Contract employer or temporary employer?

A contract employer is an employer who has a TyEL insurance contract with an earnings-related pension company. As a contract employer, you receive valuable benefits such as a lower insurance contribution and a reduction in insurance contributions in the form of client bonuses.

See how much you pay in TyEL insurance contributions as a contract employer

As a contract employer, you also have access to Varma Online Service, where you can take care of your pension insurance matters when it suits you best.

Find out more about Varma Online Service

If you do not have a contract with an earnings-related pension company, you will be considered a temporary employer. In both cases, you have the same obligations as an employer to take care of your employees' compensation and pension insurance and to report their wages to the Incomes Register.

Read more about reporting wages to the Incomes Register

You or your company can be a temporary employer if

• you do not employ anyone permanently, and
• your employees' wages over a six-month period are less than EUR 10,038 (2025) or EUR 9,822 (2024).

As a temporary employer, you have the same obligations as any other employer:

• Pay earnings-related pension contributions, i.e. TyEL contributions
• Take care of the statutory workers' compensation insurance
• Take care of the unemployment insurance contribution
• Report your employees' wages to the Incomes Register

A temporary employer must also declare all wages to the Incomes Register using the earnings payment report. The difference from a contract employer is that a temporary employer does not have a TyEL insurance number, i.e. a pension policy number. On the earnings payment report, you need to indicate that you are a temporary employer in the payer information.

Read more about how a temporary employer declares wages to the Incomes Register

The TyEL contribution of a temporary employer in 2025 is 26.28% (26.12% in 2024) of the employees' wages and includes the administrative cost contribution. The contribution percentage for a temporary employer is slightly higher than for a contract employer and is the same across all earnings-related pension companies.

Even if the wages you pay are below the limit or you employ temporarily, you can still make a TyEL insurance contract. In 2025, the TyEL basic contribution for Varma's contract employers is 25.28% (25.12% in 2024) of employees' wages, to which an earnings-related pension company-specific administrative cost contribution is added. In addition, as a contract employer, you will receive an annual reduction on your insurance contributions in the form of client bonuses and access to Varma Online Service.

To become a contract customer, fill in the insurance application form online or request a quote from us.

You are a contract employer when you have an insurance contract with an earnings-related pension company. You must make a TyEL insurance contract if you or your company employs at least one employee continuously or if the wages paid to your employees over a six-month period exceed EUR 10 038 in 2025 or EUR 9,822 in 2024.

The contract employer’s TyEL contribution is 25.28% (2025) of employees' wages (25.12% in 2024), to which an earnings-related pension company-specific administrative cost contribution is added. The TyEL contribution of a contract employer is lower than that of a temporary employer.

A contract employer has many benefits compared to a temporary employer:

• As a contract customer, you receive client bonuses. A client bonus is an annual discount on your insurance contributions. Read more about client bonuses.
• You will have access to our e-service Varma Online Service. In Varma Online Service, you can, for example, take care of matters related to TyEL insurance and invoices, such as ordering a payment certificate or requesting a payment extension. Learn more about Varma Online Service.
• Access our e-learning platform, Varma Academy, where you can find online courses, podcasts and webinar recordings related to work ability. The content is enjoyable and useful for entrepreneurs, employers and employees alike. Read more about Varma Academy.

Take out TyEL insurance online