What is RUT deduction?
RUT stands for cleaning, maintenance and laundry and means that you as a private person can make a tax deduction for labor costs when you hire someone who helps you with, for example, cleaning or gardening.
To be entitled to RUT deduction, the services must be performed in or close to your home. You can also get RUT deduction for your parents’ home.
Here is a selection of the services you can get a RUT deduction for:
• Childcare up to the time the child is in year seven. Only parents or guardians can receive RUT deduction and the child must be cared for in or near their home – with the exception of leaving and picking up at school or activity.
• Moving services where a company helps you relocate. You can also make deductions for moving cleaning and help with unpacking and unpacking your things.
• Repair, maintenance, or installation of data and IT services such as wifi, computer, tablet, printer, TV and satellite dish.
• Cleaning in your home. However, you can not make deductions for cleaning common areas such as stairwells or rough cleaning with high-pressure washing and floor-mounting machines.
• Repair of white goods such as washing machine, dryer, dishwasher, stove, refrigerator and freezer.
• Gardening where you have hired help for, among other things, lawn mowing, tree felling, mowing hedges, shrubs and roses. You do not receive a deduction for, for example, help with picking fruit from trees, pest control and planting lawns.
From 1 January 2021, you can also receive RUT deduction for:
• Washing of clothes and home textiles at dry cleaning. You can also get RUT deduction for picking up and dropping off the laundry if the transport is offered as a service.
• Help with assembling furniture, furnishing and moving furniture in your home. However, interior design services are not included.
• The cost of transporting household goods for reuse, for example to second-hand shops and flea markets. This also applies to the transport of household goods to and from storage.
• Easier supervision of your home when you are away, for example, someone who waters your flowers, takes care of the mail, or looks after the holiday home when it is empty.
How much you can get from RUT deductions
You who are over 18 years of age may make RUT deduction of a maximum of 50 percent of the labor cost, but for a maximum of SEK 50,000 per person and year. From 1 January 2021, the amount will be increased from SEK 50,000 to SEK 75,000.
Keep in mind that the RUT and ROT deduction are merged and that you may make a total deduction of a maximum of SEK 75,000 per year, from 1 January 2021. If you have already used the maximum amount for ROT deduction, which is SEK 50,000, you have 25,000 kronor left to use for RUT.
On the Swedish Tax Agency’s website, you can see how much square or root deduction you have left to use.
Requirements for obtaining RUT deduction
In order to be able to use the RUT deduction, some requirements are placed on you and your home. You must be at least 18 years old and live or pay taxes in Sweden for at least 90 percent of your total income. In addition, you must have RUT deduction left to use.
Unlike the ROT deduction, you do not need to own your home to be able to use RUT deduction. But you have to live fully or partly.
In order for the deduction to be included in your tax return the following year, you must have paid for the work before the turn of the year.
These people are not allowed to perform RUT deduction work for you
The company or person you hire must have a Swedish F-tax or A-tax. You do not receive a deduction for work that you or a relative has done for you. As relative measures include the spouse, cohabiting partner (if you have been married or had children together), parents, grandparents, siblings and children. You also can’t hire your individual company to do the work in your home.
Who handles the payment to the Swedish Tax Agency?
The person you have hired for the assignment makes a deduction from the labor cost on your invoice. Once you have paid the invoice, the contractor can request a payment from the Swedish Tax Agency (Skatteverket). You as a customer do not have to do anything. What you should keep in mind is that you must have paid enough tax during the year to use the deduction.