Sole trader, limited company or employment: calculator with the 2026 flat rate

How much the client pays for your work

Amount in euro, excluding VAT

For what period

How you claim expenses

How you are starting your business

Actual annual expenses in euro

Business income for 2025 in euros (revenue, not profit)

From 1 July 2026, it is specifically this income that decides social insurance, not the amount entered above. The calculator assumes you had the same income in 2024 too – it does not have the exact figure for that year.

With the flat rate, actual expenses are not counted in the result: the 60 % flat rate replaces them and the limited company (s. r. o.) is calculated without costs; the actual-expenses field then serves only for the comparison below the result. When you switch to actual expenses, the amount entered is deducted for both the sole trader and the company.

For employment, the same amount is treated as the total employer cost, that is, everything the employer spends on you including their own contributions. Otherwise the comparison would not be fair.

This is calculated without any other income and without VAT – only a non-VAT payer can claim the flat rate.

The calculator assumes that the tax return for 2025 is filed by the regular deadline, i.e. by the end of March. With an extended deadline, income for social insurance purposes would only be assessed as of 1 October instead of 1 July.

Enter an amount, and all three calculations fill in automatically. The rates and amounts are valid from 1 January 2026. An indicative full-year calculation using the rates in effect in 2026. This is a year in which the business is already running at full speed, that is, twelve months of both contributions and income. For a new sole trader, social insurance arises only on the first day of the sixth calendar month after the month in which they obtained the licence, and they pay the reduced amount of %s per month regardless of income; that is checked only a year later. The number of instalments depends on the chosen start month. The result covers the months from the start to the end of 2026, not the whole year. Health insurance is payable from the first day, but only at the minimum amount – the top-up based on actual profit (divided by the coefficient 1,486) comes only in the annual settlement in 2027, and only the advance payments actually paid, not this higher amount, are deducted from this year's tax. A new s. r. o. does not pay the minimum tax for its first tax period. With this input, the s. r. o. has a loss for the year, or a profit lower than the minimum tax – which it has to pay regardless, so the shareholder has to put an extra %s into the company instead of taking anything out of it. For income for 2025 up to 2 876,90 €, no social insurance arises for a sole trader from 1 July 2026. Only health insurance is paid, but this also means zero sick pay and no year counted towards a pension. Until the end of June 2026, income for 2024 may still apply instead – see the note by the "Income for 2025" field. From 1 July 2026, social insurance here is calculated as six months at %s, from the special assessment base of 396,24 €. Watch out for the 9 144 € threshold for income for 2025: just above it, the full minimum of 303,11 € a month applies from July instead of the micro-contribution. Until the end of June 2026, a completely different rule may also apply, based on income for 2024 (threshold 8 580 €) – see the note by the "Income for 2025" field. Flat-rate expenses are capped at 20 000 € a year, so nothing more is deducted from every further euro of income. At this turnover, it is worth checking whether your actual expenses are not higher. Income has exceeded 100 000 €, so the 15 % tax rate no longer applies to sole traders, and the tax base is taxed progressively. This is exactly where the gap against an s. r. o. opens up the most. The assessment base has exceeded the cap of 16 764 € a month, so social insurance no longer grows. Health insurance has no cap and keeps growing. per year, that is %s per month for 2026 (%s), active months: %s, average per active month %s Social insurance cannot be determined – please fill in the details of your previous business. After advance payments made and the estimated tax. After deducting the possible health insurance top-up of %s, it would be %s. The comparison with a sole trader is not possible