Races are culture, ballroom dancing is exercise, a dip in the public sauna is not. See the 27-point list of what the taxman considers to be sports and culture covered by the employment benefit and what is not.
A cheerful group of women stagger out of the forest, towels on their heads and dressing gowns on. They’ve had a dip in the sea, and now it’s time for the sauna.
– The blood starts to circulate and you feel alive,” he says.
According to Uusilehto, the stress of work can also be taken off your shoulders when you take a sauna or swim.
In the container sauna set up in Espoo’s Matinkylä, you can relax partly at the expense of the employer, for example with the exercise benefit of E-pass or Smartum, because you can take a dip in the sauna.
– The Tax Administration’s instructions explain in general what is meant by exercise. According to the definition, sauna is not exercise. In practice, you pay for taking a sauna in public saunas, even if you have the opportunity to take a dip in the sauna.
Instead, for example, in a swimming hall, you pay primarily for swimming, which is exercise, although you can also take a sauna there.
Hockey and racing are culture, but not sauna bathing
It is not possible to use the sauna as an employee benefit in the block sauna located in Jätkäsaari, Helsinki.
According to the taxman, taking a sauna and taking a dip in a cold water pool are not physical exercise, nor is taking a sauna culture as defined by the Income Tax Act, and therefore does not fall within the scope of employment benefits.
Sauna Arla, piloted by Helistö, located in Kallio, Helsinki, almost a hundred years old, had to close its doors due to the energy crisis.
The Finnish sauna tradition has been selected for UNESCO’s list of intangible cultural heritage, and Helistö believes that the government should promote and support sauna culture because of that.
Saunas have been the middlemen in employment benefits, according to the initiative
In addition to sauna entrepreneurs, a number of MPs would like public saunas to be part of employee benefits.
The initiative made at the end of the year to include public saunas in the scope of consumer vouchers is now moving forward in parliament: it is currently being processed by the tax division of the Ministry of Finance.
According to Holopainen, block saunas are about maintaining community and culture in addition to the sauna business.
During the Corona period, remote and digital events in culture and sports came under the scope of employee benefits, and Holopainen thinks now is the time to start supporting live culture again.
– I think that now people miss meeting other people. What better way to do it than to sit on the decks and exchange news and enjoy the waves.
Holopainen also speaks in favor of improving winter swimming opportunities in Helsinki. He has made an initiative to the city council, among other things, to get a low-threshold open swimming place in Jätkäsaari.
– Then you could go for a dip and come to the sauna afterwards, he says.
Some saunas are accessible at the employer’s expense, others are not
Although, according to chief inspector Minna Palomäki, according to the guidelines, open swimming in connection with saunas is not part of the scope of employment benefits, for example Smartum’s exercise benefit can be used to pay in many saunas with the possibility of dipping in, for example, a cold water pool or a nearby river.
Meurman says that the partners, i.e. the entrepreneurs, are ultimately responsible for providing benefits approved by the taxman.
However, Smartum has the right to remove a company from its own lists if it turns out that the services are offered contrary to the instructions of the tax authority.
At Smartum, too, it is hoped that saunas would be included as a cultural benefit.
– We have a great tax-supported cultural advantage, but now our own legislation restricts Finns from using it for our most sacred culture, the sauna, Meurma’s sum.
Sauna entrepreneur Kimmo Helistö would like to have the same instructions for all entrepreneurs in the sauna industry and for the tax authorities to treat all entrepreneurs equally, regardless of their location.
The Finnish Sauna Society in Helsinki considers saunas to be its main activity. That’s why it doesn’t offer the possibility to pay with exercise vouchers, even though you can swim in the sea from the saunas all year round.
It is difficult to monitor the use of employment benefits
Last spring, the Ministry of Finance already investigated whether, in addition to saunas, for example, fishing or nature experiences or, for example, cooking courses could be included in the scope of employment benefits in the future.
However, according to the ministry’s report, it would not be necessary to extend the tax benefit to all hobby and recreation activities, but the employee’s well-being would continue to be supported with the help of exercise and culture. However, according to the report, the definition of exercise could be expanded.
However, the survey did not lead to changes in legislation this election period.
The Ministry of Finance’s report states that it is currently difficult to monitor the legal use of employee benefits because there are many different services and they can be offered and paid for through different applications.
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