Last updated on 19.02.2026.
Domestic entities are obliged under the VAT Act to register as value added tax (“VAT”) payers pursuant to §4, §7 and §7(a) of Act No. 222/2004 Coll. (hereinafter referred to as the “VAT Act”). In this article, we will discuss in more detail: (a) what voluntary registration for VAT under §4 is, (b) what conditions you must meet in order to register, (c) whether you have a legal right to registration, and (d) how long the registration process takes and what the procedure is.
Mandatory VAT registration (after exceeding the turnover threshold)
According to §4 of the VAT Act, there are two types of VAT registration:
(i) The so-called mandatory VAT registration, mainly after exceeding the turnover threshold, but also for other reasons specified in the Act, and
(ii) The so-called voluntary VAT registration without exceeding the turnover threshold.
Mandatory registration is not the subject of this article, so I will only mention it briefly. You become a VAT payer automatically — by law — pursuant to §4(1) of the VAT Act if:
- you are a domestic taxable person, and in the last 12 consecutive calendar months you have exceeded a turnover of €50,000, or
- you are a domestic taxable person and you have made a one-off supply of goods or services with a value exceeding €62,500 in a calendar year.
From 1 January 2025, the turnover for the purposes of mandatory registration is calculated differently than it was until 31 December 2024. The turnover for the previous 12 consecutive calendar months is no longer summed up on a rolling basis; instead, the turnover achieved for each month of the calendar year is summed starting from 1 January of each new calendar year from zero (§4(15) of the VAT Act).
Furthermore, you must have a registered office or a permanent establishment in the Slovak Republic. If you are a natural person and do not meet this condition, it is sufficient if you have a residence in the Slovak Republic or usually stay here. If you meet the above conditions, you are obliged to register as a VAT payer no later than the 20th day of the calendar month following the month in which you reached the turnover threshold.
You can read an extensive article on the topic of mandatory VAT registration here: Mandatory VAT registration. Conditions and procedure in 2026.
Voluntary VAT registration (without exceeding the turnover threshold)
If you have not exceeded the turnover for mandatory VAT registration of €50,000 or €62,500, and you still wish to become a VAT payer, the law allows you to submit an application for registration for VAT pursuant to §4(6)(a) of the VAT Act. In simple terms, you have the right to apply for VAT registration even if you have not exceeded the turnover for mandatory registration. However, this does not mean you have a legal entitlement to be registered as a VAT payer. You must first meet the statutory conditions for voluntary registration.
A voluntary registration application may also be submitted by a person who has not yet carried out any taxable transactions, but due to their future economic activities, it is necessary for them to have the status of a VAT payer.
What are the conditions for voluntary VAT registration?
In addition to submitting an application for voluntary registration, the most important condition for the tax authority to approve the application is that the applicant must be a so-called “taxable person” within the meaning of §3 of the VAT Act. For the purposes of the VAT Act, a taxable person is any person who independently carries out any economic activity, regardless of the purpose or results of that activity.
Thus, another important condition for the approval of the application is that the applicant carries out an economic activity. For the purposes of the VAT Act, the term “economic activity” will mainly mean continuous activity that generates income and includes the activities of manufacturers, traders, and service providers.
To put the above conditions simply — in order for your voluntary registration application to be approved, you must be able to prove to the tax office that, as an applicant, you carry out economic or business activities. That is, that you supply goods or services to your clients or business partners. This is demonstrated by various documents such as: (a) bank statements, (b) accounting documents — received and issued invoices, (c) contracts with business partners, etc.
What conditions must a newly established company meet if it wants to be a voluntary VAT payer?
As mentioned above, a voluntary registration application may also be submitted by a person who has not yet carried out any taxable transactions, but due to their future economic activities, it is necessary for them to have the status of a VAT payer. If you are a newly established company wishing to register for VAT, you should be able to demonstrate an intention to carry out economic activities and support this intention with objective evidence. This could be, for example, the first investment costs incurred for the purpose of doing business, or proof of preparations for business activities.
In other words, you should be able to provide documents that demonstrate your intention to start carrying out economic activities, such as: how you are preparing for business; where your registered office and business premises are located; whether you will have employees; a list of future business partners; the estimated turnover amount; and similar evidence.
Are you entitled to voluntary VAT registration?
If, as an applicant for VAT registration, you do not carry out economic activities and the evidence you have provided does not sufficiently prove your intention to carry out such activities, you cannot prove the status of a taxable person. If you have not sufficiently demonstrated your intention to carry out economic activities and therefore the fact that you are a taxable person, the tax administrator, after evaluating all the evidence in mutual context, will not approve your VAT registration application. Thus, there is no legal entitlement to VAT registration unless you can credibly demonstrate the status of a taxable person — that is, a person who carries out or prepares to carry out economic activities.
What is the procedure and where to submit a voluntary registration application?
To submit an application for voluntary VAT registration, you must file the form via the Financial Administration portal. If you are an entrepreneur, the application can only be submitted electronically. In the catalogue of electronic forms in the “Register” section, complete the form titled “Application for registration, notification of changes, application for cancellation of registration for income tax, value added tax, and insurance tax”. The duly completed application is then sent to the tax office, which will assess it. Ideally, you should also attach documents proving that you meet the conditions for VAT registration — that is, if you provide all documents demonstrating your economic activity and your status as a taxable person (bank statements, bank account agreements, received invoices, issued invoices, contracts, etc.).
How Long Does Voluntary VAT Registration in Slovakia Take?
If the tax office finds that the applicant meets the conditions for positive assessment of the request for voluntary registration, they will register the applicant and issue a registration certificate for tax purposes, along with an identification number for tax purposes. The tax office will complete the registration process no later than 21 days from the date of receiving the request for tax registration. The date specified in the tax registration certificate is the date when the taxable person becomes a VAT taxpayer.
Mgr. Dominik Ondrišeje
Dominik is co-founder of the SetupMART project. Dominik is responsible for corporate services and implementation of modern technologies in our services at SetupMART. Dominik is dedicated to the sale of ready-made companies since 2011. Dominik studied law at the Pan-European School of Law.