As part of the inter-ministerial consultation stage of the legislation process, a proposed amendment to Act No. 516/2008 Coll., on Audiovisual Fund, as amended (the “Act”), is currently under discussion (the “Amendment”).

The Amendment is the result of voluntary transposition of Article 13(2) and (3) of Directive 2010/13/EU on Audiovisual Media Services (consolidated). Its aim is to address the disadvantage faced by domestic streaming service providers compared to foreign providers seated in other EU Member States that also provide their services in the Slovak Republic but have so far been exempt from the contribution obligation.

As a result, the Amendment extends the scope of entities required to pay contributions to the Audiovisual Fund by including providers established in other EU Member States if their services are directed at audiences in the Slovak Republic.

It is proposed that the contribution comprise two components, namely:

• 0.5% of the basis consisting of the provider’s total revenues from (i) services provided in the Slovak Republic and (ii) advertisements (promotional content) displayed to viewers in the Slovak Republic in connection with such services (the “Calculation Basis”), in both cases for the previous calendar year;

• contribution from unrealized direct investment, calculated as the difference between the direct investment required under the Act for the previous calendar year and the direct investment actually made during that year.

According to the Amendment, providers of on-demand audiovisual media services should be required to make a direct investment (e.g. in the development and production of Slovak audiovisual works or in professional training in the field of audiovisual culture and film art) in the amount of 3% of the Calculation Basis annually.

Exemption from the aforementioned contribution is proposed only for providers of on-demand audiovisual media services with low turnover or low viewership, subject to confirmation by the Audiovisual Fund or by decision of the Media Services Council.

The contribution is to be paid annually to the Audiovisual Fund by July 31, together with the submission of the relevant financial breakdown and auditor’s report (if the amount of the contribution exceeds EUR 20,000).

The Amendment is proposed to enter into effect on January 1, 2027.

On February 3, 2026, the National Council of the Slovak Republic (parliament) approved Act No. 29/2026 Coll. on Commercial Register, which repeals the current Act No. 530/2003 Coll. on Commercial Register and amends a number of important laws with the aim of reforming fragmented regulation and improving the transparency and efficiency of the Commercial Register.

The most significant changes include:

• permission to use registered data that are currently published online for informative purposes only (in the form of extracts from the Commercial Register), as well as documents filed with the Collection of Documents, also for legal purposes;

• the extension of permissible registrations in the Commercial Register by a notary public acting as a registrar; notaries public will now be authorized to perform initial registrations and register changes to data entered in the Commercial Register for all types of commercial companies; however, registrations resulting from transformations or cross-border transformations, and cross-border changes of legal form will remain within the jurisdiction of the registry courts;

• in addition to the petitioner acting personally in the registration proceedings, the petitioner may now authorize only their employee, an attorney-at-law, or a notary public to represent them in the proceedings;

•  certain types of registered personal data will no longer be publicly accessible: an individual’s residential address will not be published online (instead, the date of birth will be published), and the birth number (or other identifier of a foreign natural person) will not be provided even in extracts from the Commercial Register;

• the possibility of reserving a business name for a period of 60 days for a fee of EUR 50, and the related establishment of the Register of Reserved Business Names maintained by the District Court of Žilina;

• an increase in administrative fines imposed on members of the statutory bodies of registered entities for failure to comply with their obligations under the Commercial Register Act, from EUR 3,310 to EUR 4,000, which may be imposed repeatedly;

• the requirement that certain types of corporate documents be executed as a notarial deed or as a document authorized by an attorney-at-law (e.g., memorandum of association, founder’s deed, agreement on transfer of participation interest, certain resolutions of the General Meeting) and the related establishment of the Register of Authorizations maintained by the Slovak Bar Association;

• the removal of the ban on chaining single-member limited liability companies and of the restriction preventing a natural person from being the sole shareholder in more than three companies;

• the reduction of selected court fees for registrations in the Commercial Register (e.g., registration of a change in registered data: EUR 50 instead of EUR 66; initial registration of a joint-stock company: EUR 550 instead of EUR 750, and of other entities: EUR 220 instead of EUR 300).

The aforementioned changes will enter into effect on August 17, 2026.

A new amendment (Act No. 310/2025 Coll.) to the Consumer Protection Act (Act No. 108/2024 Coll.) has introduced several changes in the area of consumer protection to ensure compliance with EU law (the “Amendment”).