until the details of your previous business are completed. Enter the year in which your last trade licence or last self-employed activity ended. Without it, we cannot determine whether the six-month deferral of social insurance applies. If it ended in 2021, also select the month - it determines whether 60 months have already passed since the end. Select whether you ran a business as a sole trader in 2025. Without it, social insurance on restarting cannot be determined. Enter your business income for 2025 (revenue, not profit). It determines whether social insurance is payable when restarting and in what amount. Enter your business income for 2024 (revenue, not profit; 0 if you did not run a business). For a start before July 2026, the original rule still applies until 30 June and this income is what decides. More than 60 months have passed since your last licence ended, so social insurance is treated as for a completely new start. Until 30 June 2026 the previous rule still applies, and based on income for 2024 no social insurance is payable during that period. Social insurance is not paid until 30 June 2026; from 1 July 2026 it arises under the new rules. The Social Insurance Agency's guidance does not explicitly cover the case where you did not run a business in 2024; if insurance were nevertheless payable from the month you started, contributions would be higher by %s. Until 30 June 2026 the original rule still applies, and with income for 2024 above 8 580 €, regular social insurance is payable already from the month of restart (the calculator works it out from the same base as from July). When restarting within 60 months of the end of your previous licence, social insurance is not deferred: it is payable from the month of restart, no earlier than 1 July 2026, at a reduced amount of %s per month. The calculator works out health insurance at the minimum amount from the month of restart; if you ran a business in 2025 with a higher profit, your actual advance payment may be higher. The settlement based on actual profit will come only with the annual reconciliation in 2027. A new s. r. o. does not pay the minimum tax for its first tax period. Income for 2025 did not exceed 2 876,90 €, so when restarting, social insurance is not payable. This is not a new deferral but the result of the income test; it also means zero sickness benefit and no year credited towards your pension. The calculator works out health insurance at the minimum amount from the month you start; if you were in business in 2025 with a higher profit, your actual advance may be higher. The top-up based on actual profit comes only in the annual settlement in 2027. Income for 2025 exceeded 9 144 €, so when restarting, regular social insurance is payable from the month of restart, no earlier than 1 July 2026, at a minimum of 303,11 € per month. The calculator works out health insurance at the minimum amount from the month of restart; if you ran a business in 2025 with a higher profit, your actual advance payment may be higher. The settlement based on actual profit will come only with the annual reconciliation in 2027. You keep the most as a sole trader. The monthly difference from the second-best option is %s. You keep the most in an s. r. o. The monthly difference from the second-best option is %s. You keep the most in employment. The monthly difference from the second-best option is %s. Enter your actual annual expenses and we will show whether the flat rate or actual expenses pay off more for a sole trader. Actual expenses save more than the flat rate only from about %s a year; the flat rate replaces them with %s. At this income you would save nothing with actual expenses even at the highest possible costs, because contributions have a statutory minimum. The flat rate is enough. The flat rate and your actual expenses come out the same: you will pay %s a year in tax and contributions. The flat rate comes out better. You will pay %s a year in tax and contributions, compared with %s with your actual expenses, that is %s more. Actual expenses come out better. You will pay %s a year in tax and contributions instead of %s with the flat rate, that is %s less. Below the minimum wage – a full-time job is not possible at this amount. For a full-time job, the lowest possible gross wage is %s (the minimum wage), so the net pay at that level works out higher than what you entered.

