Student Union membership fees

ISYY, the Student Union of the University of Eastern Finland (opens in a new tab), looks after the students’ rights and interests. ISYY operates on both the Joensuu and Kuopio campus.

Bachelor’s and Master’s degree students’ fees

Under the student union act, all Bachelor’s and Master’s degree students are required to join the Student Union and must therefore pay the student union membership fee annually as they register as present.

A student who simultaneously has a valid Bachelor’s and/or a Master’s degree study right as well as a doctoral or licentiate study right is required to be a member of the Student Union. Student Union members must pay the Student Union membership fee as they register as present.

If a student has more than one study right of the same level (Bachelor’s or Master’s), they pay the Student Union membership fee only once, even if they register as present to more than one study right.

As members of the Student Union, Bachelor’s and Master’s degree students can get a student card (opens in a new tab) and are entitled to various membership benefits (opens in a new tab) such as discounts on long distance train tickets and bus fares as well as in student cafeterias on campus.

NB! If you are a first-year Bachelor’s or Master’s degree student, you are obliged to register as present and to pay the Student Union membership fee for the whole academic year. A first-year student may only register as being absent if they have a statutory reason for registering as being absent. You can find more information on registering as absent in the first year in Kamu.

The Student Union membership fee amount for Bachelor’s and Master’s degree students in the 2023–2024 academic year:

• Full academic year (from 1st of August to 31st of July): 75 €
• Autumn semester only (from 1st of August to 31st of December): 39 €
• Spring semester only (from 1st of January to 31st of July): 40 €

Student healthcare services for students in higher education

Bacherlor’s and Master’s degree students who are entitled to use the services of the Finnish Student Health Service (FSHS) (opens in a new tab) are required (since January 2021) to pay the student healthcare fee for each academic semester to Kela (The Social Insurance Institution of Finland). All students who are registered as present for the semester in question and are studying for a Bachelor’s or Master’s degree are entitled to FSHS services (NB! Does not apply to exchange students!).

If you are entitled to FSHS services, you must pay the student healthcare fee. The fee must be paid even if you are registered present for only one day for a semester. You cannot get an exemption for example for using occupational health services instead of FSHS, or for not receiving any financial aid for students.

However, you do not have to pay the healthcare fee if you have social security coverage from another EU/EEA country, from Switzerland, or from Great Britain and Northern Ireland. In this case, you must provide proof of this to Kela. Visit the Kela website for information on how to proceed if you have social security coverage in another EU/EEA country or in Great Britain and Northern Ireland (opens in a new tab).

You are not billed for the student healthcare fee but must make sure to pay it in OmaKela for each academic term. See instructions on how to pay the student healthcare fee (opens in a new tab).

The due date for paying the student healthcare fee is determined based on the date on which you register as present.

• For the autumn term, the due date is 30th of September provided you have registered as present by then. If you register as present for the autumn term on or after 1st of October, the due date is 31 st of December.
• For the spring term, the due date is 31st of January provided you have registered as present by then. If you register as present for the spring term on or after 1st of  February, the due date is 31st of July.

Find answers to frequently asked questions about the healthcare fee (opens in a new tab) on the Kela website.

Exchange students

Exchange students studying at UEF are welcome to join the Student Union, but are not obliged to do so. To become a member, you must pay the Student Union membership fee:

• 75 € for the full academic year
• 39 € for the autumn semester only
• 40 € for the spring semester only

NOTE! International exchange students are not entitled to student healthcare services.

Doctoral students

For doctoral students and licentiate students who register as present the Student Union membership is voluntary. The voluntary membership fee is

• 58 € for the full academic year
• 30,50 € for the autumn semester only
• 31,50 € for the spring semester only

The fee can be paid upon annual registration during the registration period in Oili or later on by contacting the Student and Learning Services’ customer service (contact information at the bottom of the page).

Licentiate and doctoral students are not entitled to subsidized meals, travel discounts or Student Health Services. The membership entitles you to use the services of the student union and to join events organized by the Student Union. You can also get student discounts in, e.g., various shops, theatres, hotels and restaurants. For more information, please contact the Student Union (opens in a new tab).

Non-degree students

As a rule, students completing non-degree studies (e.g. training for a specialization in medicine, flexible study right) cannot join the Student Union. However, the Student Union may choose to accept non-degree students as its members with an official decision. The Student Union of the University of Eastern Finland has decided to allow the following student groups as its members, and students in these groups may join the student union if they so choose:

1. Full-time students enrolled in the certificate program for special education teachers, certificate program for kindergarten special education teachers, qualification studies for career counsellors or students who have a separate study right in the multidisciplinary study program in basic education. These students are not entitled to use the services of the FSHS, but are entitled to the Kela meal subsidy and student discounts in trains and long distance buses (Matkahuolto). The fee for them is 75 € for the whole academic year or 39 € for the autumn semester or 40 € for the spring semester.
2. Students who have activated their continued study right after graduation. These students are not entitled to the Kela meal subsidy or student discounts in trains and long distance buses (Matkahuolto), nor are they entitled to use the services of the FSHS. The fee for them is 58 € for the whole academic year or 30,50 € for autumn semester or 31,50 € for the spring semester.

Because students in these student groups are not entitled to use the services of the FSHS, they do not pay the healthcare fee for students in higher education to Kela.

If you wish to join the Student Union, please contact the Student and Learning Services’ customer service (contact information at the bottom of the page) for payment instructions.

Voluntary fees

Sykettä sports services (opens in a new tab) are at your disposal after paying the sports fee at the ISYY office or on the SYKETTÄ webpage.

If you would like to support the development activities of the National Union of University Students in Finland (SYL) (opens in a new tab), you can do this by transferring a sum of your choice to SYL’s fundraising account.

Bachelor’s or Master’s degree study right at another university in Finland

If you have another Bachelor’s or Master’s degree study right in another Finnish institution of higher learning for which you have registered as being present and have paid the Student Union membership fee to, you still must register normally to the University of Eastern Finland. If you register as being present at UEF as well,  you must pay the ISYY membership fee.

Student and Learning Services’ customer service contact information: