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).

The new Building Act (Act No. 25/2025 Coll.), effective from April 1, 2025, has replaced not only the original 1976 Building Act, but also the 2022 Construction Act enacted to reform the building legislation and which never became effective. According to the Ministry of Transport of the Slovak Republic (the proponent of the new Building Act), the 2022 Construction Act was unenforceable.

The adopted Building Act abandons the existing two-stage decision-making (planning decision and building permit) and introduces one-stage proceedings on a building plan, the outcome of which is a (dis)approval decision of the competent building authority about the proposed construction activity.

The new Building Act aims to strengthen the position of real estate owners and their right to a building as to construct a building on land is part of the constitutionally protected right to use and enjoy own property.

At the same time, the new Building Act introduces an additional procedure in relation to unauthorized buildings constructed before April 1, 2025, in order to ensure that these buildings are not considered permanently unauthorized and not finally approved, despite being freely used.

According to the explanatory memorandum, the main purpose of the new Building Act is to create a legal framework that facilitates construction and to reduce the administrative burden of authorization procedures.

On November 27, 2024, the National Council of the Slovak Republic (parliament) approved an amendment to Act No. 297/2008 Coll. on Prevention of Money Laundering and Terrorist Financing, as amended (the “Amendment“).

Pursuant to the explanatory memorandum, the main objective of the amendment is the implementation of Regulation (EU) No 2023/1113 on information accompanying transfers of funds and certain crypto-assets. Under the Amendment, the list of ‘obliged entities’ now includes crypto-asset service providers, replacing virtual currency wallet service providers and virtual currency exchange service providers. The Amendment also introduces a new concept of crypto-assets, replacing the concept of virtual currency.

It also expands the definition of ‘ultimate beneficial owner’ in relation to, among others, a trust established under the law of another country. Trustees of such a fund are now required to comply with certain obligations set out in the law.

The Amendment introduces also certain changes in relation to customer due diligence performed by an obliged entity, an obliged entity’s program of own activities (AML compliance program), risk assessment, etc.

The Amendment amends also other legal regulations, reflecting the European Commission’s objections to incorrect or insufficient transposition of the European laws.  

The Amendment became effective on January 15, 2025.