Sole trader

An individual who invoices on their own

–

Income–

Tax-deductible expenses–

Health insurance 16 %–

Social insurance 33,15 %–

Tax base–

Non-taxable part–

Income tax–

s. r. o.

A company that pays out profit to a shareholder

–

Company's tax base–

Corporate income tax–

Profit after tax–

7 % withholding tax on the profit share–

Financial transaction tax–

Director's health insurance–

Employment

Full-time employment contract

–

Total employer cost–

Gross wage–

Health insurance 5 %–

Social insurance 9,4 %–

Tax base–

Non-taxable part–

Tax advance payments–

Enter an amount, and all three calculations fill in automatically. The rates and amounts are valid from 1 January 2026.

The calculator needs JavaScript enabled. You will find all the rates and the calculation method further down this page, or write to us and we will work it out for you.

Who this calculation is for. For someone who wants to go independent and build their own client base. It is not a guide to turning an employment contract into an invoice: the two boxes below show where the line is.

This is running a business

You have several clients, or at least the freedom to find more
You decide for yourself when and where you work
You work at your own expense and with your own equipment
You bear the risk: if the work does not turn out well, you do not get paid
No one gives you instructions as a superior

This is dependent work

The Labour Code defines it in Section 1(2) as work performed in a relationship of superiority of the employer and subordination of the employee, performed personally by the employee for the employer, according to the employer's instructions and in the employer's name.

When these marks fit, it is dependent work, and under Section 1(3) dependent work must not be performed under a commercial-law relationship, so not on an invoice either. It does not matter whether both sides agree or what the contract says; what decides it is how the cooperation actually works.

Both the employer and the person working are liable. For the company, this is illegal employment, and the labour inspectorate imposes a fine of 4 000 to 200 000 €, or at least 8 000 € where two or more people are involved. The National Labour Inspectorate also keeps a public list of fined companies going back five years. The ban also applies to the person working themselves: „A natural person must not perform illegal work,“ states Section 3 of the Act on Illegal Work. If you are not sure which form will hold up in your situation, write to us in advance, it can be reclassified retroactively too. More under payroll and HR.

Why three identical amounts turn out so differently

It is not about the level of a single rate, but about how many times and from what it is calculated.

Sole trader: contributions once, tax once

Expenses. Either the 60 % flat rate on income (capped at 20 000 € a year), or actual expenses based on documents.
Assessment base. Income minus expenses, divided by the coefficient 1,486 and by twelve. Under the law, contributions paid are subtracted and then immediately added back, so they cancel out.
Contributions. Health insurance at 16 % and social insurance at 33,15 % (the sum of four funds) on this base, but at least from the minimum, and social insurance at most from the cap. At low income for the previous year, social insurance is paid at a reduced amount or does not arise at all; the amounts and thresholds are in the rate table below.
Tax. The tax base is income minus expenses minus contributions paid. The non-taxable part is deducted, and the rest is taxed.

s. r. o.: tax twice, no contributions

Corporate tax. Profit is taxed at 10 % for revenue up to 100 000 €, 21 % up to 5 000 000 €, and 24 % above that amount.
Share of profit. When it is paid out to a shareholder, a further 7 % withholding tax is deducted.
No contributions. No social or health insurance is paid on a share of profit. That is exactly where the main advantage lies.
The catch. A director with no remuneration is not insured anywhere, so they have to pay their own health insurance, 121,92 € a month. And they pay nothing into the Social Insurance Agency, which they will eventually notice in their pension.

Employment: contributions from both sides

Total employer cost. The employer pays an extra 36,2 % on top of the gross wage (up to a cap of 16 764 € a month, less above it). Out of a total employer cost of 3 000 €, the gross wage is only 2 202,67 €.
Employee contributions. A further 14,4 % of the gross wage.
Tax. Progressive brackets of 19 %, 25 %, 30 % and 35 %. The 15 % rate that a sole trader gets does not exist here.

Example: 30 000 € a year

Sole trader with flat-rate expenses: contributions 5 100,36 €, tax 139,94 €, you keep 24 759,70 €
s. r. o.: corporate tax 3 000 €, withholding tax 1 890 €, transaction tax 40 €, the director's health insurance 1 463,04 €, you keep 23 606,96 €
Employment: gross wage 1 835,57 € a month, you keep 16 406,52 €

There are two turning points, not one. Up to around 22 070 € a year in income, an s. r. o. comes out better. This is decided by the 9 144 € threshold for income for 2025: just above it, a sole trader starts paying the full minimum contributions of 5 100,36 € a year, even if they earned little. Below it, no social insurance arises for them, and sole trader status is cheaper instead. Between 22 070 and 41 100 €, sole trader status leads, because the 60 % flat rate reduces the tax base effectively and the tax rate is only 15 %. Above 41 100 €, the flat rate is capped at 20 000 €, contributions grow on the whole remainder, and an s. r. o., which does not pay social insurance contributions at all, pulls permanently ahead. At low income, though, the advantage of the company is only apparent, it means zero social insurance. This is calculated assuming the same income in every year; the calculator above shows the exact threshold for your case.

