Tax refund and residual tax in Finland
Each year Vero compares the tax withheld from your pay with your final tax, and either refunds the difference or bills you for it.
Checked by Radif Partners · Editorial policy · Calculation method
A Finnish tax refund (veronpalautus) arises when more tax was withheld during the year than your final assessment requires; residual tax (jäännösvero) when too little was. For 2026 income, the most common cause of a refund is rounding: Vero always rounds your tax card rate up to the next half point, so on €40,000 in Helsinki a 13.0% card withholds about €44 more than the real tax of €5,156, even if your income estimate was perfect. The second cause is deductions only applied at assessment, such as union and unemployment fund (kassa) fees: €450 of fees lowers tax on the same salary by €174. Residual tax usually means you earned more than your card assumed, two employers both withheld at your base rate, or you had capital income such as rent with nothing withheld. In our two-job example the shortfall is €3,368. The amounts appear in your tax decision in MyTax (OmaVero); this page does not predict payment dates.
Refund or residual tax?
Refund about
€876
| Withheld | €7,480 |
| Final tax | €6,604 |
| Right rate would be | 15.5 % |
The one comparison that decides it
In the annual assessment Vero works out your final tax on all income and deductions and compares it with what was withheld under your tax card (verokortti). Refund = tax withheld − final tax; a negative result is residual tax. The rules are the same as in Vero’s 2026 withholding decision, so your tax card is really a forecast of your assessment.
The table shows the refund produced by rounding alone, with a perfectly estimated income and no other deductions or income.
| Annual salary | Card rate | Real tax rate | Withheld | Final tax | Refund |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| €25,000 | 4.0% | 3.72 % | €1,000 | €931 | €69 |
| €30,000 | 8.0% | 7.56 % | €2,400 | €2,268 | €132 |
| €35,000 | 10.5% | 10.09 % | €3,675 | €3,532 | €143 |
| €40,000 | 13.0% | 12.89 % | €5,200 | €5,156 | €44 |
| €45,000 | 15.5% | 15.48 % | €6,975 | €6,968 | €7 |
| €50,000 | 18.0% | 17.83 % | €9,000 | €8,915 | €85 |
| €60,000 | 21.5% | 21.18 % | €12,900 | €12,707 | €193 |
The rounding refund is essentially random: a few euros at €45,000, around two hundred at €60,000, depending on how far your real rate sits below the next half point. Large refunds nearly always come from deductions or from an income limit set too high.
Deductions that only count at assessment
Some deductions are not in your tax card rate unless you add them yourself. Union and unemployment fund fees are usually reported to Vero directly by the union and the fund, but they are not built into withholding: €450 of fees on a €40,000 salary brings back about €174. The household tax credit and the commuting deduction behave the same way when you have not entered them on your card. Entering them on the card instead spreads the benefit over the year; the final tax is identical.
Where residual tax comes from
- A pay rise without a new card. A card for €36,000 with a 10.5% base rate and 35.5% additional rate, against actual pay of €48,000, falls €96 short, because higher income also raises the tax on the part withheld at the base rate. See income limit and additional rate.
- Two employers. If both apply your base rate, the income limit is effectively used twice. A 8.0% card for €30,000 used on two jobs paying €45,000 leaves €3,368 to pay.
- Capital income. Rent, dividends and gains are taxed at 30% (34% above €30,000) with nothing withheld through your payslip. €3,000 of net rent means €900 of tax.
- The daily allowance contribution threshold. If you estimated your wages below €17,255 and then crossed it, the 0.88% contribution on all your pay is collected at assessment.
When you earn less than you estimated
The largest refunds come from income well below the figure on your card. Your rate was set for the whole year’s income, and Finnish tax is progressive, so a lower income has a lower average rate. With a card for €40,000 at 13.0% and actual pay of only €30,000, perhaps after going part-time or a long leave, €3,900 is withheld against a final tax of €2,268: a refund of €1,632. A revised card ordered when the change was known would have put that money in your pocket during the year.
Estimate yours
The calculator above takes your actual annual income and the rate on your card. With €44,000 of income and a 17% card, €7,480 was withheld against final tax of €6,604, a refund of about €876; the right rate would have been 15.5%. It ignores capital income and deductions, for which the tax calculator is more precise.
A refund is an interest-free loan to the state
Many people treat a refund as savings, but the money could have been in your account all year. If it is regularly several hundred euros, check the income limit on your tax card and add your deductions to it. Residual tax, on the other hand, is not a penalty, but it can arrive as a lump sum and may carry interest. Your tax decision shows both figures, with the bases listed on vero.fi.