Customer story: Vladyslav came from Ukraine to Finland and built his business with Bisse.fi

Table of Contents

1. A new start that began with no easy choice
2. There was work, but the system was hard to understand
3. One message to Bisse.fi made the next step clear
4. The first invoice and same-day pay
5. From light entrepreneurship to his own company
6. What other new entrepreneurs can learn from Vladyslav’s story
7. How to get started with Bisse.fi

1. A new start that began with no easy choice

Vladyslav Zhurba was a 22-year-old construction worker in Kharkiv when Russia’s invasion of Ukraine changed his life in February 2022. He had work, routines and plans in his home city. Suddenly the priority was safety: getting his family away from danger.

Many men of his generation went to defend Ukraine. Vladyslav wanted to help too, but type 1 diabetes made front-line service impossible. Regular insulin treatment and the doctors’ assessment left him with a painful reality: he had to find another way to support his family and his country.

Leaving was not a simple decision. Kharkiv is close to the Russian border, and ordinary life there became dangerous quickly. Vladyslav came to Finland with his older sisters. His goal was direct and practical: find work, stand on his own feet and help his family.

2. There was work, but the system was hard to understand

Finland needed skilled construction workers, but getting started was not straightforward. Vladyslav did not speak Finnish, and his English was limited. He knew how to work with his hands. What he did not yet know was how Finnish work, invoicing and business paperwork fit together.

On a construction site, he soon heard the question that stopped him: do you have a company?

In Finnish construction, many jobs are handled through subcontracting. In practice, the person doing the work often needs a company, a sole trader registration, or another official way to invoice. Without Finnish and without experience of the local system, that can feel like a wall.

Vladyslav tried to work it out on his own. There were instructions online, but many were in Finnish, written in official language or scattered across different sites. Translation tools helped with words, but not with the real question: what do you actually do first?

He needed to understand invoicing, taxes, insurance, official registrations and the responsibilities of working independently in Finland.

3. One message to Bisse.fi made the next step clear

The turning point came when Vladyslav found Bisse.fi and contacted customer support. He expected an English reply later. Instead, he quickly reached someone who could explain the process in Ukrainian.

That mattered. When you are trying to understand a new system in a new country, support in your own language can remove the biggest obstacle immediately. Vladyslav could go through the practical details step by step:

• how light entrepreneurship works without your own company
• when a sole trader business or own company starts to make sense
• how to send the first invoice to a customer
• how taxes and statutory payments are handled
• what construction workers should know about the Valtti card
• how bookkeeping works once the business grows

For Vladyslav, the important thing was not just software. It was clarity. Someone could tell him what to do first, what would happen next and what he needed to pay attention to.

4. The first invoice and same-day pay

His first job was a small painting project in an apartment. Vladyslav did the work, sent the invoice through Bisse.fi and waited to see what would happen.

When the customer paid, the money moved quickly. In a new country after an uncertain start, the first successful invoice was more than an admin task. It proved that work in Finland could be done officially, clearly and without carrying all the paperwork alone from day one.

Invoicing through Bisse.fi helped Vladyslav focus on what he already knew best: construction work. In the background, the difficult parts were handled in a structured way: invoicing, taxes, insurance and the flow of payments.

More jobs followed. Vladyslav also began recommending Bisse.fi to other Ukrainians in the same situation. When someone asked how to start, his advice was practical: start with one job, send one invoice and ask for help before the paperwork becomes a problem.

5. From light entrepreneurship to his own company

As the work became more regular, Vladyslav wanted to take the next step. He did not want only occasional jobs. He wanted to build a company, a reputation and his own way of doing high-quality work.

That is how Uusi sukupolvi rakennus was born. The name points to the future: honest work, high standards and pride in construction as a profession.

Moving from a light start to his own company became easier with Bisse.fi’s support. Vladyslav received help with practical matters such as insurance, YEL, construction-site identifiers and bookkeeping. Once the basics had been learned through light entrepreneurship, setting up a company no longer felt like such a leap.

Today, Vladyslav still manages his company’s financial administration through Bisse.fi. To him, Bisse.fi is not only an invoicing service. It is a partner that helps him understand his responsibilities as an entrepreneur and do things properly.

6. What other new entrepreneurs can learn from Vladyslav’s story

Vladyslav’s story is unusual because it began with war, relocation and rebuilding life from the ground up. Still, the business lessons are familiar to many people starting out in Finland.

The first lesson is that you do not have to understand everything alone. Many people delay their first invoice or turn down their first customer because they are afraid of making a mistake with tax, insurance or paperwork. Often the right move is to ask before the problem becomes larger.

The second lesson is that light entrepreneurship can be a sensible first step. It works especially well when you want to test your service, invoice individual customers and see whether demand grows. If the work becomes steady, you can later consider a sole trader business or limited company.

The third lesson is about language and clarity. With tax and invoicing, small misunderstandings can feel risky. A useful service should not only provide forms; it should also give clear support.

The fourth lesson is that the first invoice is often the most important one. After that, entrepreneurship stops being an abstract idea and becomes a practical way to get paid for your work.

7. How to get started with Bisse.fi

If you want to start invoicing your work in a light, practical way, the steps are simple:

1. Register with Bisse.fi.
2. Agree with your customer on the work, price and schedule.
3. Send the first invoice through Bisse.fi.
4. When the customer pays, Bisse.fi handles the payment according to the service model.
5. As your work grows, decide whether light entrepreneurship is still enough or whether a sole trader business or limited company would fit better.

In construction, it is also important to consider industry-specific details such as the Valtti card, insurance and possible reverse VAT. Bisse.fi helps with these practical questions so you can focus on doing the work and finding customers.

For Vladyslav, Bisse.fi gave clarity at the exact moment when the first step felt difficult. Once the first step was possible, the next one became easier.

Read also:

• Light entrepreneurship through Bisse.fi
• Starting as a sole trader
• Light entrepreneurship in construction
• Valtti card for construction work

Source: Iltalehti commercial collaboration article with Bisse.fi.