{"id":15164,"date":"2023-04-17T15:53:08","date_gmt":"2023-04-17T15:53:08","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.accountable.de\/deductions\/buying-studies-works-services\/"},"modified":"2023-04-17T15:53:08","modified_gmt":"2023-04-17T15:53:08","slug":"buying-studies-works-services","status":"publish","type":"deduction","link":"https:\/\/www.accountable.de\/en\/deductions\/buying-studies-works-services\/","title":{"rendered":"Buying studies, works, services"},"content":{"rendered":"\n<p class=\"font-inter text-base leading-relaxed mb-4 first-of-type:mt-0 text-black wp-block-paragraph\">Are you paying a consultant for advice, a contractor for works on your practice or an expert for a market study? Then you\u2019re supporting the growth of your business, and these costs are <strong>tax-deductible as business expenses<\/strong>.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<h2 id=\"which-services-works-and-studies-are-deductible\" class=\"wp-block-heading font-degular scroll-mt-32\">Which services, works and studies are deductible?<\/h2>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"font-inter text-base leading-relaxed mb-4 first-of-type:mt-0 text-black wp-block-paragraph\">Think, for example, of:<\/p>\n\n\n\n<ul class=\"wp-block-list list-disc list-outside ml-0 mb-4 space-y-2\">\n\n<li class=\"font-inter text-base text-black\"><strong>Services<\/strong>: your accountant, a lawyer, a consultant, a marketing agency, a photographer for your website, a freelancer you bring in\u2026<\/li>\n\n\n<li class=\"font-inter text-base text-black\"><strong>Works<\/strong>: the renovation or fitting-out of your office, practice or workshop, electrical or painting works in your professional space, maintenance of your business premises\u2026<\/li>\n\n\n<li class=\"font-inter text-base text-black\"><strong>Studies<\/strong>: a market analysis of the country you want to export to, a feasibility study, a study by an architect or engineer for your business premises\u2026<\/li>\n\n<\/ul>\n\n\n\n<h2 id=\"the-golden-rule-a-clear-professional-link\" class=\"wp-block-heading font-degular scroll-mt-32\">The golden rule: a clear professional link<\/h2>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"font-inter text-base leading-relaxed mb-4 first-of-type:mt-0 text-black wp-block-paragraph\">The cost must have a <strong>clear link with your professional activity<\/strong>. Works in your private garden that your clients never see? That\u2019s a private cost, not a business expense. On the other hand, freshening up the waiting room of your practice or repainting your home office is professional.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"font-inter text-base leading-relaxed mb-4 first-of-type:mt-0 text-black wp-block-paragraph\">For works on a home that you use partly privately and partly professionally, you only deduct the <strong>professional part<\/strong>, for example according to the percentage of your home office. Works that only improve your private part remain entirely private.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"font-inter text-base leading-relaxed mb-4 first-of-type:mt-0 text-black wp-block-paragraph\">\u26a0\ufe0f Don\u2019t raise suspicion with the tax authorities through vague invoices and descriptions. Make sure every cost is backed up by supporting documents and a clear professional purpose.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<h2 id=\"always-ask-for-an-invoice\" class=\"wp-block-heading font-degular scroll-mt-32\">Always ask for an invoice<\/h2>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"font-inter text-base leading-relaxed mb-4 first-of-type:mt-0 text-black wp-block-paragraph\">Have everything invoiced, with your <strong>company name and VAT number<\/strong>. Without a valid invoice you cannot reclaim the VAT, and you\u2019re in a much weaker position in the event of an audit. Also ask for a clear description of the services or works provided on the invoice.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<h2 id=\"what-about-vat-6-or-21\" class=\"wp-block-heading font-degular scroll-mt-32\">What about VAT: 6% or 21%?<\/h2>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"font-inter text-base leading-relaxed mb-4 first-of-type:mt-0 text-black wp-block-paragraph\">Services and studies fall under the standard rate of <strong>21%<\/strong>. For works on immovable property, the rate depends on the building:<\/p>\n\n\n\n<ul class=\"wp-block-list list-disc list-outside ml-0 mb-4 space-y-2\">\n\n<li class=\"font-inter text-base text-black\"><strong>6%<\/strong>: renovation works on a home that is <strong>more than 10 years old<\/strong> and used exclusively or mainly as a private residence (an incidental professional part, such as a home office, is not a problem).<\/li>\n\n\n<li class=\"font-inter text-base text-black\"><strong>21%<\/strong>: new construction, and works on buildings used exclusively or mainly for professional purposes (such as an office or practice).<\/li>\n\n<\/ul>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"font-inter text-base leading-relaxed mb-4 first-of-type:mt-0 text-black wp-block-paragraph\">\ud83d\udca1 Are you subject to VAT and do you file periodic VAT returns? Then the contractor invoices works on immovable property under the <strong>reverse charge<\/strong> mechanism: no VAT appears on the invoice and you account for it yourself through your VAT return. You can immediately deduct the professional part of that VAT in the same return.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<h2 id=\"deduct-or-depreciate\" class=\"wp-block-heading font-degular scroll-mt-32\">Deduct or depreciate?<\/h2>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"font-inter text-base leading-relaxed mb-4 first-of-type:mt-0 text-black wp-block-paragraph\">Services and studies are ordinary business expenses: you deduct them in full in the year itself. Major works, such as a renovation of your practice, are an <strong>investment<\/strong>: you depreciate them over several years, according to the lifespan of the works. <a class=\"font-inter text-purple underline underline-offset-1\" href=\"https:\/\/www.accountable.eu\/en-be\/blog\/amortising-costs-when-how\/\">This article<\/a> explains exactly how depreciation works.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"featured_media":0,"template":"","deduction_tag":[554],"class_list":["post-15164","deduction","type-deduction","status-publish","hentry","deduction_tag-compensation"],"acf":[],"yoast_head":"<!-- This site is optimized with the Yoast SEO plugin v28.5 - https:\/\/yoast.com\/product\/yoast-seo-wordpress\/ -->\n<title>Buying studies, works, services | Accountable<\/title>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"index, follow, max-snippet:-1, max-image-preview:large, max-video-preview:-1\" \/>\n<link rel=\"canonical\" href=\"https:\/\/www.accountable.de\/en\/deductions\/buying-studies-works-services\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:locale\" content=\"en_US\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:type\" content=\"article\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:title\" content=\"Buying studies, works, services | Accountable\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:description\" content=\"Are you paying a consultant for advice, a contractor for works on your practice or an expert for a market study? 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