A private gym in Slovakia needs three formal steps: free trade no. 67, house rules (prevádzkový poriadok) submitted to the regional public health authority (RÚVZ) by the day you open, and a decision with your accountant on DPH. Customers then book and pay online and get their door code by SMS. Online payments made before the visit stay outside eKasa. With Sparekey, setup is €990 one-off and Operations is €26 a month. It is the same system and gateway our Czech gyms run on.
The trade and who may train clients
Operating a gym is free trade no. 67, “Prevádzkovanie kultúrnych, spoločenských, zábavných, športových zariadení a zariadení slúžiacich na regeneráciu a rekondíciu”. It needs no proof of qualification. You notify it at the single contact point (JKM) of the district office, which can also pass on your tax and health insurance registration. Filed electronically with an electronic signature, it costs nothing. On paper, the fee is €7.
Training clients is not a trade at all in Slovakia. Trainers are sports professionals under the Sport Act and need an entry in the register of natural persons in sport. If you also train your own clients, ask the JKM which route applies. In Sparekey, you block your training hours so nobody else can book them.
As a sole trader (živnostník) you start without capital. An s.r.o. needs €5,000 registered capital and limits your liability.
Premises, marking and the RÚVZ
The gym is a prevádzkareň (business premises). If you open it after your trade licence was issued, notify the trade office within 15 days. Mark the premises by the day you open with your business name, address and opening hours for consumers. Before you sign a lease, check that the approved use of the space (kolaudácia) covers a gym.
A sports facility does not need the RÚVZ decision that most premises need. Instead, you notify the RÚVZ in writing at the latest on the day you open, and you submit your house rules with the notification. The rules must cover:
- your details and the services you offer, including what is not allowed
- operating conditions and health protection
- instructions and bans for visitors, posted where they can see them
- how and how often you clean and disinfect
The same decree sets requirements for lighting, ventilation, changing rooms and toilets. Ask your RÚVZ how they apply to a small room before you commit to a space. A sauna is a separate category with its own rules. Our house rules template adds what an unstaffed gym needs on top: who may enter on a booking, what to do after an injury and how to report a fault.
DPH (VAT)
Admission to fitness centres is on the list of services at the reduced rate of 5%. Personal training and sauna are at 23%. Whether renting the whole gym for an hour counts as admission or as renting a space is a classification question, so ask your tax adviser before you set prices.
You register for DPH from 1 January after a year with turnover above €50,000, or immediately with the sale that takes you over €62,500 within a year. Below that you charge no DPH.
Payments: GoPay with Slovak bank buttons
In Slovakia we set up GoPay, the same gateway that runs our Czech gyms. Customers pay by card, Apple Pay, Google Pay, a QR code or a Slovak bank button such as TatraPay, VÚB, SporoPay or Poštová banka. The GoPay account is in your name, payouts arrive in euros on your Slovak account, and setting it up is included in setup. GoPay checks your business before activation, so have your website with terms, contact details and prices ready early.
eKasa: online payments stay outside
eKasa, the Slovak electronic cash register, records payments received at the point of sale. A card payment in person counts the same as cash. According to the tax administration (Finančná správa), a cashless payment made online is not received at the point of sale, so it does not go through eKasa.
For a gym where customers book and pay online before the visit, you usually need no eKasa. If you put a card terminal, a cash box or vouchers in the gym, those payments do.
Invoices and e-invoicing from 2027
Sparekey issues an invoice for every paid booking and exports a CSV file for your accountant. We set the numbering, the DPH rate and your details during setup.
From 1 January 2027, VAT payers must send invoices to other businesses as structured e-invoices through a certified provider. Invoices to consumers are not affected, and most gym customers are consumers. If a company books your gym and you are a VAT payer, agree with your accountant how that invoice is delivered. Every business must also be able to receive e-invoices from 2027.
If you run an s.r.o., the transaction tax on outgoing payments applies to your company account. Payments customers make to you are not taxed on your side.
Door access
Our recommendation is a 2N keypad with a maglock, installed by a professional door installer. It is built for unattended use and is hard to tamper with. Nuki is the cheaper option that fits onto your existing lock. Its weakness is that customers can tamper with it more easily. The Sparekey price is the same for both.
The code is a time-limited PIN valid for the booked time only, sent by SMS right after booking. A stored backup code covers internet outages. More doors or a shared building entrance are solved during setup at no extra cost. See 2N keypad and maglock.
Cameras and consumer rules
A camera falls under the GDPR. The Slovak data protection authority (Úrad na ochranu osobných údajov) expects a warning sign with your details and the purpose before people enter the recorded area, a record of processing and a short retention period. Keep changing rooms and toilets out of view. See cameras in an unstaffed gym.
A consumer cannot withdraw from a leisure service booked for a precise time, so the 14-day withdrawal right does not apply to slots. Your terms decide cancellations. In Sparekey, customers move their own booking up to 24 hours ahead.
What Sparekey costs in Slovakia
| Item | Price |
|---|---|
| Setup (one-off) | €990 |
| Operations (hosting, maintenance and SMS sender name) | €26 / month |
| Door-code SMS | €0.05 per message |
No VAT is added, because Sparekey is not VAT-registered. You pay in euros by bank transfer. Setup includes GoPay, Slovak booking pages and invoices. See pricing and how setup works.
FAQ
Do I need RÚVZ approval to open a gym in Slovakia?
Not a decision on putting the premises into operation. You notify the RÚVZ in writing by the day you open and submit your house rules with it.
Do I need eKasa if customers pay online?
Usually not. Online payments before the visit are not received at the point of sale. Cash, a card terminal or vouchers at the gym go through eKasa.
Which DPH rate applies to a private gym?
Admission to fitness centres is at 5%, training and sauna at 23%. Whether hourly rental of the whole gym counts as admission is for your tax adviser to confirm.