Flat-rate or actual expenses: which pays off for a sole trader

A sole trader (SZČO) can reduce the tax base in two ways: with flat-rate expenses of 60 % of income, at most 20 000 € a year, or with actual expenses based on receipts. The difference between income and expenses is the base for income tax and for health and social insurance, so your choice affects all three payments at once. The calculator above shows the comparison once you enter your actual expenses.

Flat rate 60 %

You do not need receipts for every cost; a record of income is enough.
The 20 000 € cap is reached at an income of 33 333 €. From each further euro of income, nothing more is deducted.
Suits low costs: services, consulting, programming, translation, trades with no purchase of materials.

Actual expenses

You need a receipt for every cost and must keep tax records or full accounts.
No cap: the more documented costs, the lower the tax base and contribution base.
Suits high costs: materials, goods for resale, subcontractors, a car, premises rent, employees.

Total tax and contributions at an annual income of 30 000 € and 50 000 € in 2026. An illustrative calculation from the calculator on this page for a sole trader (SZČO) who works the whole year, has no children or other income, and had the same income in 2025.
Income	Method	Expenses	Total tax and contributions	Versus flat rate
30 000 €	Flat rate 60 %	18 000 €	5 240,30 €	–
30 000 €	Actual	9 000 €	8 158,55 €	2 918,25 € more
30 000 €	Actual	15 000 €	5 819,43 €	579,13 € more
30 000 €	Actual	21 000 €	5 100,36 €	139,94 € less
50 000 €	Flat rate 60 %	20 000 €	12 038,96 €	–
50 000 €	Actual	15 000 €	14 194,73 €	2 155,77 € more
50 000 €	Actual	30 000 €	7 727,54 €	4 311,42 € less
50 000 €	Actual	40 000 €	5 100,36 €	6 938,60 € less

The rule that follows. Actual expenses only pay off once they exceed the amount you would get as a flat rate, that is 60 % of income and at most 20 000 €. At an income of 50 000 € that is 20 000 €: if your costs are 30 000 €, you save over 4 300 €. At lower costs the flat rate is better, because it is free and needs no receipts. The saving has a floor, though: contributions have a minimum of 5 100,36 € a year, so at an income of 20 000 € actual expenses above 12 000 € save nothing more. Expenses that are not tax-deductible (private consumption, part of entertainment costs) do not count as actual expenses. The comparison does not include the time and money spent on bookkeeping, which actual expenses require. We can recalculate it on your own figures, get in touch.

Rates and amounts valid in 2026

The calculator above uses these figures. 2026 brought three changes: higher health insurance, higher minimum contributions for sole traders and two new tax brackets.

Contributions for a sole trader (self-employed person) from 1 January 2026. During the year, social insurance follows two different previous years – see the rows below and the explanation under the table.
Item	Health insurance	Social insurance
Rate	16 %	33,15 % (the sum of four funds, each rounded separately)
Minimum assessment base	762,00 €	914,40 €
Minimum per month	121,92 €	303,11 €
Maximum assessment base	not set	16 764,00 €
Maximum per month	no upper limit	5 557,26 €
Until 30 June 2026: income for 2024 up to which insurance does not arise	always payable	8 580,00 €
From 1 July 2026: income for 2025 up to which insurance does not arise	always payable	2 876,90 €
From 1 July 2026: micro-contribution for income for 2025 of 2 876,91 – 9 144 €	the full minimum applies	131,34 €

Until the end of June 2026, whether social insurance arises and how much it costs is decided by the income you earned in 2024; from 1 July, it is decided by income for 2025. That is why the calculator asks for income for 2025 separately and assumes that it was the same in 2024.

