Meal subsidy for students in higher education
On this page
The Kela meal subsidy means you get a discount on your meal at participating student restaurants. The discount is EUR 2.80 per meal. The meal subsidy has already been deducted from the prices charged by the student restaurants. The maximum price you have to pay for a standard subsidised meal at a student restaurant is EUR 3.10. Special meals made from more expensive ingredients cost a maximum of EUR 4.50–5.90.
The subsidy is available for one meal per day. Subsidised meals are available at certain student restaurants. You can look up participating restaurants by using the search function on this page.
Can you get the meal subsidy?
You can get the meal subsidy if you are based in Finland and completing one of the following at a Finnish institution of higher education:
- a bachelor's or master's level university degree
- a bachelor's or master's level degree earned in a university of applied sciences
- a vocational study or specialisation programme that qualifies you for student financial aid.
You can also get the meal subsidy if you are an exchange student at a Finnish institution of higher education.
You cannot get the meal subsidy in the following situations:
- you are in Finland to participate in job training that is part of a higher education degree you are completing outside Finland
- you study in Finland but attend a foreign or private institution of higher education (such as the Estonian Business School)
- you study at the National Defence University
- you study at Högskolan på Åland
- you are completing a licentiate or doctorate
- you are completing a specialist degree in medicine, dentistry or veterinary medicine
- you are enrolled in a tailor-made education programme
- you do not attend an institution of higher education.
How to qualify for the meal subsidy?
- Digital student cards
- Frank
- Kide.app
- Slice
- Tuudo
- Physical student cards
- a student card issued by the National Union of University Students in Finland (SYL)
- a student card issued by the National Union of Students in Finnish Universities of Applied Sciences (SAMOK)
- a student card issued by a university of applied sciences (AMK)
- a student card issued by Slice
- a student card displaying the name of a Finnish university or university of applied sciences
- an ISIC student card displaying the name of a Finnish university or university of applied sciences
- A Kela meal subsidy card. Your institution of higher education will issue this card to you if you do not have a student card but you are completing studies that qualify you for the meal subsidy.
You cannot get the meal subsidy if you have for example one of the following cards:
- a digital ISIC student card
- a postgraduate student card
- a student card that has been issued on the basis of studies that are not full-time studies.
