print out the completed form and send it to Kela, PL 10, 00056.
How to use the interpreter services for persons with disabilities
Once you have been granted the right to use the interpreter services, you can ask for a help session that gives you an introduction to how to use them.
The help session covers such topics as:
- What are the interpreter services?
- What is the role of the interpreter and what responsibilities does the interpreter have?
- How do you book an interpreter?
- How many hours of interpreter services can you use?
- What kind of information do you need to give to Kela?
The help session is meant for new customers. However, you can ask for a help session even if you have used the interpreter services before.
The help session is voluntary, and the time it takes will be deducted from the number of interpreter service hours granted to you. Read more about how many hours of interpreter services you can get.
The decision you get from Kela on interpreter services comes with instructions on how to book a help session.
Contact the Centre for Interpreting Services for the Disabled to book your help session. The Centre will find suitable interpreters to guide you through the help session. You can also ask, for example, a close relative, your contact person, your assistant or your speech therapist to attend the help session with you.
If there is not enough time to go through everything, the Centre can arrange for another help session. You can keep the instruction material.
After the help session, we will monitor your use of the interpreter services for 3 months to see if the help session was successful and if you use the services.
We will contact you if you do not use the interpreter services during that time. You can get more help with how to use the services if you need it.
Additional hours of interpreter service
In one calendar year, you have the right to get interpreter services for
- 180 hours if you have a hearing or speech impairment
- 360 hours if you have a vision and hearing impairment.
You will be told how many hours of interpreter services you have left every time an interpreter is assigned to you. If the hours you have are not enough, you can apply to get more hours of interpreter services.
We recommend that you apply for additional hours well before you run out of hours.
How to apply for more hours
- Fill in the form Vammaisen henkilön tulkkauspalvelu TU 1 (PDF, in Finnish).
- Save the blank form to your device. Do not fill in the form directly in the browser because some of the information may not be saved that way.
- Open the form with Adobe Reader and fill it in.
- Save the completed application to your device. Note that the application must be in PDF format.
- Send your application in the OmaKela e-service (available in Finnish and Swedish):
- Log in to OmaKela and select Tee hakemus (Submit an application).
- Select Vammaisten tulkkauspalvelu (Interpreter services for persons with disabilities) and choose the benefit you are applying for.
- If you send your application to Kela in OmaKela, you do not need to sign it.
- Visit OmaKela to see if Kela has made a decision on your application.
If you cannot use OmaKela, mail your application to Kela. Save the form to your device and fill it in after saving it. Print out the completed form and send it to Kela, PL 10, 00056 KELA.
You can also apply for more hours in Finnish sign language. You must book an appointment to submit your application.
Book an appointment in the remote service (available in Finnish and Swedish).
Book an appointment in another way.