Remember to make full use of the tax-free thresholds set by the tax authorities for employee benefits.
The tax office defines tax-free limits for employee benefits on a per-tax-year basis. A tax year and a calendar year are not always the same thing (though for many companies, they do coincide). This means you can still order and pay for employee benefits for the current year.
If you order and pay for benefits before the end of the year, they will remain valid for 12 months from the payment date. Naturally, you can still order and pay for benefits again next year. Just like in the days of physical vouchers, digital employee benefits can be used for their entire validity period.
Where Can Employee Benefits Be Used?
Consider employee benefits as part of your reward system. Thanks to their tax-free status, they’re worth more to the employee while costing the employer less. No additional payroll costs apply, making employee benefits a better value than an equivalent amount in salary.
If you haven’t reached the tax-free limit yet, you can give an extra round of benefits, for example, before Christmas. Just remember to be fair and equal in your distribution. You could, for instance, allocate benefits based on working hours, the nature or length of employment, or whether work is done on-site or remotely.
Do We Have to Offer the Same Benefits Every Year?
Depending on the employment contract, employers might have the right to adjust the type or amount of benefits annually. However, tax-free status requires that benefits are distributed equitably among employees.
If you decide to give extra benefits before Christmas, feel free to openly let your employees know that it’s a one-time reward.
When ordering benefits with post-invoicing, they remain valid until December 31 of the current year. At that point, you can suggest our OmaLahjakortti, allowing employees to extend their benefits’ validity by three months.
Order prepaid benefits for 2025 in Smartum Saldo and Smartum Plus. If you prefer post-invoicing, join our waiting list, and we’ll let you know as soon as next year's benefits are ready to order! (Waiting list currently only in Finnish.)
