Most of us are entitled to some tax relief, but don’t take full advantage of it – or, on the other hand, claim something that no longer applies. Some people confuse tax credits with basic tax deductible items, others rely on their accountant to sort it out and then are surprised to find out how much more tax they paid than they should have.
In this article, we have untangled the jungle of abbreviations and terms so that at the end you know exactly what can be deducted from your taxes as deductible items, what tax credits are, who applies them, in what amount and under what conditions. Without any clichés and with illustrative examples, so that you don’t pay more than necessary this year and instead take advantage of everything you are entitled to.
A tax credit (tax deduction) reduces the tax directly calculated. If you have a tax bill of CZK 20,000 and claim a tax credit of CZK 30,840, the tax falls to zero (or you get an overpayment of the child tax credit in the form of a bonus). Deductible items (non-deductible parts), on the other hand , reduce the tax base – so you first deduct, for example, mortgage interest or pension contributions, and only then calculate tax at 15% (or 23% above the threshold) on this reduced base.
First, let’s look at the larger group – personal income tax allowances – from the taxpayer’s personal allowance to the spouse, disability and PWD/P allowances, and the child tax credit (and child tax bonus).
We can help you navigate the law, whether it’s dealing with a specific tax situation, preparing for an audit by the tax authority or defending yourself in court.
The basic tax rebate per taxpayer is intended for every taxpayer – employees and self-employed. In 2025, it amounts to CZK 30,840 per year and can be applied by anyone with taxable income. In practice, it is a tax credit that directly reduces the calculated tax and therefore often resets the tax liability even without further relief.
The discount is applied in the full annual amount, is not reduced by month and does not carry any special conditions: it is sufficient that you have something to calculate the tax on.
Thespouse’s allowance is applied at the rate of CZK 24,840 per year (or CZK 49,680 for a spouse with a disabled person’s card).
However, from 2024, the law has tightened the conditions for obtaining the discount: the discount is only available if you live in a jointly managed household with your spouse and raise a child under 3 years of age, and your spouse’s own income does not exceed CZK 68,000 per year.
The law also explicitly addresses which benefits are not included in your own income and which are. In practice, it is essential that the entitlement is decided at the beginning of the month – 1/12 of the annual amount is then due for each month in which the conditions are met.
Our next article will tell you more about how to get the spouse discount and how much the discount is.
If you are a person with a disability, the law grants you a basic disability discount of CZK 2,520 per year (disability level I and II) and an extended discount of CZK 5,040 per year (disability level III). There is a separate discount for holders of a disabled person’s disability card of CZK 16,140 per year. Here too, the rule of twelfths applies – if the condition lasts only part of the year, the pro rata part is applied according to the beginning of the relevant month.
Child tax credit is a key support for families. The amounts remain the same as last year:
The amounts are doubled for a child with a disabled person’s card.
If your allowance exceeds the calculated tax, a tax bonus per child is due. However, to qualify for the bonus, you must earn (in employment or business) at least six times the minimum wage for the year (for 2025 at CZK 124,800).
How do I apply the child tax credit correctly and how much money does it get you? The next article will tell you.
This is a special discount for beneficiaries: up to CZK 450 per execution (= 30% of the principal amount recovered, the discount applies to claims up to CZK 1,500). You can apply it in your tax return or in your annual settlement.
Now to the deductible items (non-taxable parts of the tax base) that reduce the tax base. In particular, interest on home loans, contributions to retirement savings products and gifts (gratuitous benefits) are key for 2025.
The deduction of interest is based on the date when you acquired the housing need (bought, approved, obtained a building permit, etc.). If the acquisition took place before 31 December 2020, the limit for the household is CZK 300,000 per year; if from 1 January 2021, the limit is CZK 150,000.
From 2024, there is a common annual limit of CZK 48,000 for all state-supported old-age products (e.g. pensions, long-term investment products (LTIPs) and supplementary pension savings). The limit is shared across products – so it’s up to you how you split it.
You can deduct the value of gifts as an individual if the gifts together exceed 2% of your tax base or amount to at least £1,000. The upper limit is exceptionally increased to up to 30% of the tax base until the end of 2026.
