The household tax deduction (kotitalousvähennys)
When you have renovation or building work done in your own home or holiday home in Finland, part of the labour cost can be deducted from your income tax. The deduction applies only to labour, not to materials or travel.
Which work qualifies
The deduction covers maintenance and improvement work on your home or holiday home. In practice that includes bathroom and kitchen renovations, new floors and walls, building a sauna, decks, fences, garages and outbuildings, as long as the work is done on your own property or in your own apartment.
New construction does not qualify, and neither does work that is the housing company's responsibility in an apartment building.
How much it is worth
The deduction is a percentage of the labour cost including VAT, with an annual maximum per person and a small deductible. Spouses each get their own deduction, so on a larger renovation it pays to split the invoice between two people.
The exact figures change from year to year; check the Finnish Tax Administration's page before working out your own benefit. There is a calculator on vero.fi.
What the invoice must show
You only get the deduction if the company is in the prepayment register and the invoice itemises labour separately from materials. Ivors Construction Oy is in the prepayment register.
Keep the invoice and proof of payment. You claim the deduction in MyTax (OmaVero), either in advance on your tax card or afterwards on your tax return.