Useful information regarding the 2025 personal income tax returns
From 15 March 2026, the draft personal income tax return will be available on the electronic platform of the Hungarian Tax Authority (NAV) for private individuals, agricultural primary producers, private individuals liable for VAT and sole proprietors. NAV prepares the draft based on the data provided by employers and payers.
For private individuals who received only employment income and for full-time KATA sole proprietors who earned no other income in 2025, the draft return will automatically become the final tax return on 20 May 2026 without further approval, provided they do not modify it or submit a separate tax return. Sole proprietors, agricultural primary producers and private individuals liable for VAT cannot use the automatic approval; they must file their return separately and supplement it with any information not included in NAV’s records.
Available Allowances
For the 2025 tax year, the list of applicable tax base allowances has expanded. These must be applied in the following order:
- Allowance for mothers raising four or more children
- Allowance for mothers raising three children
- Allowance related to infant care allowance (CSED), childcare allowance (GYED) and adoption allowance (ÖFD)
- Allowance for individuals under 25
- Allowance for mothers under 30
- Personal allowance
- Newly married couples’ allowance
- Family allowance
From 30 June 2025, CSED, GYED and ÖFD paid thereafter will be tax‑exempt and not subject to personal income tax.
The allowance for mothers raising three children can first be applied to income acquired after 30 September 2025, or to employment income accounted for a period after that date. According to NAV’s interpretation, it may also be applied to income paid after 1 October 2025 but relating to an earlier period.
A significant amendment to the Personal Income Tax Act effective from 1 January 2025 is that the allowance for individuals under 25, the newly married couples’ allowance and the family allowance may only be claimed by citizens of EEA states and non‑EEA neighbouring countries of Hungary (Ukraine and Serbia). Third‑country nationals who are eligible for family allowance under the Family Support Act (Cst.) may also qualify for the family allowance if the conditions set out in the Cst. Act are met.
Taxation of Other Income
The 2025 tax return form includes several changes compared to previous years, particularly regarding the declaration of other income. Income from independent activities must be listed separately according to their type.
Rules related to the flat‑rate tax for private accommodation providers were modified from 1 January 2025. The definitions of “private accommodation” and “guest room” have been clarified. The flat‑rate tax amount has also changed, differentiating between rooms rented in Budapest and outside Budapest:
– 150,000 HUF per year per room in Budapest
– 38,400 HUF per year per room outside Budapest (unchanged)
NAV pays particular attention to whether foreign‑sourced income is correctly declared. If such income is missing or only partially reported, NAV may initiate a supportive procedure prompting the taxpayer to self-correct. NAV may also launch a compliance or tax audit, which may involve sanctions.
Taxpayers who earned income from foreign investments in 2025 must declare and tax this income carefully in line with current regulations. NAV now regularly receives data on Hungarian individuals’ foreign income through automatic information exchange, meaning even small amounts from foreign fintech companies may attract scrutiny.
NAV also focuses on income from international employee share programs. Hungarian employers are typically not obliged to administer the tax aspects of foreign share program income. Therefore, employees are responsible for declaring and paying the tax on such income, which NAV increasingly monitors.
Crypto Assets in the Tax Return
Rules related to income from transactions involving crypto assets have also changed. From 2025 onwards, tax equalisation may be applied not only to losses from the current tax year and the previous two years but also to losses from any earlier year, provided they were declared in the tax return. Losses could first be declared in the 2021 tax return.
The tax return now requires indicating, as informational data, the total amount of losses from crypto transactions of any year that have not yet been applied as tax equalisation. A new sheet (Sheet 10) has been added to the 25SZJA return for detailing crypto transactions.
Relief Options
Private individuals who face difficulties preparing their tax return or paying their tax liability may still request relief under existing regulations. In certain cases, individuals may submit a justification request regarding late filing or payment of penalties or surcharges.
A justification request may be submitted if a non‑VAT‑liable individual is unable to access documents required for preparing the tax return or verifying the draft return due to reasons beyond their control, and therefore cannot meet the filing deadline. NAV must be notified about the delay by 20 May 2026.
NAV decides on justification requests individually, but it cannot reject the request if the taxpayer has foreign income and the delay is due to the need to examine international treaties, reciprocity or foreign tax law. If a justification request for late filing is submitted, NAV cannot impose a late‑filing penalty until 20 November of the calendar year, unless the taxpayer files earlier and cannot justify the delay.
If the taxpayer has a tax payment obligation and pays late, no late‑payment surcharge will apply for the justified period, provided the delay was caused by an unavoidable external reason (force majeure).
Applications for payment relief may be submitted electronically or by post. Reductions or waivers apply only to overdue and unpaid debts, and for private individuals, financial hardship must be demonstrated. If the individual requests instalment payments or deferral, temporary financial difficulties must be shown.
