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Late payment interest in Finland 2026: reminder fees and templates

Published 3 October 2026

Late payment interest in Finland (viivästyskorko) is 10.5 % a year between businesses and 9.5 % a year on other debts, such as an invoice to a consumer, for all of 2026. When a due date was agreed, it runs from the due date. A written payment reminder (maksumuistutus) may cost a business customer at most 12 euros and a consumer at most 5 euros. Below are the rules, a worked example and two reminder texts to copy.

Late payment interest rates for 2026

The business rate applies when a business or a public contracting authority pays a business for goods or services. Other late payments, such as a consumer's, carry 9.5 %. The rates are the reference rate plus 8 and plus 7 percentage points.

The reference rate follows the European Central Bank's main refinancing rate. It is set for six months at a time and published by the Bank of Finland. Both halves of 2026 have the same figures, and the next possible change is on 1 January 2027.

When the interest starts

• A due date was agreed in advance: interest runs from the due date.
• No due date was agreed: interest runs once 30 days have passed since you sent the invoice or a demand for payment, and never for the time before the customer received it.
• Invoices to consumers: the invoice must state the rate in force and the date interest runs from. Otherwise no interest is owed for the time before the consumer had that information.

Put the same note on business invoices too. Our free Finnish invoice template has a field for it at the foot of the invoice.

How to work out the interest in euros

Interest is worked out on the overdue amount, day by day. A common method is:

amount × annual rate × days late / 365

An example calculation: a business customer pays a 1 000 euro invoice 30 days late. The interest is 1 000 × 10.5 % × 30 / 365, about 8.63 euros. For a consumer, at 9.5 %, it would be about 7.81 euros.

Payment reminder fees

Business customers

Under the Debt Collection Act, a reminder sent in writing or in another durable form may cost a business at most 12 euros, and a new reminder can be charged for once 10 days have passed since the previous reminder or demand.

When a business pays late for goods or services, so that you are entitled to late payment interest, you can also claim 40 euros as standard compensation for collection costs (vakiokorvaus). Other collection costs, such as reminder fees, can be charged on top only for the part that goes over 40 euros: two 12 euro reminders, for example, do not come on top of it. Total collection costs are capped at 250 to 620 euros depending on the capital, but the caps do not limit the 40 euros.

Consumers

A written reminder to a consumer may cost at most 5 euros, and only if the invoice was sent at least 14 days before the due date and 14 days have passed since the due date. A new reminder can be charged for 14 days after the previous reminder or demand. The Act sets no number of reminders, but caps all collection costs at 60, 120 or 210 euros, depending on whether the capital is up to 100 euros, up to 1 000 euros or more. For debts that are directly enforceable, the cap is 51 euros.

Payment terms between businesses

Under the Act on Payment Terms in Commercial Contracts, a term between businesses may be longer than 30 days only if expressly agreed; there is no absolute maximum. A public contracting authority must pay within 30 days, or within 60 days if that is expressly agreed and justified by the special nature of the contract. A term that excludes late payment interest has no effect, and nor does one that excludes compensation for collection costs without a justified reason.

What to do when an invoice is late

1. Send a friendly reminder. A few days after the due date, send a short reminder with no charges and a copy of the invoice. Often the invoice was simply forgotten.
2. Send a second reminder with the fee and interest. Add the reminder fee, or for a business customer the 40 euro compensation, and the interest so far. Attach a copy of the original invoice. A business customer can be charged a reminder fee once at least 10 days have passed since the first reminder; the 40 euro compensation can be claimed once you are entitled to late-payment interest. A consumer can be charged a fee only when at least 14 days have passed both since the due date and since the previous reminder, and the invoice was sent at least 14 days before the due date.
3. Pass the debt to collection. If it is still unpaid, hand it to a debt collection agency or take legal steps.

Payment reminder templates in English

Copy the text into an email and fill in the square brackets.

First payment reminder

Subject: Payment reminder: invoice [invoice number]

Hello,

According to our records, invoice [invoice number] for [amount] euros, due on [due date], is still unpaid.

Please pay it to [IBAN] with the reference number [reference number] by [new due date]. A copy of the invoice is attached. If you have already paid, please ignore this reminder.

If anything on the invoice needs checking, just reply to this message.

Kind regards, [name], [company], [phone]

Second payment reminder

Subject: Second payment reminder: invoice [invoice number]

Hello,

Invoice [invoice number] fell due on [due date], and we have not received payment despite our reminder of [date of first reminder].

The amount now due is:

• invoice [invoice number]: [amount] euros
• late payment interest at [rate] % for [days] days: [interest] euros
• reminder fee: [fee] euros
• total: [total] euros

Please pay the total to [IBAN] with the reference number [reference number] by [new due date]. Interest runs until the day of payment. If we have not received payment by then, we will pass the debt to collection.

If you need more time to pay, please contact us before the new due date.

Kind regards, [name], [company], [phone]

For a business customer, use 10.5 % and a fee of at most 12 euros, or the 40 euro compensation instead. For a consumer, use 9.5 % and at most 5 euros. The Finnish texts are in the Finnish version of this article.

Get the invoice right first

What a Finnish invoice must show is in our article on invoice requirements, and your first invoice step by step in our guide to invoicing in Finland. Make the invoice, with the reference number and bank barcode ready, with our free Finnish invoice template.

In our accounting service we keep track of your sales invoices and their payments. See our services.

Sources

• Finlex: Interest Act 633/1982, sections 4, 4 a, 5, 6 and 12 (in Finnish)
• Statute book 654/2026: Bank of Finland notice on the reference rate and late payment interest, 1 July to 31 December 2026 (in Finnish)
• Statute book 1407/2025: Bank of Finland notice on the reference rate and late payment interest, 1 January to 30 June 2026 (in Finnish)
• Bank of Finland: interest rates and exchange rates (in Finnish)
• Finlex: Debt Collection Act 513/1999, sections 10 a to 10 i (in Finnish)
• Finlex: Act on Payment Terms in Commercial Contracts 30/2013 (in Finnish)
• Finnish Competition and Consumer Authority (KKV): how debt collection proceeds (in Finnish)

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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