Study costs – business or private?
Your company is running smoothly and you want to broaden your professional knowledge by following a course or study. Or maybe you want to get an education to completely change your career path. Is it possible to just enter these costs in your bookkeeping? Or do you have to take certain rules into account?
Business study costs
The tax authorities say that all costs that you incur in the business interest of your company are deductible from your profit. So if you’re a photographer and you’re following a photo editing course, this is in the interest of your company. After all, the product you offer will benefit from this. And for instance as a yoga teacher you’ll probably also be working constantly to keep your knowledge up to date by means of training and education.
Study costs that you incur to keep your professional knowledge up-to-date can therefore be reported as business costs in accounting. There are few restrictions in this regard, as long as the costs are necessary for your study. For example, think of:
- Course or tuition fees
- Textbooks or software
- Mandatory materials
- Travel costs or accommodation costs
You may also deduct the VAT on these expenses in the VAT return. In addition, you can include the business study hours for the hours criterion, which you have to meet to profit from the entrepreneurial deductions. So all together studying can be a nice way to grow both your knowledge and company and to lower your profit for taxes.
Study costs for your personal development
But what if you’re a yoga teacher taking a photography course? Then the Tax and Customs Administration does not regard the course fee as business costs. Not even if you photograph your participants after the yoga class. These are costs that you incur for your personal development. But there is a distinction made in whether this is intended for a hobby or for a future new profession.
Costs that you incur for a hobby, will have to be paid out of your own pocket. If the study costs are for a future profession or position, then you may be able to use them in your income tax return. However, there are some more restrictions: you can only specify mandatory costs. There is a threshold amount of €250 and the VAT cannot be reclaimed.
STAP becomes SLIM
Last year, the government decided to end the STAP scheme as of 2024. Besides facing criticism, the government also had to deal with a billion-euro hole in the budget. The news of the STAP scheme ending also drew significant criticism. According to educators, the government finally succeeded in encouraging people to pursue learning through this subsidy.
With the ending of the STAP budget, more funds are now available for another subsidy scheme, namely the SLIM scheme. SLIM stands for Stimulating Learning and Development in SMEs and aims to ‘promote a culture of learning within a company.’ Starting from 2024, there will be a provision for individual training, specifically tailored for freelancers.
The period for applying for SLIM subsidy runs from March 1st, 09:00 AM, to March 30th, 5:00 PM. Applications can be submitted via the subsidy portal of the Ministry of Social Affairs and Employment (SZW). The ministry’s website provides a step-by-step guide for submitting a SLIM application.
Grey area
There can be different reasons for taking a course or study. Sometimes it can be difficult to determine whether this is business related or not. In the case of study costs, there is certainly a grey area. If you’re not sure whether the study costs in your case are business or private, please contact the tax authorities or your accountant before you hit the books.
Author: Sanne Paaij
