Note that this doesn't really "cost" anything as the people in the program are already receiving generous unemployment benefits, " The amount will be deducted from any benefits they already receive."
So the difference mainly is that you don't have to ask for this money or report it if you start to earn money. I wonder how your other benefits are affected though (child support, living expenses like rent and utilities etc.) if you indeed get a job.
The bureaucracy is a nightmare here with unemployment benefits, so hopefully something good will come out of this project.
Personally, the lowest I was able to achieve in practice was about 650€. Gotchas:
1. It was over 10 years ago
2. I had student discounts on housing, lunches, public transport etc.
I suppose I could still have squeezed that down if I really had to, fortunately I didn't.
Rents lower end 600€ at a smaller backwoods town, up to +2000€ in capital area.
It's pocket money and according to the article it decreases the other benefits you get, so I'm not really sure how much people actually gain in terms of their available assets. I guess it's mostly about getting that money without having to fight bureacracy that normally occurs with some gig based jobs etc.
Also If you manage to buy a (small) condo, the interest is basically below zero right now, so 560e could easily cover basic expenses.
In Helsinki Metropolitan area is is
315e student aid + 200e housing aid ( + possibility for student priced housing and other student priced amenities)
So you have 16% of the average wage.
Edit: Looking at some stats here [1] and it looks like 565 euros is enough to rent an apartment outside of city center. It also looks like one could potentially find something for 450 which leaves pretty decent money for food and perhaps a bicycle for transportation? Definitely not enough if you consider utilities though. That's some rough living.
[1] https://www.numbeo.com/cost-of-living/country_result.jsp?cou...