Kela's benefit expenditures rose by around 1.1% last year and the agency estimates that it will spend 18.1 billion euros on them this year.File photo. Image: Miikka Varila / YleYle News10:58The Social Insurance Institution of Finland (Kela) paid out nearly 17.5 billion euros in benefits to people in the country last year, reflecting an increase of 188 million euros (or 1.1%) in 2024.The biggest change in its benefit expenditures was seen in general housing allowance benefits, which decreased by 449 million euros — or nearly 27 percent, according to an agency press release on Wednesday.The housing benefit decrease was partly due to a change in student housing payouts. Starting last August, students were no longer covered by the general housing allowance and were instead offered student financial assistance housing supplements.That change, according to Kela, caused student financial aid expenditures to rise by 177 million euros — an increase of almost 24 percent.Basic social assistance expenditures rose to more than one billion euros, an increase of around 176 million euros, or more than 21 percent.Meanwhile, Kela said that expenditures for unemployment benefits increased by 157 million euros (+8%) compared to 2024.Benefit expenditures for child home care support decreased by 13 million euros, about five percent more than the previous year, according to Kela.In a separate press release, Kela said that it expects its benefits expenditures to rise to 18.1 billion euros in 2026, citing an estimate in the agency's so-called Pocket Statistics publication."For example, Kela's expenditure on unemployment benefits is estimated to reach EUR 2.4 billion this year, which translates into an increase of 322 million euros compared with last year," Kela said in the release.