Finland moves most 10% VAT items to the 14% reduced rate from 1 January 2025

What changed in detail

Law 691/2024 (Laki arvonlisäverolain muuttamisesta) was adopted on 5 December 2024 on government bill HE 141/2024 vp and published in the Finnish Statute Book on 9 December 2024. It rewrites section 85 of the Value Added Tax Act (1501/1993) and replaces section 85 a, with effect from 1 January 2025.

New points 4 to 12 of section 85(1) move these supplies to the 14% reduced rate:

• passenger transport;
• accommodation and visitor-harbour berths;
• reimbursable medicines;
• books on a physical medium or supplied electronically;
• admission to sports events and use of sports facilities and lessons, including streaming;
• admission to performances, theatres, concerts, museums, cinemas, exhibitions and similar cultural events and venues, including streaming;
• performers’ and athletes’ fees;
• certain works of art;
• copyright compensation received by collecting societies.

Point 6 also brings menstrual protection, incontinence products and children’s diapers into 14%, from the general 25.5% rate.

The new section 85 a keeps 10% for newspapers and magazines, physical or electronic, and for the state funding of Yleisradio and Ålands Radio och TV.

Publications consisting mainly of advertising, video or music are excluded from both the book rate and the 10% rate.

What it means

This 14% rate is spent. Law 1358/2025 lowered it to 13.5% from 1 January 2026, and the same list of goods and services now sits at 13.5%. The reclassification this law made still stands: books, medicines, transport, accommodation, culture and sport did not return to 10%. Invoices for 2025 supplies of these items should show 14%. Those from 2026 onwards should show 13.5%, with the general rate still at 25.5%.