People move to Helsinki from abroad mainly for family reasons, work or studies. The city has around 150,000 residents of foreign origin, accounting for 22 per cent of the total population. According to the latest population forecast, their number will increase by almost 100,000 by 2045. This development is rapid by European standards, and Helsinki is preparing for its effects carefully and proactively.
International mobility and migration followed by successful integration are essential for maintaining the vitality of Helsinki. International professionals are strengthening the capital city’s dependency ratio and economic growth. As the city’s population ages, growth in the labour force will continue to rely heavily on migration.
Helsinki aims to be an attractive city for international talent, support them and their families in fully settling in, and strengthen the capital’s ability to retain talent, its openness and its diversity, so that migrants are keen to build a permanent life here.
“Simply attracting international talent to Helsinki is not enough if we do not, at the same time, succeed in creating reasons for them to stay here. This also means job and career opportunities for spouses moving here with them, as well as a smooth everyday life and welcoming neighbourhoods and communities,” comments Glenn Gassen, Helsinki’s Director of Migration Affairs.
On 22 June, the City Board’s Economic Development Sub-committee approved Helsinki’s new Development Programme for Migration and Integration for 2026–2029. The programme is now moving into the implementation phase, information about which will be provided at a launch event held on 27 October. The programme is part of the implementation of the City Strategy.
The development programme is put into practice through concrete measures
Helsinki is investing in measures to promote migration and integration that foster growth. The measures of the development programme are both transformative in nature and designed to strengthen and expand existing activities.
The measures are aimed particularly at international talent, including those with higher education degrees, skilled professionals needed by the labour market, entrepreneurs and investors, as well as degree students and researchers and their families. At the same time, a large share of the measures broadly benefit everyone living in or moving to Helsinki, as most services are open to all residents.
We raise the profile of Helsinki and increase our efforts to attract talent
Helsinki markets itself internationally in order to attract both new businesses and skilled labour to the city. Through the City-owned marketing and investment company Helsinki Partners, Helsinki’s efforts to attract talent are targeted specifically at the city’s growth sectors and the needs of employers.
The City’s objective is for employers to receive services supporting international recruitment in a more client-oriented manner, for the proportion of employers recruiting international talent to increase, and for the number of startups to grow.
For example, the StartuPKS project aims to develop the attraction of international startups and growth companies to meet the needs of the growth sectors of Helsinki, while also strengthening these companies’ growth and settling in the Helsinki Metropolitan Area.
We ease settling in and the initial stages of integration
Integration is a multi-stage process during which a person migrating from abroad becomes part of society. Particularly in the early stages of the process, it is important that migrants have easy access to information and guidance on the services available to them. As the process progresses, the importance of proficiency in Finnish or Swedish increases.
Helsinki wants to further facilitate access to services for international talent and create more effective pathways for working migrants to learn Finnish and Swedish.
For example, Helsinki Employment Services is developing language training tailored to the needs of employers of various sizes and in different sectors, enabling the development of proficiency in the national languages in terms of both professional language and basic language skills.
We are strengthening Helsinki’s receptiveness and ability to retain talent
Participating in local communities strengthens the wellbeing and sense of belonging of international talent. Interactions between Helsinki residents, friendships formed in neighbourhoods and feeling at home in one’s own residential area are significant factors in the decision of international professionals and their families to settle in Helsinki on a more permanent basis.
Helsinki’s objective is to promote the city as an open and diverse place, and to strengthen regional activities that invite all Helsinki residents to take part.
For example, the ‘Welcome Families’ activities held in Kannelmäki, Malmi and Mellunkylä for the families of migrants are set to be extended to new neighbourhoods. In these activities, families who have moved to Helsinki are invited to become part of the community of their home, school and neighbourhood.