Instructions for supervising another person’s interests – tax matters of guardians and clients

If you are a guardian, you are responsible for the financial affairs of the person who is under your guardianship, i.e. your client. You must manage your client’s taxes on their behalf. Acting as guardian may also affect your own tax assessment.

I am a private guardian or have a continuing power of attorney to act as guardian

How to manage your client’s taxes

You can manage your client’s tax matters and also submit or change their bank account number in MyTax. You do not need an authorisation to use the e-service. Log in to MyTax and select “Act on behalf of someone else”.

In the following situations, however, you will need a separate Suomi.fi authorisation from the person on whose behalf you are acting in MyTax:

• More than one person has a continuing power of attorney to act as the client’s guardian.
• Your continuing power of attorney to manage the client’s financial affairs concerns a certain part of the property, or your powers are otherwise limited.

If you cannot use MyTax:

• Check the content of your continuing power of attorney and, if necessary, request the required Suomi.fi authorisation in the Suomi.fi service of the Digital and Population Data Services Agency (DVV). You can find a link to the instructions at the bottom of the page.
• You can submit the returns on paper. See the instructions for filing on paper under I am a public guardian.

If you are paid for acting as a guardian

• Tax card for trade income: If you are paid a fee, you will need a tax card for trade income. There is no employment relationship between you and your client. Because of this, the fee is trade income and you cannot use a tax card for wages.
  • Note that you are not entitled to tax-exempt reimbursement of expenses, such as daily allowances or kilometre allowances, paid by your client. If your expenses are reimbursed, they will be taxed as trade income.
  • Go to How to order a tax card in MyTax and select “I receive trade income – I am not in the VAT register”.
  • If you are in the prepayment register, you must make prepayments on the fee. Read how to request and make prepayments.
• Report the fee to the Incomes Register. See the instructions: Report guardian’s fees to the Incomes Register
• Pay tax withholding. You can find the payment details and also pay the withheld amount in MyTax.
• The fee is shown on the pre-completed tax return as trade income. The information is received directly from the Incomes Register. Check the pre-completed tax return and make corrections if needed.
  • If there is no trade income on your pre-completed tax return, add it to “Trade income and compensation for use” in section Wages, salaries, fees and compensation. Also report any tax withholding in this section.
  • Read the instructions for the pre-completed tax return – when you receive a pre-completed tax return and by when you must file corrections.

I am a public guardian

Public guardians can manage their clients’ tax affairs by using paper forms. How to declare with paper forms.

Further information

Definitions related to guardianship on oikeus.fi:

Guardian

Public guardian

Private guardian

Donee (person with a continuing power of attorney to act as guardian)

Instructions for granting a continuing power of attorney on the DVV website:

Continuing power of attorney, i.e. anticipating the need for support

Instructions for granting a Suomi.fi authorisation:

Select the authorisation “Managing of tax affairs”.

Suomi.fi authorisation for tax matters – how to grant and request authorisation