This is the vocabulary that turns up on paperwork rather than in conversation — the words on your rental contract, your payslip, your phone bill and the screen of a Finnish cash machine. It's less fun than food vocabulary and considerably more useful if you're staying more than a fortnight.
Forty words below, grouped by where you'll meet them, plus the phrases for the situations that actually come up: a card that won't work, a fee you didn't expect, a bill you don't understand.
For shop phrases — asking prices, paying at the till, sizes — see the shopping lesson.
Money Basics
money
raha
cash
käteinen
coin
kolikko
note, bill
seteli
euro
euro
cent
sentti
currency
valuutta
exchange rate
vaihtokurssi
change (money back)
vaihtoraha
price
hinta
free of charge
ilmainen
good value
edullinen
Practice these words
raha
Quick note: ilmainen and maksuton both mean free. Ilmainen is everyday; maksuton ("without payment") is what you'll see on official forms and public services.
At the Bank
bank
pankki
bank account
pankkitili
account number
tilinumero
debit card
pankkikortti
credit card
luottokortti
cash machine
pankkiautomaatti
PIN code
tunnusluku
online banking
verkkopankki
online banking codes
pankkitunnukset
bank transfer
tilisiirto
balance
saldo
reference number
viitenumero
Practice these words
pankki
Quick notes:
- Pankkitunnukset are more important in Finland than anywhere else you've lived. Your online banking codes are the national identity system — they log you into tax services, health records, insurance and government forms. Losing them locks you out of the country's admin.
- Viitenumero appears on every Finnish invoice. Paying without it means the money arrives unmatched, so always copy it exactly.
Income, Bills and Tax
salary, pay
palkka
income
tulot
bill, invoice
lasku
due date
eräpäivä
rent
vuokra
rental deposit
takuuvuokra
tax
vero
VAT
arvonlisävero
tax card
verokortti
tax return
veroilmoitus
insurance
vakuutus
loan
laina
interest
korko
debt
velka
savings
säästöt
pension
eläke
Practice these words
palkka
Quick notes:
- Verokortti is the document that tells your employer how much tax to withhold. Start a job in Finland without one and you're taxed at a punitive flat rate until you produce it. Job vocabulary is in the professions lesson.
- Arvonlisävero is almost always written as alv — you'll see alv 25,5 % on receipts rather than the full word.
- Eräpäivä is the single most useful word on a Finnish bill: the date it's due.
Talking About Money
Where is a cash machine?
Missä on pankkiautomaatti?
Do you take cash?
Käykö käteinen?
Can I pay in instalments?
Voinko maksaa erissä?
Is there a fee?
Onko siitä maksua?
How much do I owe?
Paljonko olen velkaa?
I can't afford it.
Minulla ei ole varaa siihen.
The card doesn't work.
Kortti ei toimi.
I've lost my card.
Olen kadottanut korttini.
I'd like to open an account.
Haluaisin avata tilin.
When is the bill due?
Milloin lasku erääntyy?
Practice these words
Missä on pankkiautomaatti?
Quick note: käykö käteinen? — "does cash work?" — is a question worth having ready. A growing number of Finnish businesses no longer accept notes at all.
What to Know About Money in Finland
The first thing is how much of Finnish life runs through your bank. Pankkitunnukset — the codes your bank gives you — function as a national electronic ID. You use them to file taxes, read your medical records, sign rental contracts, apply for benefits and log into government services. No separate national ID login exists for most people; the bank is the gateway. Setting up a Finnish bank account is therefore the first real administrative step for anyone moving there, and it's harder without a Finnish personal identity code.
The second is that prices you see are the prices you pay. Arvonlisävero is included in every displayed retail price, tipping is not expected in restaurants or taxis, and service charges don't get added at the end. The number on the shelf is the number at the till, which makes budgeting simpler than in countries where tax and tips are bolted on afterwards. It also means the shopping phrases need no haggling over extras.
Third, a practical warning about bills. Finnish invoices carry a viitenumero, a reference number that automatically matches your payment to the right account. It isn't decoration — pay a Finnish bill without it, or with a digit wrong, and the payment can sit unallocated while the reminder letters start. When you set up a payment in verkkopankki, the reference field matters as much as the amount. Rent and deposits come up again in house and furniture.