Non-taxable part of the tax base in 2025
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April 14, 2025
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Non-taxable portion of the tax base (NTB) represents an important tool of tax optimization, which can significantly reduce the resulting income tax for an individual. It is a legislatively enshrined mechanism that allows for the deduction of certain amounts from the tax base, and thus reduce the amount from which the tax is calculated. The basic legal regulation governing the NČZD is Act No. 595/2003 Coll. on income tax (hereinafter referred to as the „Income Tax Act“), specifically Section 11.
In 2025, when applying the non-taxable parts of the tax base, rules will be applied that take into account the amount of the subsistence minimum, the nature of your income, family situation, the amount of contributions paid to supplementary pension savings (pillar III), and whether or not you are a pension recipient. This article will provide you with a comprehensive overview of who is entitled to NČZD, what types of non-taxable parts exist, how to obtain them, in what amount they are applied, what documents are required, and what specificities arise in different life and income situations.
What are non-taxable parts of the tax base?
Non-taxable parts of the tax base are deductible items that a taxpayer - an individual - can deduct from the tax base achieved. Unlike tax bonuses, which directly reduce the resulting tax, NČZD reduce the tax base, and thus indirectly affect the final tax liability. By applying the NČZD, the taxpayer reduces his taxable income, and thus the amount of tax he must pay to the state.
Only persons with so-called "active income" are entitled to NČZD. Active income is defined as income from dependent activity (e.g. employment income), income from business (e.g. income of sole proprietors) and income from other independent gainful activity (e.g. income of an expert, interpreter or intermediary, if not taxed by withholding). Active income does not include income from non-trade rental, from the sale of real estate or from the use of works and artistic performances, which are classified as passive income. If the taxpayer has a combination of active and passive income, NČZD can only be claimed up to the amount of the tax base from active income.
Types of non-taxable parts of the tax base in 2025
The Income Tax Act currently recognizes three types of NČZD:
NČZD per taxpayer
This is a basic non-taxable portion to which every taxpayer with active income is entitled if they meet the conditions set by law. The amount of this portion is derived from the subsistence minimum. For the period from July 1, 2024 to June 30, 2025 is subsistence level set at 273.99 euros. NČZD per taxpayer is calculated as 21 times the subsistence minimum, which for 2025 represents 5 753,79 euros.
However, the application of the full amount of the NČZD to a taxpayer depends on the amount of your annual tax base. If the tax base does not exceed 25,426.27 euros (92.8 times the subsistence minimum), applies maximum height. If the tax base exceeds this limit exceeds, NČZD is gradually reduced until it is completely eliminated with a tax base of 48,441.43 euros and more. At the same time, special rules apply to pensioners – if you are a pension recipient as of 1 January 2025, the NČZD is reduced by the amount of the pension paid. If pension amount equal to or higher than 5,753.79 euros, entitlement to NČZD for the taxpayer expires.
NČZD for wife/husband
You can apply for this NČZD if you live with your wife or husband in shared household, you are in valid marriage and at least one other condition is met. Such conditions include, for example: care for a dependent child up to 3 years old (or up to 6 years if he/she has an unfavorable health condition), inclusion of the spouse in the register of job applicants at the ÚPSVaR, or the fact that spouse has a disability, or receives a cash allowance for care (not year-round).
The maximum amount of NČZD per spouse is in 2025 5,260.61 euros, but it depends on several factors – your tax base and your spouse’s own income. If the tax base is higher than a certain threshold (48,441.43 euros, or even with higher tax bases), the NČZD may be reduced, and eventually disappear completely. In addition, the spouse's own income reduces the applicable amount of the NČZD. The spouse's own income is understood to be all of her/his income, including tax-exempt income (e.g. maternity, pregnancy, pensions, unemployment benefits), or income taxed by withholding (e.g. interest on an account).
NČZD for contributions to supplementary pension savings (pillar III)
The third type of NČZD is the possibility of deducting from the tax base the contributions you have paid for supplementary pension savings (DDS) or for a pan-European personal pension product (PEPP), if it is a product of the same or comparable type. This possibility applies only under certain conditions - the contributions must be paid on the basis of a participation contract concluded after 31.12.2013 (or an amended contract that cancels the benefit plan) and you must not have another similar contract that does not meet these conditions.
