3000 short term lodging providers fail to report income

About 3,000 short-term accommodation facilities including Airbnb in the country failed to report rental income last year, reported National broadcaster Yle quoting Finnish Tax Administration.

The undeclared income by such accommodation facilities was about 15 million euros, which is more than double compared to the undeclared income in 2017.

In 2017, the undeclared income by the short-term accommodation facilities was seven million euros, said the Yle report.

Based on the payment transaction from landlords', the tax authority identified about 9,000 short-term rental providers, of which a large number are Airbnb renters.

A part of the unreported income is unintentional and due to ignorance, but some of the renters are consciously trying to increase their by profits, said the Yle report, quoting Timo Puiro, chief inspector at the Tax Administration's corporate taxation unit as saying.

"We have been following this matter for several years and it looks like rental providers are taking risks and not reporting their income," Puiro told Yle, adding, “may be the risk of being caught is thought to be low”.