The adopted changes include the following:

• introduction of new information obligations, e.g., to provide a repairability index (score) for certain goods, and the minimum period for free updates of digital elements/content;

• the catalog of unfair commercial practices has been extended to include, for example: presenting irreparable goods as repairable; providing false information about the lifespan of goods in terms of time or intensity of use; the option for repair service providers (repair shops) to provide consumers with a European repair information form free of charge – the purpose is to make it easier for the consumer to select a suitable repair service;

• repair of certain types of goods by manufacturers free of charge or at a reasonable price (e.g., washing machines and dryers, dishwashers, mobile phones), unless repair is factually or legally impossible;

• introduction of a ban on contractual, hardware, and/or software restrictions imposed by manufacturers on third-party repair service providers.

The adopted changes also relate to the Civil Code (Act No. 40/1964 Coll.). Examples include:

• natural wear and tear of a used good sold is not considered a defect if it can reasonably be expected given the extent of its previous use;

• extension of the statutory period for claiming liability for defects in a good by 12 months when repair is chosen as the remedy, but no more than once. This period is added to the remaining period of liability for defects.

The provisions of the Amendment will enter into force in phases. Thus, the changes will be implemented gradually throughout the calendar year 2026. Some provisions will enter into effect on January 1, 2026, others on July 31, 2026, and the remainder on September 27, 2026.

Act No. 384/2025 Coll., on Recording of Sales and on Amendments to Certain Acts (the “Act”), a new piece of legislation, comes into force on January 1, 2026.

The Act fully replaces and repeals its predecessor, Act No. 289/2008 Coll., on Use of Electronic Cash Registers, as amended. Beyond modernizing the existing framework, it seeks to enhance sales transparency, curb tax evasion, and foster a fair business environment.

Under the new regulation, the obligation to record sales extends to a significantly broader group of sellers, i.e., it applies to both natural and legal persons authorized to conduct business or other independent gainful activities, regardless of their place of permanent residence or registered office, if they receive revenue (payment) for the sale of goods or the provision of services in cash or through other cash-equivalent payment methods. Only a limited number of exemptions from the obligation will remain to apply (e.g., sellers who are individuals with severe disabilities, sellers undergoing liquidation or bankruptcy proceedings, and sellers who provide certain services specified in the Act).

The law requires sellers to display a notice, at each point of sale, about their obligation to record sales using the eKasa cash register and to provide customers with a receipt (the “Notice”). The guideline issued by the Financial Directorate of the Slovak Republic emphasizes that the Notice must be displayed in a location that ensures easy accessibility and legibility, for example, it should be positioned at eye level or the most accessible place of interaction between the seller and its customers. Furthermore, the Financial Directorate recommends that the notice be in A4 format.

The Act also requires sellers to enable, effective from March 1, 2026, cashless payments for sales exceeding EUR 1, e.g., via a QR code, payment card, or other cashless payment methods.

In connection with the changes introduced by the Act, sellers should be aware that the tax and customs authorities may impose stricter fines for administrative offenses, in the amount of up to EUR 20,000, and up to twice that amount for repeated violations of the Act. The Act further specifies which administrative offenses constitute particularly serious violations of the Act and for which the tax or customs authorities may, upon the first repeated finding of a violation, file a motion to revoke the trade license for the business activity that violates the Act, and upon each subsequent finding, such a motion must be filed. Each subsequent finding of a particularly serious violation of the Act will also result in a ban on the sale of goods or the provision of services for up to 72 hours.

UPDATE:

Pursuant to an amendment to another act adopted on February 12, 2026, the effective date of the Act regarding the obligation to enable cashless payments for sales exceeding EUR 1, e.g., via a QR code, payment card, or other cashless payment methods, has been postponed from March 1, 2026 to May 1, 2026.

In addition to the employment-related measures presented to you in our October’s news, the National Council of the Slovak Republic (parliament) approved several tax-related measures to reduce the public finance deficit under Act No. 261/2025 Coll., Amending and Supplementing Certain Acts in Connection with Consolidation of Public Finances.

In the area of taxation, this mainly concerns amendments to the Income Tax Act, Value Added Tax Act, Act on Protection and Use of Mineral Resources (Mining Act), Gambling Act, and Act on Special Levy on Business in Regulated Sectors.

