Slovakia clarifies 2027 tax depreciation for buildings

The guidance explains an enacted amendment

Law 243/2026 amended Act 595/2003 on Income Tax alongside changes to Slovakia's building legislation. Its income-tax amendments are in Article IV and apply from 1 January 2027. They affect the classification of particular structures, the treatment of expenditure on completed buildings and the transition for assets already held by a taxpayer.^[1][2]

Information structures enter depreciation group 4

New section 26(15) treats an information structure fixed to the ground and used for public navigation, cultural, advertising, sporting or other information purposes as a small structure for tax-depreciation purposes. The legislation assigns such an asset to depreciation group 4. The classification follows the terminology introduced by the amended building rules, so asset-register descriptions should be checked against the structure's actual characteristics and use.^[1][2]

Repairs remain outside technical improvement

Amended section 29(1) expressly excludes building work that is a repair or maintenance expense from technical improvement. The Directorate explains that a repair restores operating condition or usability without changing technical parameters, performance or purpose, while maintenance slows wear, prevents its consequences and removes minor defects. For businesses using double-entry accounting, the distinction determines whether expenditure is recognised as a current cost or added to the tax basis and depreciated.^[1][2]

Existing assets must move to the new classification

Transitional section 52zzzn applies the revised classification from 1 January 2027 to affected assets already in use or recorded as business property by 31 December 2026. Where the amendment changes the depreciation method, group, useful life, annual rate or coefficient, the revised treatment also applies to those existing assets. Prior-year depreciation is not recalculated, so the opening tax basis and accumulated deductions must remain traceable.^[1][2]

Groups should update property records before 2027

Slovak entities in multinational groups should identify affected buildings, fixed display and navigation structures, and current projects before the 2027 opening asset-register roll-forward. They should document whether post-completion expenditure is a repair, maintenance or technical improvement and preserve the engineering and accounting evidence supporting that conclusion. The change is enacted, but the tax result for a particular asset depends on its physical features, use and existing depreciation history.^[1][2]