At the same time, the law also values non-monetary donations: blood donations count CZK 3,000 per donation and hematopoietic cell/bone marrow (or organ donation by a living donor) CZK 20,000 per donation.
The discount for placing a child in a nursery school (“nursery fees”) has ended. This was a tax credit for parents who paid for a nursery school or similar facility. It could be claimed by either parent living in the same household as the child. It applied only to school fees (not to meals or clubs) and could only be claimed up to the minimum wage for the year in question, on the basis of a receipt from the nursery for the amount paid.
The student discount was also abolished. This was a tax credit for taxpayers who were continuously preparing for a future profession by studying. The amount of the tax credit per student was CZK 335 per month, i.e. CZK 4,020 per year (for a full year’s entitlement), typically up to the age of 26, or up to the age of 28 for a full-time doctoral student.
No. Discounts are individual. The exception is the child tax credit – this is only ever claimed by one taxpayer and if the credit exceeds their tax, a bonus is paid (subject to the income limit).
No. Joint taxation was abolished in the Czech Republic after 2007; nowadays, the discounts are always applied by the individual taxpayer (but it is possible to optimize within the family who applies the children).
Yes, if you have taxable income (employment or business). The taxpayer’s allowance does not apply to pensioners unless they have no tax to calculate on.
For employees, it’s all about the Taxpayer Declaration – the pink paper you sign with your employer. It’s how the payroll accountant can apply monthly discounts (typically the taxpayer’s tax credit) as well as monthly child tax credits earlier in the year, so you don’t have higher deposits to pay unnecessarily.
The statement is normally updated at the beginning of the year (in practice by mid-February) or at any time when there is a significant change – for example, after the birth of a child. If you are starting a new job, it is signed when you start. If anything changes during the year, submit a new declaration without delay.
Then at the end of the year comes the annual deposit and tax credit statement, which is essentially the employee’s tax return. You ask your last employer to do this on a prescribed form. The deadline for filing is usually mid-February (e.g. for 2024 it was 17 February 2025).
As part of the annual settlement, not only discounts but also deductible items from the tax base (interest on home loans, donations, pension savings, private life insurance or a deposit on a long-term investment product) can be claimed from the employer. If you didn’t claim any of the allowances on a monthly basis (for example, you didn’t have a child registered during the year), this can be sorted out in the annual return. Your employer will do the calculation and refund any overpayment, usually in your March pay.
We can help you navigate the law, whether it’s dealing with a specific tax situation, preparing for an audit by the tax authority or defending yourself in court.
Typically, if you do not meet the statutory conditions – for example, if you had two jobs with advance tax in the same month, or if you have other taxable income (business, rent) that triggers the obligation to file a return. On the other hand, the agreement itself(FTE, LTC) with another employer , taxed by withholding, does not prevent the annual return. However, if you want to recover the withholding tax, you must include this income in your own tax return.
In this case, you claim the allowances and deductions yourself on your tax return. The basic deadlines for filing are: paper returns by 1 April, electronic returns by 2 May and, if your return is prepared by a tax adviser or you have a statutory audit, by 1 July.
The tax office will usually refund the overpayment within 30 days after the relevant deadline (i.e. after the “occurrence of the overpayment”). It is therefore also worth filing your return on time and applying for a refund straight away. You can conveniently file your return via the MY Tax portal.
For the self-employed, all discounts and deductions from the tax base are applied exclusively in the tax return – whether you keep tax records or use flat-rate expenses. In principle, the same deadlines and rules for returning overpayments apply as for other taxpayers. Electronic filing is mandatory for all. Please also note that the self-employed income tax return does not replace the reports to the Social Security Administration and the health insurance authorities – these are filed separately.
No tax credits or deductibles apply for self-employed persons in the flat-rate scheme. Instead of the normal tax, you pay one fixed lump sum each month, which already includes a “token” income tax as well as social security and health insurance.
For interest on a home loan, a bank certificate is required (for the first claim, also a contract and proof that it is a housing need). For life insurance and pension savings, an annual certificate from the insurance/pension company confirming the premiums paid is required.
