For domestic entities, with a registered office, place of business or establishment in the country or domiciled or habitually resident in the country, the entity is obliged to register for VAT when turnover exceeds EUR 49,790 for a maximum of 12 previous calendar months. The deadline for VAT registration is 20 days following the month in which the obligation arose. Below this threshold, voluntary registration is possible.

When turnover for a maximum of 12 previous calendar months has not exceeded EUR 49,790 and the entity makes EU goods acquisition of over EUR 14,000 in the calendar year: The entity does not become a taxable person and is required to pay tax on the acquisition of goods, but is not entitled to a tax deduction.

When turnover for a maximum of 12 previous calendar months has not exceeded EUR 49,790: The entity must be registered for VAT before it receives services from, or supplies services to, another EU member state. The entity does not become a taxable person and is required to pay tax on the services received, but is not entitled to a tax deduction.

For foreign businesses trading in Slovakia that are VAT-registered in their home countries, there is no threshold for registration. A non-resident taxable person must be registered for VAT purposes in Slovakia before commencing taxable business transactions.

For distance selling, the threshold is EUR 35,000.

For VAT registration, EU-based businesses are required to submit the following information:

• Excerpt from company’s national trade register
• Proof that the business will carry out transactions within the scope of VAT in Slovakia, e.g. sales or orders.

The main form of business organizations are as follows: 

The most common form in which to do business in Slovakia is the limited-liability company (spoločnosť s ručením obmedzeným, abbreviated to spol. s.r.o. or s.r.o.). A limited-liability company may be established by one person only (exclusively a natural person), and any natural person may be the single member in a maximum of three companies. The maximum number of members is limited to fifty. The basic statutory capital is a minimum EUR 5,000, and there must also be a contingency reserve from profits of up to 10% of the basic capital. The minimum subscription from a member is EUR 750, and the capital may be provided in cash, or in-kind equivalent (in which case an expert valuation is needed). Members are liable for the obligations of the company only to the amount of unpaid share capital.

The joint-stock company (akciová spoločnosť, abbreviated to akc. spol. or a.s.) is the typical corporate business form. It may be established by at least two persons (natural or legal) or by a single legal person. Its minimum capital is divided into shares with a nominal value, and the sum of those values is equal to the nominal capital. The minimum share capital of an a.s. is EUR 25,000. The company must establish a contingency reserve in the amount of at least 10% of the share capital. The company is obliged to make contributions to this fund annually in an amount determined in the company’s statutes, which is a minimum of 10% of net after-tax profit, until the reserve stands at the maximum amount stipulated, which may not be less than 20% of the nominal capital.

The general partnership (verejná obchodná spoločnosť, abbreviated to ver. obch. spol. or v.o.s.) is the typical personal entity established by a minimum of two persons (legal or natural) with a view to doing business together under a common business name. The partnership is liable for its obligations to the extent of all its property, while the partners guarantee the partnership’s obligations to the extent of all their property, jointly and severally. Partnerships do not have a minimum statutory capital; the partnership agreement may, however, stipulate what capital a partner may have to contribute to the partnership.

The limited partnership (komanditná spoločnosť, abbreviated to kom. spol. or k.s.) combines features of the limited-liability company and the general partnership. The partners may be natural or legal persons, and the partnership has two types of partners: general partners and limited partners; both types of partners must be present throughout the entire lifetime of the partnership.

The entity has to register for social and health insurance within 8 days after the first employee starts work. The whole process can be done online or in person.

Slovak law recognizes full-time employment and part-time employment. 

Full-time employment can be concluded for a definite period or indefinite period. A fixed-term employment relationship can be agreed for a maximum of two years. Such employment may be extended no more than twice within two years.

In addition, there are three types of contracts for part-time jobs:

• Contract for job performance (dohoda o pracovnej činnosti), which cannot exceed a maximum of one-quarter of established weekly working hours (10 hours) 
• Agreement on performance of work (dohoda o vykonaní práce), which cannot exceed 350 hours in one calendar year
• Agreement on student’s temporary work (dohoda o brigádnickej práci študenta), which cannot exceed a maximum of one-half of established weekly working hours (20 hours)—an agreement on student’s temporary work may be concluded by an employer with a natural person who has not reached age 26 and who has the status of a high-school student or full-time university student.

In general, foreign persons may conduct business activities in Slovakia under the same conditions and to the same extent as Slovakian nationals. Almost without exception, a person (whether resident or non-resident) may carry out any for-profit business activity on a regular basis without needing to apply for a licence. Under the Trade Licensing Act, a trade licence is issued by the respective trade licensing office or special state authorities. This act distinguishes between regulated trades, artisanal trades, and free trades.

Slovakia offers a variety of investment incentives under various conditions. The limits for state aid are determined by EU regulations and are driven by the relative development of the country or region in which the investment project is located, the unemployment rate, and the minimum investment volume. The limits are set as a percentage of the eligible costs of an investment project. The Bratislava region is mostly excluded from such grants and incentives.

Establishment of a company in Slovakia can be broken down into a few steps: 

• The first step in starting a business in Slovakia is selecting the form of business organization. 
• The articles of association and personal information about the shareholders and directors are among the documents needed to start a business in Slovakia. The articles of association need to be drawn up by a public notary.
• Once gathered, all the documents need to be filed with the company register. Based on them, the Slovak Trade Register will issue the company’s certificate of registration.
• Registration for taxation purposes is mandatory when a company is established in Slovakia. 
• Depending on the activities to be undertaken, a Slovak company may have to apply for other specific licences and permits, for example permission from the regional public health office.