Yes. Even if you only provide rental services occasionally, the income you receive is subject to taxes. See more details in the section on providing short-term accommodation.

No. Renting an entire residence to others even for short periods of time interrupts the calculation of your own use of the residence. Because you did not live in the residence you owned continuously for two years, the capital gains from the sale of the residence is subject to income tax.

You should contact the service provider as soon as possible and specify what your complaint applies to as well as your demands for compensation. 

You should check the platform’s user guidelines to see if the platform can provide assistance in mediation and finding a solution.

The seller who is the service provider (small enterprise or a private person) is responsible for finding a resolution to the problem.

The agreement that the user has entered into with the platform and the platform’s rules often list how and in what types of cases the platform can provide assistance for finding a solution or mediation.

The platform is generally only responsible for its own services. It is responsible for ensuring that its invoicing procedures are well-functioning, if it sees to invoicing.

The seller who is the service provider (small enterprise or a private person) is responsible for finding a resolution to the problem.

If the seller is an undertaking and the buyer is a private person, the responsibility for the sales transaction or other agreement is determined by consumer protection law and consumer rights. This means that the seller cannot limit, for example, the consumer’s right to compensation in their agreements.

In other instances, responsibility is determined by what is stipulated in the agreement entered into by the two parties. Depending on the situation, the general principles of contract law or trade law may also be applicable. 

The platform is generally only responsible for its own services, for example, ensuring that its invoicing is correct, if it takes care of invoicing. The buyer can request the platform company for compensation, for example, if there is a fault in the platform’s service, and this has caused additionally expenses or financial losses for the buyer.

If the seller is a private person, you should check the platform’s instructions to see whether the platform can provide assistance in finding a solution or mediation.  If the complaint or mediation does not result in a solution, the buyer can sue the seller in the district court.

If the sales or other agreement is between an undertaking and a consumer, the buyer can assert their right to consumer protection and ask for help from Consumer Advisory Services. In other instances, for example, when problems arise between two private persons. the consumer authorities have no jurisdiction.

The selection of a payment type may be decisive if problems arise. Read more on the topic on the Finnish Competition and Consumer Authority website.

Yes. When you have lived in a residence in your ownership continuously for a period of two years, you can sell the residence tax free. 

If you employ someone to carry out work at your home or summer cottage, you are responsible for fulfilling employer obligations, such as withholding taxes and pension contributions.

In this case, under certain conditions, the household must take out insurance on behalf of all its employees in accordance with the Employees’ Pensions Act (TyEL) from any pension insurance provider.  Even pensioners under the age of 68 are insured, if the terms and conditions for the insurance listed under this link are fulfilled.

The employer is responsible for the payment of an employee’s employment pension in its entirety to the insurance company including the employee’s contribution. Pension contributions are fully tax deductible.

You can pay employer contributions and take care of  earnings-related pensions and taxes at one time in the Palkka.fi service (available in Finnish and Swedish). The introduction of the income register in 2019 will have an impact on the employer’s tasks, including in cases where the household is an employer.

An entrepreneur, who carries out work for a household, sees to the payment of their pension insurance themselves. However, even then the household should ask for the entrepreneur’s business ID, do that the household is entitled to a household tax deduction.

If renovation work is carried out at a home or summer cottage, or someone volunteers to help out in the home or summer cottage, this is not considered employment and it does not accumulate pension. However, anything can happen during volunteer work. You should be prepared for accidents by purchasing a group policy for volunteer work. Ask your insurance provider for more information on this.

From the perspective of employment pension security, people who engage in paid employment are either employees or entrepreneurs. In either case, pension insurance is required with certain conditions in order for you to accumulate a pension. 

On the basis of the information you have provided, YEL insurance (pension insurance for the self-employed) would likely be the best option. This means that you will have to purchase a YEL policy yourself. The Tyoelake.fi service contains information on when you need a YEL insurance policy- An entrepreneur’s pension contributions and pension and sick allowance are determined by your income, which you and your insurance provider have con-firmed.  If you invoice your customers via a service enterprise, you must also purchase a YEL policy.

If you have not had YEL insurance previously, you will get a 22% discount on contributions for the first four years and contributions are tax deductible in their entirety.

You can also carry out the work you have described and earn an income as an employee. In this case, it must be clear whether the customer commissioning the work is an employer or is commissioning work from an entrepreneur.  An employer pays a salary, pension contributions and other social security contributions. For example, the employer withholds the employee's pension contributions from the employee's salary and pays these to the insurance provider with the employer’s contributions.

Both parties (the party carrying out the work and the party commissioning the work) must be certain before work begins, how the work will be paid for. For this reason, it is advisable to draft a written employment contract or commission agreement even for short-term work.  

The Tyoelake.fi service contains information on the characteristic features of employment and entrepreneurship. Pension insurance companies also provide advice. Make sure, you have these matters sorted well in advance. This will ensure that your security is provided and do not need to pay unnecessary fees for late payment.