Tax prepayment in Finland 2026 (ennakkovero): how it is set, paid and changed
A tax prepayment (ennakkovero) is income tax that an entrepreneur pays in advance during the tax year. The amount is based on your latest finalised tax assessment or, if the business is new, on your own estimate of its taxable income. It falls due on the 23rd of the month, and you can change it in MyTax as often as you need to. If it is too low, the rest becomes back tax, which carries late-payment interest with relief: 4.5 % in 2026.
What the amount is based on
The Tax Administration calculates your prepayment from your most recent finalised assessment. If your prepayment was changed during the previous year, the next year's prepayment is based on the figures you gave in that change.
- A new business. You give an estimate of income, expenses and profit in MyTax or on the start-up notification, and the prepayment is calculated from it. If a toiminimi's business is small, its income can be taken into account on your tax card for wages instead.
- A toiminimi. Besides the taxable profit of the business, all your other income counts, such as wages and a start-up grant.
- An Oy. A company pays income tax at 20 %, and its prepayment is set for each accounting period.
Example: an Oy estimates its taxable profit for the accounting period at 30 000 euros. The prepayment is 6 000 euros, paid in 12 equal instalments of 500 euros.
When you pay
The due date is the 23rd of the month; if that is a Saturday or a public holiday, it moves to the next business day. The number of instalments depends on the amount.
| Toiminimi: prepayment for the year | Instalments |
|---|---|
| 170–500 euros | 2: March and September |
| over 500, up to 1 700 euros | 3: February, July and November |
| over 1 700, up to 10 000 euros | 6: every other month from February |
| over 10 000 euros | 12: every month |
An Oy pays equal instalments: 500–2 000 euros in two, in the third and ninth month of the accounting period, and anything over 2 000 euros in every month of it. No prepayment is set for a company below 500 euros, or for a toiminimi below 170 euros; a smaller amount is paid in the final assessment.
A toiminimi entrepreneur can spread the instalments evenly over every month in MyTax, and a seasonal business can ask for prepayments only in the months when it earns its income.
When to change your prepayment
Watch your results during the year. When they look different from the estimate, ask for a change in MyTax; you can do so more than once a year.
- The prepayment is too high. Ask for a change. Do not skip an instalment or pay less than the decision says: a late instalment carries late-payment interest, 9.5 % in 2026. Prepayment paid in excess comes back as a tax refund.
- The prepayment is too low. Ask for a change while the tax year is still running.
- While you wait. The earlier decision stays in force until you receive a new one. If none has arrived by the due date, pay according to the earlier decision.
After the tax year: additional prepayment
You can pay missing tax as an additional prepayment, which you request in MyTax before paying. A toiminimi entrepreneur can request it from December of the tax year and pays no interest when the due date is in January. An Oy can request one only after its tax year has ended, and pays no interest within one month of the end of the tax year; a company's tax year is usually its accounting period. The smallest additional prepayment is 170 euros for a toiminimi and 500 euros for a company.
Otherwise the missing part becomes back tax, and it carries late-payment interest with relief, less a deduction of 20 euros, or of the whole interest if it is smaller. In the Tax Administration's example for an individual, back tax of 10 000 euros collects 224.38 euros of interest over 182 days, and 204.38 euros is left to pay. An additional prepayment paid in January would have avoided the interest completely.
Prepayment and bookkeeping
Up-to-date books show whether your prepayment is right before the year is over. Following your results and changing the prepayment are part of our services. How the two business forms are taxed is in our article on toiminimi or Oy.
Sources
- Tax Administration: tax prepayment for businesses
- Tax Administration: instructions for making prepayments
- Tax Administration: number of prepayment instalments
- Tax Administration: additional prepayment
- Tax Administration: late-payment interest with relief
- Tax Administration: income taxes of limited liability companies
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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