Freelancing is one of the more welcoming routes into the Slovak economy. The rules are written for people who start small: a licence in three working days, a first stretch without social contributions, a 15% tax rate and a flat deduction for expenses. The traps are all in the details, notably one that surprises everyone: health insurance does not wait.
This guide explains freelancing in Slovakia, in order.
How do you start freelancing in Slovakia with a živnosť?
The živnosť is the standard status of an independent worker, who is then called a SZČO (samostatne zárobkovo činná osoba). First check which kind of trade your activity falls under:
- voľná živnosť, a free trade, with no qualification needed;
- remeselná živnosť, a craft trade, with qualification;
- viazaná živnosť, a regulated trade, with qualification or experience.
Some professions, such as doctors, lawyers and architects, fall under a professional chamber instead.
Conditions: age 18, legal capacity, no relevant criminal conviction. A foreigner brings a criminal record extract from the country of nationality (or from a country where you lived at least six months in a row in the last five years), less than three months old, with a certified Slovak translation. File the notification (ohlásenie živnosti) at the one-stop shop of any district office (okresný úrad) or online on slovensko.sk. You receive your licence and your IČO (business identification number) within three working days of a complete file.
What does it cost?
Licence fees, at the 1 September 2026 schedule: 7 euros per free trade and 22 euros per craft or regulated trade. The fee for a free trade is waived if you file online with an electronic signature; the wording of the law is not crystal clear, so check the fee shown when you file on slovensko.sk. If you are an EU, EEA or Swiss citizen, recognition of your professional qualification is a decision that costs 140 euros.
The one-stop shop passes your data to the tax administration (tax registration and DIČ) and to your health insurance fund. See rodné číslo and DIČ.
What are the health and social contributions?
Health insurance is due from the first day your licence takes effect: 16% of your base in 2026 and 2027, with a minimum advance of 121.92 euros a month in 2026 (VšZP), payable before the 8th of the following month. Do not assume the contribution holiday covers this one.
Social insurance (sickness-maternity and pension) works differently for a newcomer. At first, nothing is due. Compulsory insurance starts on the first day of the sixth calendar month after the month in which the activity began: the Sociálna poisťovňa's own example is a licence obtained on 15 February 2026 and insurance from 1 August 2026. You do not have to register yourself: the fund is told by the licensing office and sends you a notice within 20 days of the start of your insurance. The amounts in 2026:
- at the end of that first period, or if your business income (gross receipts) of the previous year is between 2,876.91 and 9,144 euros: a micro-contribution of 131.34 euros a month;
- above 9,144 euros of previous-year business income: contributions on your profit, with a minimum of 303.11 euros a month from 1 July to 31 December 2026 and a maximum of 5,557.26 euros;
- at or below 2,876.90 euros: no compulsory insurance.
The situation is reviewed every 1 July (1 October if you extended your tax return deadline), from your return for the previous year. The contribution holiday is for real beginners: if your last self-employment ended less than 60 months ago, you do not get it, and your past income is examined.
Which trade category fits your activity, and what will your contributions be in the first year? Tell Moovy what you do and where your clients are, and it will prepare your registration file and a first estimate. You file and sign everything yourself.
How is freelancing in Slovakia taxed?
At 15% on profit if your receipts for the year do not exceed 100,000 euros, and the 19 to 35% scale above (2026). The 15% never applies to a salary. You may deduct actual expenses with a tax record (daňová evidencia), or flat expenses of 60% of receipts, capped at 20,000 euros a year, if you are not a VAT payer. Your social and health contributions are deductible in addition. The return is due by 31 March, and a registered self-employed person must file it online. See income tax in Slovakia.
Advances follow your last known tax: quarterly once it exceeds 5,000 euros, monthly above 16,600 euros.
When does VAT apply?
You become a VAT payer on 1 January after a year in which turnover exceeded 50,000 euros, or immediately once it passes 62,500 euros in the current year (2026). VAT rates are 23%, 19% and 5%. The flat expense deduction is reserved for people who are not VAT payers, or were one for only part of the year, so becoming liable changes how you deduct costs. More in starting a company in Slovakia.
What do you do with clients in other countries?
Under EU rules you pay social contributions in one country only. A freelancer who lives in Slovakia and works from Slovakia for foreign clients is normally covered in Slovakia. If you stay affiliated in your home country, for example because you work there too, you need the A1 form from your home fund; request it before you start, so that you do not pay twice. For British freelancers, a residence permit allowing self-employment comes first; see moving to Slovakia from the UK.
How do you keep your books as a freelancer?
Choose between flat expenses, with a simple record of receipts, stocks and receivables; the daňová evidencia, a record of receipts, expenses, assets, stocks and debts for real costs; or accounting in single or double entry. The flat deduction is simplest, but it is reserved for people who are not VAT payers. Real expenses make sense when your costs are high, such as equipment or travel. Keep invoices in order for ten years if you are a VAT payer.
What are the mistakes to avoid?
- Filing the return on paper when electronic filing is compulsory.
- Not planning for health insurance from day one.
- Forgetting the VAT threshold.
- Running everything from your personal account. See bank account in Slovakia.
- Restarting a trade within 60 months and expecting the contribution holiday.
Is freelancing in Slovakia worth it for a newcomer?
For many it is the simplest way to start: low entry cost, a tax of 15% on profit up to 100,000 euros of receipts and a flat deduction for expenses of 60%, capped at 20,000 euros a year, if you do not pay VAT. The health insurance is the weight you carry from day one, 121.92 euros a month at least in 2026. If your income is irregular, the micro-contribution of 131.34 euros a month for social insurance is a modest floor once the first period ends. Do the sums with a realistic first-year income.
Before you decide, have a Slovak accountant (účtovník) or tax adviser (daňový poradca) look at your own situation: your trade, your clients abroad and your expected income all change the answer.
When should you move from a živnosť to a company?
When your turnover, your risk or your clients make a company useful, for example when you employ people or want to separate private and business assets. A company brings double-entry accounting, a minimum tax and notary costs; see starting a company in Slovakia. For many freelancers the trade licence stays enough for years.
What if you stop and restart?
Cancel your trade properly if you stop, and tell your health fund and the social insurance fund. If you start again less than 60 months after your last self-employment ended, you do not get a new contribution holiday, and your previous income decides what you pay.