The rules for short-term rentals are being reformed – last chance to comment on the proposed amendments

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As we noted in our previous blog post, the legislation on short-term rentals is being amended. The Finnish Ministry of the Environment has drafted a government bill that would amend the Building Act, including the legislation applicable to short-term rentals and the definitions for occupancy and accommodation. Statements on the proposal prepared by the Finnish Ministry of the Environment can be submitted until 25 April 2025.

The regulation of short-term rentals has been reviewed by the Finnish Ministry of the Environment during various stages of drafting the Building Act, which entered into force on 1 January 2025. The draft government bill published by the Finnish Ministry of the Environment on 28 February 20251 proposes a couple of changes to the Building Act (751/2023), with the aim to legally define what type of use of a building or flat is considered as residential use and what is not.

The legal definition proposed for “residential use” includes the following situations:

  1. continuous residence, including letting out of the premises for no less than four weeks at a time;
  2. situations where the residential premises’ holder’s (such as the owner) place of residence is registered to the relevant premises, and the premises are let out on a short-term basis for less than four (4) weeks at a time; and
    • The holder can be the owner or tenant of the apartment.
  3. letting out of residential premises for less than four weeks at a time when such lease arrangements aggregate to no more than 90 days per year.

The proposal states, further, that a municipality may, however, in its building regulations, allow that the letting out of residential premises in the situations under point 3 above in periods of less than four weeks at a time for a maximum of 180 days in a calendar year can be considered as residential use.

The proposal also states that “accommodation” refers to the offering of furnished accommodation to persons in need of temporary accommodation. Under the proposed provision, actors offering premises for short-term lease would, moving forward, be required to keep a record of how often they have leased a residential building or apartment.

Occupancy that would not meet the criteria for residential use, but would meet the criteria for an accommodation use, would be considered a prohibited way of use of a residential building or apartment if the residential building or apartment building is permitted and planned for residential use only.

At the same time, it is proposed to add a clarifying paragraph to the Building Act, according to which the holder of a building must explicitly comply with the purpose of use for which the building is permitted when using the building. This obligation has of course applied in the past as well, although it is not explicitly laid down in the law.

If the amendments were to enter into force as drafted, short-term rentals would in the future be allowed on a more limited basis for residential buildings or apartments where the owner / holder of the residential building / apartment is not registered.

The purpose of the amendments is to, in accordance with Petteri Orpo’s government programme, clarify the regulation of short-term rentals, mitigate the problems that may arise from short-term rentals and, on the other hand, enable short-term rental activities. The government proposal also aims to clarify the distinction between the different types of buildings and premises defined in the building permit. It also aims to clarify the mandate and possibilities for building inspection authorities to intervene in the case of illegal short-term rentals in residential premises.

The amendments are due to enter in force on 1 January 2026, but before that, the government must submit its final proposal, the changes must be discussed and approved by the Finnish parliament and the President must verify them.

For those who are interested in this subject, it is worth following the development of the legislative changes. Our experts will also keep an eye on the progress of these changes and will be happy to discuss them in more detail.

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