Compensation for children's education starts in March, how will the tax recalculation scheme work?

2026-01-12 08:00:00, Ekonomi CNA

Compensation for children's education starts in March, how will the tax

From March 2026, all families with dependent children under the age of 18 will benefit from compensation.

For the first time, starting this year, one of the parents will have 48 thousand lek for childcare expenses and 100 thousand lek for education deducted from their gross annual income for 2025, when they complete the Personal Income Declaration in March. The compensation will be received from the recalculation of the tax paid in 2025.

So the compensation measure will not be fixed at 48 thousand lek per year or 100 thousand lek per year. These values ??provided for in the new law "On Income Tax" are the expenses that will be deducted from the gross annual income of 2025.

The deduction of expenses in the amount of 48 thousand lek per year will be calculated for each child under the age of 18, regardless of the level of income that the parents have generated during 2025. Meanwhile, the expense of 100 thousand lek per year will be deducted for individuals with income up to the limit of 1.2 million lek per year.

In a married couple, the member with the highest annual income is entitled to deduct expenses for dependent children and for education, if the income limit is met. Therefore, the deduction of expenses for children from the annual taxable base is not enjoyed by both parents of dependent children, but only by the one with the highest declared income.

For individual beneficiaries, income tax from salary has been paid monthly for 2025, but the deduction of expenses for children from the total annual income earned from employment will be made in March 2026 through the completion of the Annual Income Declaration (DIVA).

After deducting expenses, the taxable base, i.e. the total gross income, will decrease, and consequently the recalculated tax will be lower. Meanwhile, during 2025, the tax paid is higher than the recalculated tax. The difference between the tax paid in 2025 and the recalculated tax is the compensation that individuals will benefit from for their children's education.

According to the example of the General Directorate of Taxes, if an individual X with a monthly income of 70 thousand lek or an annual income of 840 thousand lek for 2025 has paid tax of 5,200 lek per month or annual tax of 62,400 lek.

The individual has two dependent children under the age of 18 and their annual income does not exceed 1.2 million lek, for which they will benefit from an expense deduction of 48 thousand lek for each child and a tax amount of 100 thousand lek per year for their education.

After deducting expenses from the total income for 2025, the new tax for this individual is calculated at the value of 29,120 lek. But in the meantime, individual X for 2025 had paid an annual tax of 62,400 lek. This paid obligation will be deducted from the new tax calculated at the value of 29,120. The difference of 33.2 thousand lek is the amount that he is entitled to request for reimbursement within 3 months, after completing the DIVA.

So, if the tax paid during 2025 turns out to be higher than the tax calculated after deducting expenses in DIVA, which will be completed by March 31, 2026, the General Directorate of Taxes (DPT) previously explained to Monitor that in this case the individual has the right to request a refund of the money, i.e. its return, within 3 months.

For both cases, such as the benefit of the deduction for child-rearing expenses and the fixed education expense (the latter are only available to individuals with an annual income of up to 1,200,000 lek), documentation must be maintained, including the family certificate for dependent children, contracts with educational institutions, including payments for foreign languages.

How will compensation be obtained?

Through recalculation of the tax paid for 2025.

To do this, individuals must complete the Annual Income Declaration (DIVA) by March 31, 2026.

Types of discounts

48,000 lek per child per year – each child benefits, regardless of the parents' income level.

100,000 lek per child per year – benefits only if the individual's income does not exceed 1.2 million lek per year.

Rules for married couples

The deduction for child expenses belongs to the parent with the highest income.

So, both spouses cannot divide it equally, unless the income is equal.

How does compensation work?

During 2025, income tax was paid monthly from salary.

In March 2026, the tax is calculated again including deductions for children.