Declaring Income in Slovakia: Who Files and When

In Slovakia the tax return must be filed by 31 March for the previous calendar year. Here is who has to file it, who does not, what forms exist and what happens if you are late.

Who does not need to file a return

Let us start with the good news: most employees do not need to file a return. You can skip it if all of the following apply:

• you worked under an employment contract for the whole year;
• you had no other taxable income;
• you asked your employer in good time to carry out the annual tax settlement (ročné zúčtovanie dane).

The annual settlement is when your employer’s payroll department recalculates your tax for the year itself, applies the tax-free allowance and the tax bonus, and refunds any overpayment. You have to submit the request to your employer at the start of the year, by the set deadline. Miss it and you will have to file a return yourself.

Who has to file a return

• Entrepreneurs — živnosť holders and other self-employed people, whatever their income.
• People who worked for several employers during the year, if they did not request the annual settlement from the last one.
• People who received income from abroad — this applies to many who have kept income in Ukraine or another country.
• People who rented out property.
• People who sold property at a profit, where the transaction is taxable.
• People who received income from capital, dividends or investment income.

Income from abroad deserves a separate word: the mere fact that tax has already been paid in another country does not exempt you from declaring it in Slovakia if you are a tax resident here. Double taxation is eliminated under an international agreement, but the mechanism has to be applied correctly.

What forms exist

• Type A (typ A) — for income from employment only. Simpler and shorter.
• Type B (typ B) — for business income, rental income, sales of property and income from abroad. If you have even one such source of income, you fill in type B.

Legal entities file a separate corporate income tax return.

How to file

Entrepreneurs and VAT payers must file electronically — through the Financial Administration portal. You need an electronic signature (an eID card with a chip and a reader) or an agreement on electronic communication with the tax office. Arrange this in advance: at the end of March there are queues, and technology has a habit of letting you down.

Individuals who are not running a business can also file on paper — in person at the tax office or by post.

Extending the deadline

The deadline can be extended by submitting a notification before the main deadline expires, that is, by 31 March. The extension is normally three months, or up to six if you have income from abroad. This is a notification, not a request: you do not need to wait for approval.

What happens if you do not file

The tax office will impose a fine, plus interest on any unpaid tax. The debt does not disappear — it grows. If you have already missed the deadline, it is better to file late of your own accord than to wait for the tax office to spot it, as the penalties are usually milder that way.

Frequently asked questions

I only worked part of the year. Do I need to file?

In that situation a return is often to your advantage: an incomplete year of work usually means you have overpaid tax, so filing means getting money back rather than paying more.

What if I worked in both Slovakia and Ukraine?

If you are a Slovak tax resident, both incomes have to be declared here. This is exactly the case where an accountant’s advice pays for itself — the mechanism for crediting foreign tax is not obvious.

Do social benefits have to be declared?

Some payments are tax-free, others are taxable. The rules differ by type, so check the specific kind of payment.

How much does an accountant cost?

For a simple return it is usually a small amount, nothing like the potential fine or the refund you would miss out on. You can find Russian-speaking accountants in our directory of specialists and services.

You can find the official rates and forms here: the insured person’s electronic account.

If your only income comes from employment, start with our article on how employees are taxed.

What to read next

For the overall picture of rates and contributions, see the article taxes in Slovakia 2026. For how salaries are calculated, see gross and net salary. For forms of doing business, see what a živnosť is in Slovakia.

Forms, instructions and electronic filing are on the website of the Financial Administration of the Slovak Republic.

Important. The information in this article has been gathered from publicly available online sources and was accurate at the time of publication. Deadlines, forms and tax rules change, and your specific obligations depend on your individual situation. This article is not tax advice. Before filing your return, check the current requirements on the Financial Administration website and consult a relevant specialist — an accountant or a tax adviser.

For companies, filing deadlines and the details are covered in the article how to set up a company (s.r.o.) in Slovakia.

A separate look at company reporting — deadlines, contents, the public register and what happens if you fail to file — is in the article financial statements of a company in Slovakia.