Both Slovakia and the Czech Republic treat a stock shortage in an e-shop, where the actual quantity of goods is lower than the accounting records, as a tax expense only up to the compensation received. In Slovakia this follows § 21 sec. 2 (e) of Act No. 595/2003 Coll., in the Czech Republic § 25 par. 1 (n) of Act No. 586/1992 Coll. Both countries allow the full loss when the damage results from a natural disaster or an unknown perpetrator confirmed by police, and neither treats natural losses within an economically justified norm as a shortage at all.
What counts as a shortage and a surplus in a stocktake?
For an e-shop everything hinges on the warehouse, so a physical stocktake is a recurring duty in both countries — in Slovakia under Act No. 431/2002 Coll. on accounting, in the Czech Republic under Act No. 563/1991 Coll. You compare the actual quantity of goods against the accounting records, and any difference you cannot support by a record is an inventory difference.
A shortage arises when the actual stock is lower than the recorded stock; a surplus is the opposite, where you physically find more units than you track. Both are common in an e-shop that ships thousands of orders a year, and in both jurisdictions a surplus is booked to income and increases the tax base, while a shortage goes to costs but must still pass the tax test before it can be deducted.
When is a shortage on goods tax deductible?
The core rule is identical in wording and strict in effect: a shortage is deductible only up to the compensation received. If an employee or a carrier reimburses the missing goods, the shortage is deductible up to that amount; anything above the compensation stays non-deductible and is added back to the tax base.
The mechanics are the same, only the currency changes. In Slovakia, if goods worth EUR 800 go missing and the warehouse worker pays EUR 500, then EUR 500 is deductible and EUR 300 is not. In the Czech Republic, if goods worth CZK 20,000 are short and CZK 12,000 is reimbursed, CZK 12,000 is deductible and CZK 8,000 is not. Where no one pays, the whole loss is non-deductible in both systems.
Which exceptions allow the full loss?
Both tax codes carve out losses the entrepreneur did not cause. Slovakia does so in § 19 sec. 3 (g) and the Czech Republic in § 24 par. 2 (l): damage from a natural disaster (flood, fire, hail, windstorm) and damage caused by an unknown perpetrator confirmed by police is deductible in full, even without any compensation.
For an e-shop this matters most in a warehouse break-in or a stolen shipment. In both countries the exception stands or falls on paperwork: a police confirmation for an unknown perpetrator, and evidence of the extent of a natural loss — in the Czech Republic typically an insurer’s or expert’s assessment. Without these documents you fall back to the strict compensation rule.
How are natural losses and retail shrinkage treated?
Not every reduction in stock is a shortage. Both laws state that natural losses arising from the properties of the goods — evaporation, drying out, spillage — and retail shrinkage are not treated as a shortage up to an economically justified norm set by the taxpayer. Losses within that norm are deductible without any compensation.
For an e-shop selling food, cosmetics or fragile goods it is therefore sensible to keep an internal directive with a loss norm grounded in real operating data. The catch is the same on both sides of the border: the norm must be economically defensible, not set arbitrarily high, and anything above it is judged as an ordinary shortage under the compensation rule.
How should unsellable and damaged goods be written off?
A separate issue for every e-shop is stock that simply cannot be sold — seasonal leftovers, expired items, goods damaged in the warehouse. If you genuinely destroy or dispose of such goods, both systems expect a disposal record stating the reason, date, quantity and method; without it the authority may treat the write-off as an unrecognised shortage.
In accounting terms a temporary drop in value is handled by a provision, a permanent loss by a write-off. As long as the disposal is properly documented and you can show the goods could not be sold, the write-off is defensible in both Slovakia and the Czech Republic. Linking the stocktake to your returns and complaints records keeps the warehouse numbers and the tax position aligned.
How can you prevent shortages in an e-shop warehouse?
The cheapest shortage is the one that never happens, and the playbook is the same regardless of jurisdiction. A warehouse system connected to the e-shop, rolling partial stocktakes instead of a single annual count, and clear rules for receiving and dispatch all shorten the gap between a loss and its explanation.
Equally important is document discipline — an inventory directive, a loss norm and a template disposal record save a great deal of explaining during an audit. You will never eliminate shortages entirely, but with solid records you turn them into a manageable line rather than an unpleasant non-deductible cost.
Are you running a stocktake for your e-shop warehouse and unsure which shortages you may deduct or how to document a write-off of unsellable goods? We will review your stock records, set the loss norm and documentation and prepare a tax-defensible solution.
FAQ
Is a stock shortage in an e-shop tax deductible?
In both Slovakia (§ 21 sec. 2 (e) of Act No. 595/2003 Coll.) and the Czech Republic (§ 25 par. 1 (n) of Act No. 586/1992 Coll.) a shortage is deductible only up to the compensation received. Anything above the compensation is non-deductible and added back to the tax base. The exception is damage from a natural disaster or an unknown perpetrator confirmed by police, which is deductible in full.
How are natural stock losses taxed?
Natural losses arising from the properties of the goods and retail shrinkage are not treated as a shortage up to an economically justified norm set by the taxpayer, and are deductible without any compensation. The rule is essentially the same in Slovakia and the Czech Republic. The norm must be economically defensible and based on real operating data, and any loss above it is judged as an ordinary shortage.
How do you write off unsellable or damaged goods?
In both countries you need a disposal record stating the reason, date, quantity and method of disposal. A temporary drop in value is handled by a provision, a permanent loss by a write-off. If you can show the goods genuinely could not be sold and were disposed of, the write-off is tax-defensible in Slovakia and the Czech Republic alike.