Road tax return: how and when to file it?

In this article we will guide you through registering for road tax, filing your road tax return and filing a supplementary return. We will also explain exactly how to pay and advise you on when and how to opt out.

Who pays road tax today

From 2022, the legislature has significantly narrowed the range of taxpayers. The subject of the road tax are vehicles of categories N2 and N3 (trucks over 3.5 t), and their trailers of categories O3 and O4, registered in the Czech Road Vehicle Register. In practice, this means that the tax is mainly addressed by hauliers and companies operating heavier goods vehicles, while cars and light vans are not included in the road tax.

Road tax application and registration for road tax

It’s simple: from 2022, the obligation to register for road tax is abolished. So this means you no longer file the registration form that many remember from before – you simply file a return once you meet the conditions (i.e. you operate taxable vehicles).

If something changes during the year (adding/removing a vehicle, changing operators), you don’t file deregistration or registration forms – everything is reflected on the return for that tax year. Therefore, a vehicle that was used and taxed for part of the year will only be shown on your return for the months when the conditions persisted.

How to file a road tax return

In 2025, the tax return must be filed electronically. The most convenient route is through the Online Tax Office (DIS+) on the MY Tax portal, where you can not only complete the return, but also pre-fill it with details from the last filing, submit it and track the status. In practice, this saves you time – you just check the pre-filled data and add the changes for the year.

What exactly do you enter on your return

• the taxpayer’s identification (taxpayer ID number, registered office),
• local jurisdiction of the tax authorities,
• vehicle category,
• body type code (BA, BB, BC, BD, …),
• number of axles,
• maximum permissible weight).

Supplementary road tax return

Sometimes one finds out the error after the deadline. The tax code deals with this by means of an additional tax return. A simple rule applies: If you discover that the tax should be higher than the last known tax, you must file a supplemental return by the end of the month following the discovery, and pay the difference at the same time. Remember that interest on the higher tax due accompanies the additional return. It is therefore worth correcting errors immediately after discovery.

Interest on late payment starts to accrue from the 4th calendar day after the original due date and runs until the day the amount is actually credited to the tax office’s account (the date of credit, not the date you send the payment, is the determining factor). Interest is calculated daily on the amount due. The rate is the CNB repo rate on the 1st day of the relevant half-year + 8 percentage points. An exception occurs when the sum of interest (for a given type of tax, with the same administrator, for the same period) does not exceed CZK 1,000. In this case, the administrator will not prescribe interest at all. However, the limit of CZK 1 000 is not added up between the different types of interest (late payment, delay, etc.).

If you find that the tax should be lower, you can file a supplementary return before the end of the assessment period (typically 3 years from the regular filing deadline), taking into account interruptions and build-ups.

An amendment to the Road Tax Act effective from 1 July 2025 has reduced the tax on vehicles with an air suspension on the drive axle, and the Inland Revenue has specifically stated that the reduction will be applied retrospectively for the whole period from 1 January 2025. If you have already filed for the 2025 part of the year, you can claim the reduction by filing an additional return.

Road tax exemption and discount

For taxable vehicles of category N2/N3 and their trailers O3/O4 registered in the Czech Republic, road tax is not payable in certain situations, even though it would otherwise be incurred. Typically, these are vehicles of diplomatic and consular authorities, medical and rescue vehicles, and machinery of road owners or managers in the course of ensuring the passability and maintenance of roads.

The exemption applies for the calendar month in which the conditions were met on all days when the vehicle was subject to the tax. Documents proving entitlement (e.g. contracts, operating books, certificates from contracting authorities) must be kept. Such a vehicle is only included in the return if the tax would have been non-zero without the exemption.

On the other hand, the rebate does not cancel the tax, but only reduces the amount calculated if the transport is combined: the transport is carried out in one transport unit or in a complete package and part of the route is by rail or inland waterway. It must be met that the main rail or water section exceeds 100 km as the crow flies and the road section is only the initial or final section between the place of loading/unloading and the nearest suitable railway station or transhipment point or inland port, in the latter case not exceeding 150 km as the crow flies.

