VAT calculator

In the Czech Republic, the standard rate is 21% and the reduced rate 12% (Section 47 of Act No. 235/2004 Coll.), unchanged from 2025. Books, e-books, and audiobooks are exempt with the right to deduct (Section 71i), so in practice 0%. In Slovakia, the standard rate is 23%, and the reduced rates are 19% and 5% (Section 27 of Act No. 222/2004 Coll.).

In the Czech Republic, the 12% rate covers mainly food, medicines and medical devices, accommodation, catering services, water and sewage, heating, public transportation, admission to cultural events, newspapers and magazines, and construction work on finished residential buildings (Section 49). The exact list is in Annexes 2 and 3 of the VAT Act, and anything not listed there is taxed at 21%. In Slovakia, 5% applies to basic foods, restaurant meals, accommodation, medicines, books, newspapers, and admission to cultural and sports events, and 19% to other foods, electricity, and non-alcoholic drinks in restaurants. The lists are in Annexes 7 and 7a, and everything else is taxed at 23%.

In the Czech Republic, catering services are taxed at the reduced 12% rate, but serving drinks has been excluded from it since 2024. The exceptions are plain tap water, milk, fermented dairy products, and plant-based milk alternatives. In Slovakia, restaurant meals are taxed at 5%, non-alcoholic drinks at 19%, and alcohol at 23%. That's why one bill often has more than one rate.

In the Czech Republic, repairs and renovations of finished apartments and family houses are taxed at 12% (Section 49). A new build gets 12% only as social housing under Section 48a, meaning an apartment up to 120 m² or a family house up to 350 m². Cottages, non-residential buildings, and garages that don't serve a house on the same plot are taxed at 21%. In Slovakia, construction work and new apartments are taxed at 23%, except state-supported rental housing.

VAT = price incl. VAT × rate ÷ (100 + rate). At 21%, that's price × 21 ÷ 121; at 12%, price × 12 ÷ 112; at the Slovak 23%, price × 23 ÷ 123. The tax base is the price incl. VAT minus the VAT. The old Czech coefficient 0.1736 hasn't been used since 2019.

Multiply the tax base by 1.21 for the 21% rate or 1.12 for the 12% rate. For Slovak rates, multiply by 1.23, 1.19, or 1.05.

Calculate and show VAT to two decimal places (hellers in the Czech Republic, cents in Slovakia). In the Czech Republic, cash payments are rounded to the nearest whole koruna, and the rounding difference isn't part of the tax base (Section 36(5)), even when you round a bank transfer. In Slovakia, cash payments are rounded to the nearest 5 cents (Section 3(4) of the Slovak Price Act), and VAT is calculated from the unrounded amount.

In the Czech Republic, turnover has been counted per calendar year since 2025. Once it exceeds CZK 2,000,000, you become a VAT payer on January 1 of the following year, or earlier if you choose that in your application. Once it exceeds CZK 2,536,500, you're a VAT payer from the next day. You must apply for registration within 10 business days. In Slovakia, you become a VAT payer on January 1 after a calendar year with turnover over EUR 50,000, or with the supply that takes the current year's turnover over EUR 62,500 (Section 4(1)). You must apply for registration within 5 business days (Section 4(2)).

For certain supplies, the customer accounts for the VAT instead of the supplier. The typical case is construction and installation work for another VAT payer: CZ-CPA codes 41 to 43 in the Czech Republic, and construction work in section F of the classification in Slovakia (Section 69(12)(j)). The invoice doesn't state the VAT amount (in the Czech Republic, the rate is optional too) and includes the note “daň odvede zákazník” (the customer will account for the tax) in the Czech Republic or “prenesenie daňovej povinnosti” (transfer of tax liability) in Slovakia.