Cash book and tax records of a Slovak sole trader: what to record, how and for how long

A sole trader who claims actual expenses does not have to keep accounts: they may keep tax records (daňová evidencia) instead. On flat-rate expenses the records are narrower.^⁠[1] In practice, the record of income and expenses is most often kept as a cash book (peňažný denník).

This guide covers what the records contain with flat-rate and with actual expenses, what a cash book looks like, which particulars documents must have and how long to keep them.

Records with flat-rate expenses

A sole trader on flat-rate expenses records income in chronological order and keeps a record of inventory and receivables.^⁠[1]⁠[2]

Apart from contributions, you do not track expenses: the flat rate covers them. You do claim the insurance you paid in the proven amount, so keep the proofs of your contribution payments.^⁠[1] How to choose between the flat rate and actual expenses is covered in Flat-rate or actual expenses in Slovakia.

Tax records with actual expenses

With actual expenses you keep tax records throughout the year of:^⁠[1]

• income in chronological order, broken down as needed to determine the tax base,
• tax-deductible expenses in chronological order, broken down the same way,
• tangible, intangible and financial assets included in business property,
• inventory and receivables,
• liabilities.

A taxpayer keeping tax records is not an accounting entity and does not attach financial statements to the tax return.^⁠[2]

Which documents you need

The documents behind income and expenses in tax records must meet the particulars of accounting documents.^⁠[1] An accounting document contains:^⁠[3]

• a verbal and numerical designation of the document,
• the content of the transaction and its parties,
• the amount, or the unit price and the quantity,
• the date of issue,
• the date of the transaction, if different from the date of issue,
• the signature record of the person responsible, unless verification is ensured otherwise.

An invoice also has its own mandatory details, summed up in Invoice requirements in Slovakia 2026.

What a cash book looks like

A cash book is a chronological list of payments: each line is one income or expense with its date, document number, description, counterparty and amount, often split into cash and bank. At the end of the year you read from it the totals you need for the tax return.

Receivables and liabilities

Receivables are invoices you issued that have not been paid yet; liabilities are invoices you received and have not paid yet. With actual expenses you record both, on the flat rate the receivables.^⁠[1]

An invoice the client has not paid yet is therefore among your receivables and goes into the cash book only when the money arrives. What to do when it does not is covered in Unpaid invoice in Slovakia.

Common mistakes in the records

• Private and business payments on one account without a note: in an inspection it is then hard to prove what was a tax-deductible expense.
• An entry without a document: every income and expense needs a document you can produce at any time.
• An issued invoice instead of a payment in the cash book: the cash book records money movements, an unpaid invoice is a receivable.
• Forgotten contributions: even on the flat rate you deduct them only in the proven amount, so you need the proofs of payment.

How long to keep the records

You keep the tax records until the right to assess the tax expires.^⁠[1] Tax can be assessed within five years from the end of the year in which the return was due; if the tax administrator takes a step towards an assessment before the period ends, it starts again, but never beyond ten years.^⁠[4]

An example: the records for 2026, whose return is due by 31 March 2027, are kept at least until the end of 2032.

For invoices, the VAT Act applies too: a VAT payer, for example, keeps issued and received invoices for ten years following the year they relate to.^⁠[5]

Checklist

• You know whether you keep records for the flat rate or for actual expenses.
• You record income and expenses in chronological order with the document number.
• Your documents meet the particulars of accounting documents.
• You keep receivables, liabilities, inventory and assets clearly separate.
• You keep the records until the right to assess the tax expires, and invoices as the VAT Act requires.

The cash book in vporiadku

On the Profi plan you keep a cash book, a receivables book, a liabilities book and a petty cash book in vporiadku. Entries appear on their own when an invoice or an expense is paid and when a bank movement is matched; you add by hand only what has no document in the system, such as bank fees, contributions, taxes, or the owner’s deposits and withdrawals.

You close the periods month by month, do the year-end closing and export the cash book to CSV, for example for your accountant.

Compare the plans or try Profi free for 30 days; you can issue invoices on the free Start plan too. If you are just starting, read How to issue an invoice in Slovakia.