Personal income tax in 2026. A sole trader with income up to 100 000 € taxes the entire tax base at a rate of 15 %; above this threshold, tax brackets apply.
Annual tax base	Tax rate
up to 43 983,32 €	19 %
43 983,32 – 60 349,21 €	25 %
60 349,21 – 75 010,32 €	30 %
above 75 010,32 €	35 %

Taxes paid by an s. r. o. The income tax rate is set according to the amount of taxable income, but it is calculated on the tax base.
Company's taxable income	Income tax	Minimum tax
up to 50 000 €	10 %	340 €
50 000 – 100 000 €	10 %	960 €
100 000 – 250 000 €	21 %	960 €
250 000 – 500 000 €	21 %	1 920 €
500 000 – 5 000 000 €	21 %	3 840 €
above 5 000 000 €	24 %	11 520 €

Other figures the calculation is based on.
Item	Amount for 2026
Flat-rate expenses	60 % of income, capped at 20 000 € a year
Coefficient for the sole trader's (SZČO) assessment base	1,486
Non-taxable part of the tax base	5 966,73 € a year
Tax base from which the non-taxable part starts to be reduced	26 083,13 €
Tax base at which the non-taxable part disappears	43 983,33 €
Withholding tax on the share of profit	7 %
Financial transaction tax	0,4 %, capped at 40 € per transaction
Employee contributions	14,4 % of the gross wage
Employer contributions	36,2 % on top of the gross wage
Maximum assessment base for social insurance	16 764 € a month
Subsistence minimum	284,13 € a month

The first year as a sole trader is different from every year after it

At the start, sole trader status looks more favourable than it actually turns out to be. That is because of the deferral of social insurance, and that deferral ends at some point.

When you start paying

Health insurance right away. From the first day of business activity, regardless of income. At least 121,92 € a month.
Social insurance only later, and at the minimum. It starts on the first day of the sixth calendar month after the month in which you received your trade licence; if you start in March, you first pay for September. And it is the minimum, because the tax return from which the assessment base would be determined does not exist yet.
No waiting period on return. If no more than 60 months have passed since your last trade licence or last self-employed activity ended, no new deferral arises: social insurance starts immediately from the restart. If you were a sole trader in 2025 with income of up to 2 876,90 €, it does not arise at all.

New lower contributions for low incomes

From 1 July 2026, a special assessment base of 396,24 € is introduced for sole traders with income for 2025 up to 9 144 € and for those who have just started out. Social insurance contributions based on it come to 131,34 € a month instead of 303,11 €.

The deferral is not a discount. The first six months without social insurance and the next six with only the micro-contribution also mean a first year with significantly lower sick pay and a shorter period counted towards a pension. When contributions reach their full amount in the second year, many people are caught out by it, having spent their money based on a figure that only applied once.

What the calculator deliberately does not include

To keep the numbers comparable, it sticks to a model case. These are the things that can shift your result.

For an s. r. o.

Cost of running the company. Double-entry bookkeeping, financial statements, register filings. Typically a few hundred euro a year more than a sole trader business.
The exact transaction tax. The calculator applies the 0,4 % to the company's expenses too, as an upper estimate. In reality, this tax is capped at 40 € per payment, and card payments are completely exempt from it, so the actual amount tends to be lower.
A director's remuneration or a wage. If you also pay yourself a wage from your own company, the whole calculation changes: part of the money goes through contributions, but it reduces the company's tax base.
The money is not yours right away. A share of profit is paid out only after the financial statements are approved, usually the following year.

For sole trader and employment

Child tax bonus. Both an employee and a sole trader receive it, and it shifts the result in their favour.
VAT. We work with amounts excluding value added tax. For a VAT payer it is a pass-through amount with no effect on the result.
Combining with employment. A sole trader who is also employed pays health insurance differently, and their result will be different.
State-insured person. A student, pensioner or parent on parental leave has different minimums and different obligations.

FAQ

Frequently asked questions about choosing a business form

Does a sole trader save more with the 60 % flat rate or with actual expenses?

It depends on how much real cost you have. If it is below 60 % of income (at most 20 000 €), the flat rate pays off, because it saves more and needs no receipts. If it is higher, actual expenses pay off. The calculator above compares them on your own figures: just enter your income and actual annual expenses.

Does the flat rate also reduce contributions to the Social Insurance Agency and the health insurer?

