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Invoice requirements in Finland 2026: what must be on a VAT invoice

Published 28 September 2026

When a VAT-registered business in Finland sells to another business, it must give an invoice with the entries required by section 209 e of the VAT Act, including a date, a running number, the seller's business ID, both parties' names and addresses, what was sold, the taxable amount and the VAT by rate. An invoice of up to 400 euros, or a sale to consumers, can use a simplified set of entries. A business that is not in the VAT register must not show VAT on its invoices at all.

When you must give an invoice

You must give an invoice for a taxable sale when the buyer is a business or another legal person, such as an association. Some VAT-free sales need an invoice too, such as exports of goods and sales of goods to other EU countries. Sales to consumers generally need no invoice under the VAT Act, but you still need a record of the sale for the books. The exceptions include distance sales of goods to consumers in other EU countries and sales of new means of transport to private persons in other EU countries.

The VAT Act sets a deadline in only two cases. When you sell goods to a business in another EU country, or a service taxed in another EU country under the general rule, the invoice is due by the 15th of the month after the delivery or the service.

What a full invoice must show

• The date of issue.
• A unique running number. No two invoices in the same financial year may share a number. You can use several series, and the number may include letters.
• Your business ID (Y-tunnus). When you sell to a buyer registered in another EU country, show your VAT number, such as FI07654321.
• The buyer's VAT number, when the buyer pays the VAT under the reverse charge or you sell goods to another EU country.
• Both parties' names and addresses. The invoice can be sent to the buyer's accountant, for example, but it must still show the buyer's own address.
• What was sold. The quantity and kind of goods, or the type and, where needed, the extent of the services.
• The delivery or performance date, or the date of an advance payment, if it differs from the invoice date. If a service date cannot be pinned down, the month is enough.
• The taxable amount by rate and the unit price without VAT, plus any discounts not already in the unit price.
• The VAT rate, such as 25.5 % or 13.5 %, for every rate on the invoice.
• The amount of VAT in euros, to two decimals. The total is enough, but a breakdown by rate is recommended.
• Special notes where they apply: that the sale is exempt (for example "VAT-exempt sale"), "reverse charge", "self-billing", or on a credit note, a reference to the original invoice.

The entries can be in any language.

The simplified invoice

Simplified entries are enough when the invoice total is 400 euros or less including VAT. Whatever the total, they are also enough for retail and similar sales made almost only to private persons, such as a hairdresser's, and for restaurant and meal services and passenger transport. A simplified invoice must show:

• the date of issue
• the seller's name and business ID
• what was sold
• the VAT amount, or the taxable amount, by rate
• on a correcting invoice, a reference to the original.

Prices may include VAT, as long as the VAT amount is shown. A simplified invoice cannot be used for sales of goods to another EU country, distance sales, or sales on which the buyer pays the VAT in another EU country.

Notes for VAT-free and cross-border sales

On a Finnish-language invoice the same notes are "ALV 0 % yhteisömyynti", "ALV 0 %, veroton myynti EU:n ulkopuolelle" and "käännetty verovelvollisuus, arvonlisäverodirektiivi 44 art.". Services you buy from abroad are covered in our article on reverse charge.

If you are not in the VAT register

Your invoices must not show VAT or a VAT rate. While your registration is pending, you may show them if the invoice says "alv-rekisteröinti vireillä" (VAT registration pending). If you are then not registered, the invoices have to be corrected. When registration becomes compulsory is in our article on the 20 000 euro VAT registration limit.

When an invoice is wrong

A buyer cannot deduct VAT on a wrong invoice, and has to ask the seller for a new one that refers to the original. Small errors do not remove the deduction: a misspelt seller name is fine when the business ID identifies the seller, and so is a wrong unit price when the total is right. VAT shown by a seller who is not in the VAT register is generally not deductible. You can check a seller's registration at ytj.fi.

Keeping invoices, and penalties

Keep sales and purchase invoices for at least six years from the end of the calendar year they relate to, or from the end of the financial year if yours is not the calendar year. If you fail to issue invoices or leave out entries even after the Tax Administration asks you to put it right, it can impose a negligence penalty of up to 5 000 euros. It is not imposed when the failure is minor or there is a valid reason, such as illness. How long other records are kept is in our article on receipts and record keeping.

Booking your sales and purchase invoices, and filing the VAT returns, are part of our services.

Sources

• Tax Administration: VAT invoice requirements, chapters 4, 5, 7, 8.2 and 11, detailed guidance
• Tax Administration: deducting VAT on purchases

Please note: this is general information about Finnish rules, not advice for your own situation, and the rules change. Ask us before you act on it.

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