The adopted austerity measures introduce the following changes in particular:

• introduction of a new tax license (i.e., minimum tax) band for legal entities with a taxable income exceeding EUR 5 million, which imposes a tax license of EUR 11,520, whereas previously these entities were subject to a tax license of EUR 3,840;

• introduction of a new levy on newly extracted primary raw materials (gravel, sand, building stone) at a rate of EUR 1.35 per tonne;

• introduction of a 54% tax on revenues (income) of banks, or branches of foreign banks, from fees for processing payment transactions made by a payment card to a player’s account;

• adjustment to the existing progressive taxation of personal income, including introducing new tax bands with rates of 30% and 35%;

• increase in taxation of gambling;

• increase in both the tax rate on non-life insurance and the levy imposed on compulsory contractual insurance for liability for damage caused by operation of a motor vehicle from 8% to 10% (payable by insurance companies);

• increase in the VAT rate on selected foods with high sugar and salt content from 19% to 23% (note: not applicable to sugar and salt themselves and other exemptions);

• the option to deduct 100% of VAT when using a company car owned by a business entity exclusively for business purposes while keeping detailed records (such as a logbook) remains unchanged. However, if the vehicle is also used for non-business purposes, the VAT deduction is limited to 50%. The VAT deduction limitation also applies to goods and services related to the operation and maintenance of motor vehicles (servicing, tires, fuel, etc.).

The majority of the aforementioned measures are proposed to enter into effect on January 1, 2026.

For the sake of completeness, a general tax pardon was introduced with effect from October 1, 2025 by Regulation of the Government of the Slovak Republic No. 243/2025 Coll., on Cancellation of Tax Arrears Corresponding to Unpaid Penalties related to Paid Tax and on Waiver of Fines and Interest on Late Payments. The aforementioned tax amnesty is aimed at taxpayers who between January 1, 2026 and June 30, 2026 will pay or additionally declare in their tax returns the tax (such as income tax, VAT, excise duty, motor vehicle tax, insurance tax recorded as of September 30, 2025. This will result in the waiver of penalties and/or penalty interest on unpaid and/or unreported taxes owed to tax and customs authorities.

On September 24, 2025, the National Council of the Slovak Republic (parliament) approved amendments to a number of important laws to reduce the public finance deficit.

In the area of employment, this mainly concerns amendments to the Labor Code; the Labor Inspection Act; the Act on Income Compensation during Temporary Incapacity for Work; and the Act on Public Holidays, Non-Working Days, and Memorial Days.

The adopted austerity measures introduce the following changes in particular:

• the definition of “dependent work” has been broadened by removing one of the legal features of dependent work, namely work will no longer have to be performed “during working hours determined by the employer” to be classified as dependent work. This change is intended to make it easier for labor inspectors to prove what is known as false self-employment;

• the minimum fines imposed on employers for violating the prohibition of illegal (including disguised) employment have been increased from EUR 2,000 to EUR 5,000, and from EUR 5,000 to EUR 8,000 for two or more workers in illegal (including disguised) employment;

• the period during which employers will be required to pay eligible employees income compensation (statutory sick pay) due to their temporary incapacity for work has been increased from 10 to 14 days; the related entitlement to sickness benefit (social security benefit) starts from the 15th day of temporary incapacity for work;

• the rate of public health insurance contributions payable by employees has been increased from 4% to 5% of the assessment base (by employees with disabilities, from 2% to 2.5% of the assessment base);

• the existing progressive taxation of personal income has been adjusted, including the introduction of new income tax brackets with rates of 30% and 35%;

• as of 2025, the public holiday falling on November 17, commemorating Struggle for Freedom and Democracy, will no longer be a non-working day;

• in 2026, the public holidays on May 8 (Victory over Fascism Day) and September 15 (Feast of Our Lady of Sorrows) will be working days;

• the ban on working in retail sales (save for exemptions) will only apply on January 1, Good Friday, Easter Sunday, and during the Christmas holidays. Retail stores will be allowed to open on other holidays.

The majority of the aforementioned measures are proposed to enter into effect on January 1, 2026.

Act No. 200/2025 Coll. amending Act No. 359/2015 Coll. on Automatic Exchange of Financial Account Information for Tax Purposes (the “Amendment Act”) has extended the scope of automated exchange of financial account information to new alternative methods of payment and investment, such as crypto-assets and electronic money.

The Amendment Act transposes Council Directive (EU) 2023/2226 of October 17, 2023 amending Directive 2011/16/EU on administrative cooperation in the field of taxation, known as the DAC8 Directive (the “DAC8 Directive“), into the national law of the Slovak Republic.

Given the nature of crypto-assets, it is difficult to monitor taxable events in cross-border situations, which leads to a loss of tax revenue for states and to the unjustified preferential treatment of crypto-asset users. According to the proponent of the Amendment Act, the Ministry of Finance of the Slovak Republic, the exchange of information (not only) among the OECD member countries is key to combating tax evasion.

In accordance with the DAC8 Directive, the Amendment Act introduces an obligation for crypto-asset service providers to report information on crypto-assets used for payment and investment purposes to the Financial Administration.