Yes. The base for a sole trader's income tax and insurance contributions is the difference between income and expenses, and this applies to both flat-rate and actual expenses. The higher the expenses, the lower the tax and contributions, but contributions never fall below the statutory minimum: 121,92 € a month for health insurance and 303,11 € a month for social insurance.

At what level of costs do actual expenses pay off?

From the point where your documented costs exceed the flat rate, that is 60 % of income and at most 20 000 € a year. At an income of 30 000 € that is 18 000 €, and at an income of 33 333 € or more it is always 20 000 €. At low incomes the saving can be zero, because social and health contributions have a minimum.

Can I keep doing the same work for my employer on an invoice?

No, not if the work meets the marks of dependent work set out in the box above. Besides a fine from the inspectorate, there is also the risk of additional tax: the tax office can reclassify the income as income from employment and assess extra tax. And the Social Insurance Agency can prescribe contributions retroactively; if the person was never registered at all, this right is not time-barred at all under Section 147 of the Social Insurance Act, plus a penalty of 0,05 % of the amount owed for every day of delay.

From what amount does it pay to switch from sole trader to s. r. o.?

With flat-rate expenses and no other income, it is around 41 100 € a year in income; why that is so is explained in the paragraph about the two turning points above. Work out the exact threshold in the calculator, it depends on what your actual expenses are.

Why did employment come out so badly?

Because the comparison uses the total employer cost, not the gross wage: the employer pays a further 36,2 % in contributions on top of the gross wage, up to a cap of 16 764 € a month (above the cap, the ratio is lower). In return, though, this buys sick pay, maternity benefits, unemployment benefits, paid leave, severance pay and a higher pension. The difference is not a pure loss, it is the price of security.

Do you pay health insurance on a share of profit?

No. On profit for 2017 and later, no health insurance contributions are paid on a share of profit, and social insurance contributions were never paid on it. It is taxed only with a withholding tax: 7 % on profit for the years 2017 – 2023 and from 2025 onwards, but for profit reported specifically for 2024, this tax is exceptionally 10 %. The exception is a profit share paid to an employee who holds no ownership stake in the company: that is treated as a wage, with all contributions.

Does a company director with no salary have to pay contributions?

No social insurance. Health insurance, yes: if there is no other payer of the contributions, they become a self-payer and pay at least 121,92 € a month. They pay nothing if they are also employed elsewhere, are a sole trader, or are a state-insured person, for example a student, a pensioner, a registered jobseeker or a parent on parental leave. The calculator works with the worse case.

What about the financial transaction tax in 2026?

Since 1 January 2026, only legal entities pay it. Sole traders and other individuals – entrepreneurs are exempt from it, and it never applied to individuals who are not in business. The rate is 0,4 % of the amount debited, capped at 40 € per transaction, 0,8 % with no cap on cash withdrawals, and 2 € a year for each payment card used.

What is the 1,486 coefficient, and why is it needed at all?

It is a converter between a sole trader's profit and an employee's wage. An employee's contributions are calculated from the gross wage, which does not yet include the employer's contributions; a sole trader has no gross wage, only profit. Dividing by 1,486 converts that profit into a comparable figure. Without it, they would pay contributions from a considerably higher base than an employee with the same income.

Why does the monthly amount come out a few cents different from the payroll calculator?

The "Employment" tab and the second calculator below both run on the same engine as the payroll calculator, so for the same gross wage you get exactly the same figure. They can only differ at higher wages (a monthly tax base above 2 173,59 €): the monthly tax advance payment applies the full non-taxable part, but above this threshold it is reduced in the annual tax reconciliation, which creates an additional amount to pay that the second calculator below works out and shows separately.

Can you have a sole trader business and an s. r. o. at the same time?

Yes, and it is not unusual. Income is assessed separately, but you only pay health insurance once: if you are already paying health insurance as a sole trader, you do not have to become a self-payer as a director with no remuneration too. If you invoice your own company from your sole trader business, it has to hold up at an inspection as a normal market price. Before you set it up, it is worth going through it with an accountant, get in touch with us.

Sole trader, s. r. o. or employment in 2026