Finland Court Rules Sports Betting Can Qualify As Income-Earning Activity

Finland’s Supreme Administrative Court has ruled that sports betting can be treated as income-earning activity for tax purposes when conducted on a sufficiently extensive and systematic basis.

The decision means qualifying bettors may deduct losses from taxable betting winnings, while travel expenses between their home and place of work may also be deductible.

Lawyer Joonas Karhu highlighted the ruling, explaining that the court found betting activity could be considered to have been conducted with the purpose of generating income.

Professional poker playing had previously been recognised as an income-earning activity under Finland’s tax framework.

However, the court stopped short of classifying sports betting as a business activity under the country’s Business Income Tax Act.

Second Gambling Tax Ruling In Three Months

The decision comes as Finland prepares to transition to a licence-based iGaming market from 1 July 2027.

It also represents the second gambling-related tax ruling from the Supreme Administrative Court within three months.

In August, the court rejected the Finnish Tax Administration’s approach of treating each individual spin on online slot games operated outside the European Economic Area (EEA) as a separate event.

The ruling was decided by a 3–2 vote.

Miika Härkönen, tax lawyer at the Finnish Taxpayers’ Association, said at the time:

“The most important thing about the decision is that the Supreme Administrative Court did not accept the Tax Administration’s view that each game should be viewed as a completely separate event.”

Härkönen also noted that questions remained over how a single gaming session should be defined, including how much time between wagers would be required for one session to end and another to begin.

The latest sports betting decision further clarifies the tax treatment of gambling activity ahead of Finland’s transition to its new regulated iGaming framework.