Inheritance is becoming an increasingly important source of wealth in Finland
HERITAGE In Finland, both the number and the value increase, as large age groups die and transfer their assets to future, younger generations, reports YLE.
Hannu NummiaroLähi-Tapiola’s economist stated last week to Finnish public radio that the number of inheritances distributed to beneficiaries is expected to increase by 20 percent by 2045.
As wealth in the country grows and is increasingly concentrated in older age groups, the importance of legacies increases.
“Finnish wealth has risen significantly in the last decade,” he said.
According to the statistics of the tax administration, the total value of inheritances has varied from six to seven billion euros per year, which means approximately 600-700 million euros in inheritance tax revenue. The value of the average inheritance is about 40,000 euros, but the majority of inheritances are smaller, about 60 percent of the beneficiaries inherit less than 20,000 euros annually.
Inheritance tax is not levied on an inheritance of less than 20,000 euros.
“The geographical differentiation of reserves and inheritance distributions has the combined effect that in the future a larger part of the total wealth will probably belong to a smaller number of Finns,” Nummiaro said.
Inheritance has been studied quite a bit, because it is difficult to obtain long-term information about inheritance and its development. Matti Tuomala, professor emeritus of economics at the University of Tampere, told YLE. He believes that the lack of information is an indication of a reluctance to shine a light on wealth.
“Not everyone is interested in the matter, or they have an interest, but rather a way that makes them think, let’s not check the subject,” he commented, adding that ultimately it is worth pointing the finger at the parliament.
Aleksi Teivainen – HT