The maximum amount that can be deducted under the NČZD for DDS is 180 euros per year. This amount does not include employer contributions – these are exclusively contributions that you paid yourself, even if your employer deducted them from your net salary. If you make an early withdrawal from pillar III in the future and have claimed NČZD on these contributions in previous tax periods, you will have to increase your tax base in the following three tax periods by the amount by which you previously reduced it.
Conditions and entitlement to NČZD
The basic condition for the application of the NČZD is achieving active income in a given year. It does not matter whether you earned active income only during part of the year, it is enough if it arose in any period of 2025. If you had a combination of active and passive income, you apply the NČZD only to the part of the tax base that comes from active income.
The entitlement to NČZD for a taxpayer is generally automatic (if you meet the conditions), it does not need to be specifically proven. The exception is pensioners who were already receiving a pension as of 1.1.2025 - they must submit a document to the employer about the amount of the pension (for example, a decision on granting a pension or a document about the annual total of the pension paid) in order for the entitlement to be applied correctly.
When applying for the NČZD for a spouse and for contributions to the DDS, documents are more important. For example, when filing an annual tax return with your employer, you must submit a marriage certificate, a confirmation that your spouse is registered as unemployed, a child's birth certificate, or a statement from your DDS personal account. Although you are not required to submit these documents when filing your tax return, the tax administrator may ask you to submit them during a tax audit.
How and when to apply for NČZD?
Non-taxable parts of the tax base are applied either:
Annually in the tax return:
If you are filing a type A tax return (only income from dependent activity) or type B (from a combination of different income), you will state the amounts of NČZD to which you are entitled in the relevant section of the return.
In the annual tax return:
If you are an employee and are not required to file a tax return, you can ask your employer to prepare an annual tax return for you. The employer will then take into account your NČZD and refund any overpayment of tax.
A special option is to apply the NČZD to the taxpayer monthly directly in the monthly salary. This option is used mainly by employees who, upon starting work or at the beginning of the year, sign the so-called "Declaration for the application of the non-taxable part of the tax base to the taxpayer and the tax bonus" with their employer. If the NČZD is applied monthly, your advance tax will be reduced during the year.
Pensioners and taxpayers with limited tax liability
Specific rules apply to pension recipients. If you are a pensioner (a recipient of an old-age pension, early old-age pension, pension from old-age pension savings or a pension from abroad) as of 1 January 2025, your NČZD per taxpayer will be adjusted by the amount of the pension paid. If the pension exceeds 5,753.79 euros, entitlement to NČZD expires. If you became a pensioner during 2025, then only your tax base and the rules for its reduction are taken into account when calculating the NČZD for the taxpayer (in such a case, the pension paid during 2025 will not affect the entitlement if you were not yet receiving the pension as of 1.1.2025).
Taxpayers with limited tax liability, who have income only from the territory of the Slovak Republic, are also entitled to NČZD per taxpayer regardless of the amount of their taxable income from Slovakia. The condition is that this income is active.
Documentation and control
When applying for the NČZD, it is important to have the appropriate documents available. Although documents are usually not automatically required when filing a tax return (except in specific cases), the tax administrator may later ask the taxpayer to submit them. Therefore, it is wise to keep your marriage certificate, pension decisions, receipts for benefits paid, DDS statements and other relevant documents.
Monthly vs. annual NČZD application
As already mentioned, an employee can also apply the NČZD to the taxpayer on a monthly basis. Many people find this advantageous because it increases their net monthly income. However, this strategy can be risky if your income significantly exceeds the limits at which the NČZD is reduced or terminated. You will then have to pay the resulting underpayment during the annual settlement or tax return. Therefore, it is a good idea to estimate the amount of annual income in advance. If you expect a higher tax base, it may be wiser not to apply the NČZD monthly and rather leave it for the annual tax settlement.
Why pay attention to the NČZD?
Proper use of non-taxable parts of the tax base can save a taxpayer considerable financial resources. NČZD represent a legal way to reduce tax, and it is a taxpayer's right enshrined in law. For many self-employed persons, employees and other individuals with active income, the use of NČZD can mean a significant difference in how much tax they ultimately pay.
At the same time, it is important to pay attention to legislative changes - the subsistence minimum is regularly updated, which subsequently affects the amount of the NČZD. The legal conditions and limits themselves may also change from year to year, so we recommend following the latest information or consulting with experts.