The Amendment Act has also extended the scope of automatic exchange of financial account information to electronic money and digital currencies of central banks.

The above changes are set to become effective as of January 1, 2026.

The Ministry of Investments, Regional Development and Informatization of the Slovak Republic (the “Ministry of Investments”) has prepared a government bill on the organization of state administration in the area of artificial intelligence (AI), which was submitted to the interdepartmental comment procedure in August 2025.

The government bill reflects the requirements following from the directly applicable Regulation (EU) of the European Parliament and of the Council 2024/1689 of 13 June 2024 laying down harmonized rules on artificial intelligence (Artificial Intelligence Act).

The government bill mainly:

• designates the Ministry of Investments as the general market surveillance authority and single contact point in relation to the use of high-risk AI systems in particular;

• designates several market surveillance authorities for sectors, such as the Data Protection Authority and the National Security Authority;

• regulates the details of obligations of providers of high-risk AI systems;

• regulates the details of sanctions for non-compliance with the Artificial Intelligence Act.

If approved, the Act should become effective on January 1, 2026.

On July 7, 2025, Act No. 187/2025 Coll. (the “Amendment Act”) was published in the Collection of Laws of the Slovak Republic. The Amendment Act amends Act No. 566/2001 Coll. on Securities and Investment Services, as amended, and modifies 12 other laws. Part of the Amendment Act entered into force on July 10, 2025, while most of its provisions will only take effect in January 2026.

The purpose of the Amendment Act is to transpose Directive (EU) 2023/2864 and to implement selected provisions of Regulations (EU) 2023/2859 and 2023/2869. The changes aim to ensure the proper functioning of the European Single Access Point (ESAP), which is intended to serve as a central access point for data within the EU.

From 2026, the ESAP will begin collecting data on companies in the EU and other entities that are required to disclose information under EU law in the areas of financial services, capital markets, and sustainability (e.g. financial statements, annual reports). Certain data will already be publicly available via the ESAP from 2027 onwards. The collection and publication of information will take place in several phases. The final phase is scheduled for 2030, by which time the list of required data should be complete. The objective is to increase transparency, reliability, and comparability of information across the European Union.

The introduction of the ESAP is expected to improve the accessibility of data on market participants, strengthen investor confidence, and contribute to the development of a stronger, integrated European capital market.

For the entities concerned – banks, investment firms, stock exchanges, insurance companies, large accounting units, etc. – the Amendment Act does not create an obligation to prepare new documents. Instead, the change lies in the requirement that documents already subject to mandatory disclosure must also be submitted to the data collection authority (for most entities, this is the National Bank of Slovakia). That authority will then forward them into the ESAP system.

Under the transitional provisions of the amended laws, the date from which entities must start submitting the required data differs. In most cases, the new obligations will not apply until after January 9, 2030.

The National Council of the Slovak Republic (parliament) has adopted Act No. 178/2025 Coll. (the “Amendment Act”), which amends and supplements Act No. 404/2011 Coll. on Residence of Foreigners. The Amendment Act introduces significant procedural and substantive changes — with particular emphasis on regulating the admission of third-country entrepreneurs, simplifying certain documentary requirements, and amending the validity period of a national visa. The Amendment Act enters into force on July 1, 2025.

Extension of national visa validity

• The validity period of a national visa, required when submitting an application for a residence permit, is extended from 90 to 120 days. This is intended to allow a sufficient time frame for processing applications before the visa expires.

Temporary residence for business

• Applications may be submitted only through Slovak diplomatic missions abroad. As of July 1, 2025, it will no longer be possible to apply for a temporary residence permit for business purposes directly at a Foreign Police Department within the territory of the Slovak Republic; applications must be submitted exclusively to the competent Slovak diplomatic mission (embassy/consulate).
• Quotas and annual limits. The granting of business permits will be limited by quotas set by the Government in a separate regulation for each diplomatic mission. There should be a total of 700 applications for all diplomatic missions, with significant differences in the number of applications to be processed by individual diplomatic missions.
• Change of the purpose of temporary residence to business purposes. This change will only be possible after 24 months from the granting of the original temporary residence permit for another purpose (currently, a change of the purpose of permit to business purposes is possible after 12 months).

Simplification of required documents

• It will no longer be mandatory to attach a photograph when submitting an application;
• The obligation to submit bank statements is abolished (however, in some cases, e.g. for a temporary residence permit for business purposes, a long-term residence permit, or the verification of an invitation, proof of one’s bank account balance is still required).