Social assistance and unemployment benefits top the statistics for suspected cases of benefit fraud in 2025
Cases of suspected benefit fraud involving Kela benefits occur most often among recipients of basic social assistance, unemployment benefits and the general housing allowance. In 2025, suspected cases of benefit fraud accounted for less than 0.05% of all benefits paid by Kela.
According to a new report on benefit fraud cases published by Kela, the number of suspected cases of benefit fraud have remained relatively low between 2021 and 2025. Altogether 1,017 cases were discovered in 2025 with a monetary value of approximately EUR 7.2 million, which accounted for 0.043% of all benefits paid by Kela in that year.
In 2025, basic social assistance was the benefit with the most suspected cases of benefit fraud. The benefits with the second highest number of cases were general housing allowance and unemployment benefits.
The statistics on suspected cases of benefit fraud recorded by Kela cover cases where the customer has been contacted for a statement due to the suspicions and where Kela has issued a decision on the matter. Benefit administration employees discovered more cases of potential benefit fraud than is indicated by the aforementioned statistics on suspected benefit fraud cases. Benefit administration employees discovered altogether 3,027 cases of potential benefit fraud in 2025.
“The number of discovered cases has increased slightly from the previous year. Our employees have received more support for identifying and investigating suspected cases of benefit fraud in the form of guidelines and training,” says Anna-Leena Aalto, Head of Legal Services in Kela’s Shared Services.
New tool to help identify forged or counterfeited documents
Kela invests in the proactive identification and prevention of benefit fraud.
In 2025, Kela introduced a technical solution that can be used to automatically identify documents that may have been forged or counterfeited from among documents submitted by customers. By using a technical solution to automatically identify documents containing falsified information, Kela can better allocate its employees’ resources to benefit administration work.
Prime Minister Petteri Orpo’s Government has issued a government proposal seeking to amend the legislation that applies to the exchange of information between Kela and other actors. The draft proposal proposes that Kela be granted the right to obtain benefit applicants’ bank and account information from a secure system maintained by Finnish Customs. If passed into law, the changes introduced in draft proposal will reduce the occurrence of benefit fraud.
Benefit fraud meets the criteria of a crime
When a Kela customer engages in benefit fraud, this means that they are intentionally seeking to receive benefits without cause or at a higher amount than is due. Other examples of benefit fraud include the provision of false information or a forged or counterfeited document. The withholding of information also constitutes benefit fraud.
Benefit fraud is considered to have occurred when a customer’s conduct meets the criteria of a crime – most commonly fraud or forgery. Approximately half of all cases of suspected benefit fraud are reported to the police. All customers applying for benefits are obliged to ascertain and report to Kela all factors that impact their right to the benefits they are applying for.