Increasing the agricultural equalisation reserve
Act amending section 10 a of the Agricultural Income Tax Act
The maximum amount of the equalisation reserve in agricultural taxation will be raised from 13,500 euros to 25,000 euros. The change gives agricultural entrepreneurs better opportunities to balance their income and prepare for future investments.
- Status
- Lapsed
- Submitted
- 31 Jan 2019
- Latest event
- 18 Apr 2019
- Votes
- 0
- Speeches
- 34
- Source
- eduskunta.fi ↗
What is proposed
The maximum amount of the equalisation reserve deductible from net agricultural income under the Agricultural Income Tax Act will be increased from 13,500 euros to 25,000 euros. The reserve's maximum share of 40 per cent of net income and the three-year period of use remain unchanged.
What it means
The change will be applied for the first time in taxation for 2020 and will benefit an estimated 4,800 farms with relatively high incomes. The increase will reduce tax revenue by approximately 16 million euros in 2020, and the permanent loss in tax revenue is estimated at around 4 million euros per year. Changes in tax revenue for municipalities will be compensated through central government transfers.
How Parliament voted
No plenary votes were held on the bill.
Debate in the chamber
What was argued and where each group stood, followed by MPs' speeches verbatim from the parliamentary record. Speeches are shown in their original language.
34 speeches · 1 debate
Key points of the debate
Parliament debated raising the maximum amount of the agricultural equalisation reserve from 13,500 euros to 25,000 euros. The proposal received broad and unanimous support in the chamber as a way to facilitate farmers' investments and balance income. The debate also raised wishes to abolish the euro cap on the reserve entirely and extend the reservation period, as well as concerns over tax revenue in agricultural municipalities and EU State aid rules.
- Should the proposal's relationship to EU State aid rules have been clarified with the Commission in advance?
- Will the increase in the reserve cause irreparable tax losses for agricultural municipalities?
- Should the euro ceiling on the equalisation reserve be removed entirely and the period of use extended from three to five years?
- National Coalition PartyIn favour
The National Coalition Party supported the proposal, seeing that it would improve investment conditions for capital-intensive agriculture and accelerate structural change in the sector.
”Tämä ei vähennä vaan siirtää maatalouden verotusta, niin että investointivähennykset voidaan tehdä sitten etukäteen suurempana.”
— Eero Suutari - Centre PartyIn favour
The Centre Party considered the proposal an excellent way to support farmers' investments and hoped that the ceiling on the reserve would be abolished entirely and its entry into force brought forward.
”On erinomainen asia, että hallitus on antanut tämän maatalouden tasausvarauksen korottamista koskevan esityksen.”
— Esko Kiviranta - Finns PartyIn favour
The Finns Party supported the proposal as necessary relief for agriculture and additionally proposed extending the period for spreading the reserve to five years.
”Perussuomalaiset arvostavat suomalaista maataloutta erittäin vahvasti, ja siksi totean ryhmänkin puolesta, että tämä esitys on paikallaan, hyvä ja kannatettava.”
— Toimi Kankaanniemi - Social DemocratsIn favour with reservations
The Social Democrats supported the proposal to safeguard food production, but expressed reservations about the lack of prior verification regarding EU State aid issues and tax revenue losses facing agricultural municipalities.
”Kaksi näkökohtaa antaa kuitenkin aihetta sisällyttää tähän kannatuspuheenvuoroon varaumia.”
— Tytti Tuppurainen - Left AllianceIn favour
The Left Alliance supported the proposal, considering that it would bring certainty to investments and encourage new entrepreneurs into the sector.
”Mutta olen sitä mieltä, että tämä esitys on erittäin hyvä ja sitä pitää kannattaa.”
— Jari Myllykoski - Christian DemocratsIn favour
The Christian Democrats considered the proposal a step in the right direction and an important means of spreading income over time and supporting domestic food production and security of supply.
”Edellä mainitusta syystä pidän käsittelyssä olevaa hallituksen esitystä oikeansuuntaisena.”
— Peter Östman
This digest was generated by AI from 34 speeches 13 Sep 2026. Group positions are read from the speeches, not from votes; quotations were checked verbatim against the record.
Keskustelu päättyi. Asia lähetettiin valtiovarainvaliokuntaan.
Stages of consideration
The bill's path from the preliminary debate to the decision, as recorded by Parliament.
- 31 Jan 2019Eduskuntakäsittelyn vireilletulo · Valtiovarainministeriö
- 5 Feb 2019Lähetekeskustelu · Täysistunto
Decisions by law proposal1
- 1Laki maatilatalouden tuloverolain 10 a §:n muuttamisesta
Proposed law text
The law proposals in the bill as the Government presented them. The final act may differ after committee consideration.
The law text is shown in Finnish or Swedish from Parliament's official documents; it is not translated into English.
Laki maatilatalouden tuloverolain 10 a §:n muuttamisesta
Eduskunnan päätöksen mukaisesti muutetaan maatilatalouden tuloverolain (543/1967) 10 a §:n 1 momentti, sellaisena kuin se on laissa 899/2001, seuraavasti:
10 a §
Verovelvollinen voi vähentää maatilan maatalouden puhtaasta tulosta veroilmoituksessaan ennen verovuodelta toimitettavan verotuksen päättymistä tekemänsä varauksen (tasausvaraus ). Tasausvarauksen suuruus on enintään 40 prosenttia maatilan maatalouden puhtaasta tulosta ennen varauksen vähentämistä, kuitenkin enintään 25 000 euroa. Pienempää kuin 800 euron tasausvarausta ei kuitenkaan saa tehdä. Tasausvarauksen määrää laskettaessa jätetään täysien satojen eurojen yli menevä osa lukuun ottamatta.
§
Tämä laki tulee voimaan päivänä kuuta 20 .
Lakia sovelletaan ensimmäisen kerran vuodelta 2020 toimitettavassa verotuksessa.
Main content of the bill (official)
The summary and title were produced with AI on 13 Sep 2026. They are not official documents – check the details in the original bill. The title and summaries are machine translations of the Finnish AI summaries. Speeches and quotations are always shown in their original language.