The amount of the discount for the entire tax period depends on the number of journeys: 31-60 journeys are 25 %, 61-90 journeys are 50 %, 91-120 journeys are 75 % and more than 120 journeys are 90 %. A railway section of more than 250 km is then counted as two journeys. The discount will be applied directly on the return and the transport documents with the transhipment point confirmation must be kept to prove the number of journeys and compliance with the conditions.

How to pay road tax

Paying the road tax correctly is a matter of a few details that must not be confused: the road tax account number in the correct form with a prefix, the correct registration number according to the local jurisdiction and the variable symbol:

Road tax account number and prefix

Each tax office has its own so-called matrix account number. The common prefix for road tax is “748” and the bank code is 0710 (CNB). The registry number is chosen according to the local jurisdiction (e.g. the FÚ for the capital city of Prague has a registry number 77628031, the South Moravian Region 77628621, etc.). The resulting account number is 748-(registry of the relevant FÚ)/0710, e.g. for Prague 748-77628031/0710.

Variable symbol

The variable symbol for tax payments is normally the stem part of the TIN (for natural persons, the birth number without slash, for legal persons, the ID number; if no TIN has been assigned, the tax administrator’s own identifier is used).

Dates and due dates

The tax is due on 31 January of the following year and coincides with the deadline for filing the return. Advances are not payable.

Deregistration of road tax

As the registration of road tax has been cancelled, there is no possibility of deregistration. If you cease to operate a taxable vehicle (sale, scrapping, change of scheme), the return for the year in which the change occurs simply lists the vehicle for the months it was subject to tax and no further.

Example: in June 2025, you sell a taxable lorry: the original operator will enter the vehicle for the month of May for the last time. The new operator will list it from June onwards. Both will pay the tax of the month in which they were the operator of the car.

The most common mistakes on road tax returns and how to avoid them

1. Making a mistake about whether to file the return at all: Many self-employed people with cars or light vans search for the form unnecessarily. No return is filed for a passenger car or N1. The return is filed by those operating N2/N3 and O3/O4 registered in the Czech Republic – and only for months when the conditions have been met.
2. Confusion between registration and return: from 2022 there is no longer a registration for road tax. Some still fill in the old registration forms quite unnecessarily. Just file a return.
3. Wrong account, road tax prefix or registration number: Send the payment to your local tax office in the form 748-(registration)/0710. The current registry and prefix numbers are publicly available in the Tax Administration reports.
4. Missing or incorrect variable symbol: Use the stem part of the TIN/IN (for FOs, the birth number without slash). The correct VS will allow the payment to be unambiguously assigned.
5. Unused combined transport discount or insufficient proof: If you have a rail segment operation and the transport units do not change, the discount may be up to 90%. Don’t forget the record of journeys and that rail segments over 250 km in the country count double. However, you will not be able to get the discount without documents confirming the transhipment point.
6. Late response to a detected error: Once you find out that the tax should have been higher, you have until the end of the following month to file an additional return and pay the extra tax. After that, there are no penalties.

Summary

Road tax is nowadays a problem for operators of N2/N3 vehicles and O3/O4 trailers registered in the Czech Republic. From 2022 onwards, no one registers or deregisters for the tax – everything is only reflected in the return for the year in question and only for the months when the conditions were met. Returns are filed exclusively electronically via the My Tax Portal, the due date and filing deadline is always 31 January of the following year, no advance payments are made. Send the payment to the account in the form 748-(registry of the FÚ)/0710 with the correct VS (tax ID/ID number/ family number).

When a higher tax comes out, you must file an additional one by the end of the following month and pay the balance; the interest starts from the 4th day after the original due date (CNB repo + 8 p.p., if the total does not exceed CZK 1,000, it is not prepaid). The lower tax can be claimed by an additional return within the period for assessment. Exemption applies only for full months of compliance; the combined transport discount (up to 90%) is supported by journey records and a transhipment certificate.