Donations (including non-contributory blood or bone marrow donations) are evidenced by a receipt that must clearly state the recipient, value, purpose/object and date of donation. Prepare a birth certificate for children and, for adults, a certificate of education and confirmation that the other parent does not claim the deduction (form: Confirmation from the employer of the other taxpayer). For the spouse discount, attach an affidavit of the other spouse’ s own income and, if applicable, a decision on the disabled person’s P/P.
You have a tax base of CZK 480,000 (after expenses). You claim interest of CZK 150,000. The new basis is CZK 330 000. Tax 15% = CZK 49 500. Subtract the taxpayer’s discount of CZK 30,840 ⇒ tax of CZK 18,660.
You have a tax base of CZK 300,000 and two children (without PWD/P). The tax calculated is CZK 45,000 (15% of 300,000). Subtract the taxpayer’s discount of CZK 30,840, leaving CZK 14,160. Then you apply the tax credit for two children CZK 37,524 (15,204 + 22,320), so it comes out to CZK -23,364. The tax payable is CZK 0 and the state will pay you a tax bonus of CZK 23 364 (if you meet the conditions for the bonus).
You and your spouse are bringing up a child under 3 years of age and your partner had income of CZK 55,000 for the year. You apply CZK 24 840. If the spouse has a disabled person’s card, you claim CZK 49 680.
You donated CZK 10 000 to the foundation and donated blood twice (2 × CZK 3 000). In total, you donated CZK 16 000; as this exceeds CZK 1 000, you deduct the full value of CZK 16 000 (subject, of course, to the 30% ceiling on your basis). Saving at 15% tax: CZK 2 400.
You have paid a total of CZK 48,000 for the year on supported products (DPS, Life, DIP). You will reduce the base by this amount and save CZK 7,200 in tax (at a rate of 15%). This limit of CZK 48,000 covers all products together.
Discounts reduce the directly calculated tax, deductible items reduce the tax base. In particular, for 2025, the taxpayer’s discount is CZK 30,840; the spouse’s discount is CZK 24,840 (CZK 49,680 for PWD/P), now only for a joint household, a child < 3 years old and the partner's own income up to CZK 68,000; the disability discount is CZK 2,520/5,040 and for PWD/P holders CZK 16,140. The tax credit for children is CZK 15,204/22,320/27,840 (double for PWD/P); if it exceeds the tax, a bonus is due if you earned at least CZK 124,800 for the year. There is also an allowance for stopped foreclosures (up to CZK 450 per foreclosure).
Interest on a home loan can be deducted from the tax base (limit of CZK 300,000 for needs acquired before 31.12. 2020, otherwise CZK 150,000), payments for state-supported old-age products up to CZK 48,000 in total (DPS, ŽP, DIP) and donations – above 2% of the base or from CZK 1,000, with a ceiling of up to 30% until the end of 2026; in-kind donations are also recognised (blood CZK 3,000/collection, bone marrow/ blood cells CZK 20,000/collection). School fees and the student discount are abolished. Employees apply via the Taxpayer’s Declaration and the Annual Settlement (otherwise via the return with deadlines of 1 April/2 May/1 July); self-employed persons apply everything in the return; no discounts or deductions are applied in the flat-rate scheme.
If the overlap is in the same month as the advance tax, your employer will not do the annual tax return and you will file your own return. Otherwise, last employer.
Often yes – if the discounts result in lower tax, some of the withholding tax is refunded. In this case, it’s worth filing a return and including this income.
Normally in mid-February (the specific date varies slightly each year). If you can’t make it or don’t meet the conditions, you file the return yourself by the statutory deadlines (paper on 1 April, electronically on 2 May, with an adviser on 1 July for 2024 returns).
No later than the age of 26 or 28 in the case of full-time doctoral studies.
No. You are only allowed to have a declaration from one payer for the same period (month). So for multiple concurrent jobs, choose to declare only with your “main” employer.
Not sure how to do your taxes correctly so you don’t get it wrong? We can help you navigate the law, whether it’s dealing with a specific tax situation, preparing for an audit by the tax authority or defending yourself in court.
Ondřej is the attorney who came up with the idea of providing legal services online. He's been earning his living through legal services for more than 10 years. He especially likes to help clients who may have given up hope in solving their legal issues at work, for example with real estate transfers or copyright licenses.
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