Labour market services in Estonia are provided by the  Estonian Unemployment Insurance Fund. Private companies may also provide three types of service on the basis of the  Labour Market Services and Benefits Act: 

• provision of information on the situation on the labour market, and of the labour market services and benefits – providing information about the state of and changes to the labour market, the nature of labour market services and the conditions of obtaining these services;
• career counselling – advising the unemployed and those who have received notice of the termination of their employment or services about education, training and employment options appropriate to their character, educational background and skills. Career counselling is designed to assist people in issues related to their choice of work and profession, getting jobs and developing a career for themselves;
• job mediation – finding suitable work and suitable employers for the unemployed and for job-seekers.

Legal entities governed by private law and sole proprietors have the right to provide labour market services if they are listed as a provider of labour market services in the register of economic activities. The companies registered in this register can be viewed on the website  http://mtr.mkm.ee by clicking on "Otsingud → Registreeringu otsing" from the menu on the left-hand side of the front page and then choosing "Tööturuteenuse osutamine" from the "Tegevusala" menu.

The conditions for private companies to register as providers of labour market services are set out in the Labour Market Services and Benefits Act.

Private companies are forbidden to charge job-seekers for employment mediation services. If it later transpires that a company charged a person a fee this will be considered the provision of false data. On the basis of the Register of Economic Activities Act, individuals are fined up to 100 fine units for the provision of false data and legal entities up to 1 300 euros. The Labour Market Services and Benefits Act states that only employers or other private companies or sole proprietors may be charged fees for employment mediation by legal entities governed by private law and sole proprietors.

Companies seeking to provide labour market services are entered in the register of economic activities by the Ministry of Social Affairs. A state fee of 19,17 euros must be paid and an application submitted in order to be entered in the register. Application forms can be downloaded from the website of the register of economic activities by clicking on the "Taotluste vormid" menu on the left-hand side of the front page and selecting "Tööturuteenuse osutamine ja renditööjõu vahendamine". 

The guidelines for registering as a provider of labour market services can be of assistance in completing the application form.

Should the details of a registration change or a company’s activities end or be terminated, the registered company must inform the Ministry of Social Affairs of these changes to the data within five working days by submitting an application form for the amendment of the registration. This application form can also be downloaded from the website of the  register of economic activities by clicking on the "Taotluste vormid" menu on the left-hand side of the front page and selecting "Registreeringu muutmise taotlus".

The Ministry of Social Affairs will make a decision regarding deletion of the registration and a record reflecting this decision within five working days of receipt of a correctly completed application, and a record of the cancellation of a registration within two working days of receipt of a correctly completed application. A letter to this effect is then sent to the applicant by registered post or to the e-mail address marked in the application or delivered to the applicant against signature on the working day following the day on which the decision regarding deletion of the registration was made.

Providers of labour market services have to submit   confirmation of the correctness of a registration to the Ministry of Social Affairs by 15 April each year in the event that more than three months have passed since the registration of the company or the amendment of the registration at the request of the company. If a company does not submit such confirmation by this date it is immediately informed by the Ministry of Social Affairs of its failure to meet its obligations and of the resulting cancellation of the registration.

Registrations which are not confirmed are cancelled by 30 April. If a company submits confirmation that the registration data is correct, the Ministry of Social Affairs will restore the registration within five working days of receiving the confirmation. If a company does not submit confirmation that the registration data is correct, the registration is deleted six months after being cancelled.

A company whose registration is cancelled will not be considered to be registered as a provider of labour market services.

To obtain an officially confirmed extract from the register, contact the Ministry of Social Affairs by e-mailing info|a|sm.ee.