American taxation system while in Finland

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hilliard2helsinki
Posts: 2
Joined: Thu Jan 10, 2019 3:42 pm

American taxation system while in Finland

Post by hilliard2helsinki » Mon Jan 14, 2019 6:34 pm

Hi, I'm interviewing with a few Finnish companies that would require me to relocate to Finland should I get the role. I was wondering if anyone is aware of what the taxation system is like for an American living in Finland. Are we taxed twice, is there a taxation treaty? Any advice or information would be greatly helpful!



American taxation system while in Finland

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Oho
Posts: 335
Joined: Wed Aug 11, 2010 3:48 pm

Re: American taxation system while in Finland

Post by Oho » Tue Jan 15, 2019 12:15 am

Finland and the US have, if I correctly recall, a tax agreement in place which should protect you from dual taxation that is taxes you paid in Finland are counted in your favor when calculating US taxes (which are likely to be zero). However as a US citizen I think you are still liable to file tax return with the IRS every year (blame it on uncle Sam), which I have come to understand maybe a pain.

Finnish tax return, if you are a salaried employee with normal run of the mill deductions, takes about 30 minutes and in many cases the prefilled return actually requires no changes at all. The last few years I filed in Finland I only had domestic work (?) and commuting cost deductions to claim.

Anyway I would not take my word for it, I would consult relocation professionals assigned to my case.

riku2
Posts: 1045
Joined: Tue Jul 08, 2008 10:13 pm

Re: American taxation system while in Finland

Post by riku2 » Tue Jan 15, 2019 8:24 am

yes, hard as it is to believe, as an American you are always taxed by the USA regardless of where you live, even if you left the USA 20 years ago. I think the USA is unique in this respect, normally when you leave a country for good you start to pay tax where you live, not where you live + country you hold a passport for.

on the other hand the taxation system for finland has a lot more in english now than before. all the explanations and forms for your annual return are in english and can be done online. Most of the time the form has all the data gathered already about your income, shares, mortgage, bank interest etc. almost nothing to do yourself than agree with it and click "submit" because the banks and employers submit the data to the tax authority on your behalf.


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