JOB DESCRIPTION

Vacancy Notice
The European Chemicals Agency (ECHA) is launching this call for expressions of interest to establish a reserve list for the following contract agent profile:
Reference number ECHA/CA/III/2025/03
Job Titles Profile 1: Financial Assistant Profile 2: SME Verification Assistant
Function Group/Grade Contract Agent, CA FG III (see the Guide for Applicants for more information)
Location Helsinki, Finland
Publication Date 4 December 2025
Deadline for Applications 19 January 2026, at noon, 12:00 Helsinki time (11:00 CET)
Indicative number of candidates on the reserve list 15

1. Who we are
The European Chemicals Agency (ECHA) is a multicultural and multidisciplinary organisation of about 600 professionals from 28 countries. Our everyday work is shaped by our values of integrity, transparency, collaboration and innovation. ECHA is one of Finland’s most inspiring workplaces, based on our latest staff survey results. We empower our people to develop together and facilitate high performance, engagement and flexibility.
Our purpose is to protect health and the environment through our work for chemical safety, by means of science, collaboration and knowledge. We implement EU chemicals laws and policy through technical, scientific, and administrative tasks and provide independent, high- quality scientific opinions and decisions to serve as a basis for EU measures on chemical safety. We collaborate with EU institutions, EU countries’ authorities and other bodies, and support companies in fulfilling their duties under chemical legislation, and we make relevant, reliable and objective information available to our stakeholders.
ECHA welcomes job applications from qualified professionals all over the European Union and the European Economic Area. We are committed to diversity and inclusion, aiming to secure equal opportunities at every step of the career, including selection and recruitment. Candidates who are judged to be the most suitable, based on the assessment in the selection process, will be placed on the reserve list, from which they may be recruited.
2. Is this job for you?
Are you an enthusiastic professional in the field of finance who is looking to join multinational and goal-oriented teams? We invite applications for the Financial Assistant and the SME Verification Assistant positions.
The successful candidate may be selected for the Finance Unit or the Submission and Processing Unit.
The dynamic Budget Team within the Finance Unit delivers customer-focused financial services and expert advice to ensure the efficient planning and execution of the Agency’s budget. The Finance Unit plays a central role in budget coordination, covering both income and expenditure, and oversees procurement activities from planning to implementation.
As part of our mission, we:
• Coordinate and manage the Agency’s budget and procurement plans;
• Play a key role in implementing the budget and supporting strategic financial decisions;
• Monitor and report on budget and procurement performance to internal and external stakeholders;
• Maintain the registry of financial delegations, ensuring compliance and transparency.
If you are passionate about finance and want to contribute to the success of a leading EU agency, this is your opportunity to make an impact.
The SME Verification Team is part of the Submission and Processing Unit. The unit is responsible for developing and maintaining ECHA’s submission systems, handling incoming industry dossiers, performing initial checks, supporting SME verification and invoicing, and managing obligations under the PIC Regulation.
The SME Verification team assesses the size category of SME (Small and Medium-sized Enterprise) applicants based on their ownership, financial and headcount documents to ensure compliance with the Commission Recommendation (2003/361/EC) and Fee Regulations (REACH and Biocides). It also supports and advises the applicants during the verification process.
3. Key responsibilities
Please note that each candidate may apply for only one of the profiles listed below.
Make sure to clearly indicate the profile you are applying for when submitting your
application. Work profile 1: Financial Assistant in the budget team
• Perform financial initiation and/or verification of financial transactions using relevant IT tools;
• Enforce legality, regularity and sound financial management of expenditure operations;
• Ensure the effectiveness and continuous improvement of the quality of financial services;
• Liaise with operational units on budget planning, monitor budget execution, and provide support in contract management;
• Support colleagues to interpret and implement financial rules and regulations, and ensure process compliance;
• Assist in procurement procedures;
• Assist in reporting, monitoring and analysing financial data, and contribute to the preparation of documents (e.g. for ECHA Management, the European Commission, the Budgetary Authority and the Court of Auditors);
• Any other duties, as required.
Work profile 2: SME Verification Assistant
• Perform verification of SME applicants’ company size, which includes analysing documents related to the ownership (group) structure of a company, financial statements and headcount data, and conduct research on the company’s background in various sources;
• Support and advise applicants on the interpretation of the Commission Recommendation 2003/361/EC, as well as the REACH Fee Regulation (EC) No 340/2008 and its amendment 2025/2067;
• Draft verification findings and correspondence to companies requesting the necessary documents, respond to communications and queries from companies;
• Proceed with revocation of registrations;
• Carry on other tasks, be involved in different projects and developments of tools related to the SME verification.
4. Eligibility criteria
The selection procedure is open to applicants who satisfy the following eligibility criteria on the closing date for application:
a. General requirements
The applicant must:
• Be a national of a Member State of the European Union, or a national of the European Economic Area (Iceland, Liechtenstein, Norway) ;
• Enjoy the full rights as a citizen;
• Have fulfilled any obligations imposed by the laws concerning military service;
• Produce the appropriate character references as to the suitability for the performance of the duties ;
• Be physically fit to perform the duties3;
• Have a thorough knowledge of one of the official languages of the European Union4 and a satisfactory knowledge of another such language to the extent necessary to perform your duties;
• Be able to communicate well in English as this is the working language of ECHA;
• Be below the age at which staff of the EU is automatically retired, i.e. currently on the last day of the month in which he/she reaches the age of 665.
b. Qualifications
a) Successful completion of post-secondary level education attested by a diploma.
Or
b) Successful completion of secondary education, giving access to post-secondary education and appropriate professional experience of at least three (3) years.
Only qualifications issued by EU Member State authorities or EEA authorities and qualifications recognised as equivalent by the relevant EU or EEA Member State authorities will be accepted.
c. Professional experience
To qualify for this profile, you must have at the closing date for applications a total professional experience6 of at least one (1) year acquired after achieving the minimum requirements stated in 4 a) and b).
5. Selection criteria
If you meet the eligibility criteria set out in section 4, you will be assessed on the basis of the following selection criteria. Candidates judged most suitable based on the selection criteria will be invited to the next stage of the selection process.
• Your academic and professional qualifications and their relevance to the main areas of work listed in section 3 under work profile 1 or 2. Preference will be given to qualifications obtained in the following fields:
• Finance and/or accounting;
• Economics;
• Business administration;
• Other field related to finance.
• Your professional experience: Preference will be given to candidates having experience in functions similar to those outlined in section 3 under work profile 1 or 2. The Selection Committee will assess the range of fields covered, the type and level of work done and its relevance to the areas of work listed in section 3.
The following will be considered as assets for work profile 1, Financial Assistant:
• Advanced user of MS Excel, Word and SharePoint or any other document management system;
• Understanding of the EU General Financial Regulation or a similar framework;
• Experience with SAP system for financial management;
• Certificates in the field of finance, and/or accounting (e.g., ACCA, CIMA);
• Work experience gained in a similar multicultural environment. Preference will be given to work experience abroad.
The following will be considered as assets for work profile 2, SME Verification Assistant:
• Good writing and analytical skills;
• Proven work experience in more than two (2) EU languages;
• Work experience gained in a similar multicultural environment. Preference will be given to work experience abroad.
Your academic and professional qualifications, professional experience, and assets of your
selected profile must be described as precisely as possible in your application.