Finnish tax authorities uncovered serious violations during intensified inspections of pizzerias, kebab stalls, and Chinese restaurants. Nearly 200 businesses were referred for criminal consideration after audits revealed systematic misconduct.
Non-compliant businesses typically hid cash revenue, paid undeclared wages, and neglected employer contributions. Tax officials found violations severe enough to warrant criminal proceedings in 53% of inspected establishments.
Authorities identified €18.3 million in undeclared income during the operation. They collected €4.8 million in unpaid VAT and discovered nearly €2 million in unreported wages. Additional enforcement actions recovered approximately €1 million in withholding taxes and €2.5 million in concealed dividend taxes.
The two-year inspection campaign targeted 373 food service businesses primarily selected through risk analysis. Officials focused on small and medium-sized pizzerias, kebab restaurants, and Chinese eateries identified as highest risk.
Tarja Valsi, the tax administration's grey economy prevention director, said the results confirm their targeting strategy worked effectively. 'Our investigation shows tax-evading restaurants are typically small or medium-sized pizzerias, kebab shops, or Chinese restaurants,' Valsi stated in the release.
Data indicates compliance issues occur more frequently in foreign-owned restaurants compared to Finnish-operated establishments. Valsi noted that when comparing inspected businesses to reference data from Finnish restaurants, all types of violations appear more common in foreign-owned companies.
The current findings closely mirror results from a similar 2015-2016 inspection campaign that recovered €14.5 million in taxes. 'It appears little has improved over ten years,' Valsi observed. 'While most restaurant sector businesses operate properly, misconduct remains quite widespread.'
Tax authorities emphasize that violating obligations creates unfair competition, allowing non-compliant businesses to undercut prices of legitimate competitors. Their enforcement goal remains ensuring all businesses pay taxes fairly and equally.
The sheer scale of discovered violations suggests systemic issues in certain segments of Finland's food service industry that require ongoing attention.