Education expenses (study costs) are deductible for income tax purposes, provided they relate to the costs of a course or study programme undertaken to earn income from work and self-employment (Box 1).
Hobby/pastime
The costs of a course undertaken for the purposes of a hobby or pastime cannot be deducted as educational expenses. This also applies to courses undertaken solely out of personal (academic) interest, to broaden general knowledge or for personal development. Even if the course undertaken proves beneficial in the course of one’s work, the costs cannot be deducted as educational expenses.
The Arnhem-Leeuwarden Court of Appeal recently considered this issue and ruled that the costs of a training course aimed at behavioural change (learning to cope with stress and anger) were not eligible for deduction. The same applied to a training course to become a Body & Mind coach. In both cases, the Court considered the training courses to be too general and personal in nature for their costs to be eligible for deduction as training expenses, with the particular circumstance that, in the case of the Body & Mind coach training course, it was established in advance that the person concerned would not be admitted as a coach.
Training costs
Only the following study-related expenses are tax-deductible:
– tuition fees, course fees, college fees, examination fees;
– expenditure on compulsory learning materials and personal protective equipment;
– costs associated with completing the procedure for the recognition of prior learning (RPL);
– PhD costs (namely the costs of publishing the thesis and the costs of the attire required for the PhD ceremony).
Teaching materials are: items of equipment designed to impart study-related knowledge and skills, excluding computer hardware and associated peripherals.
Personal protective equipment are: study-related items are intended to prevent personal injury or damage to clothing.
Burdening costs
To be eligible for deduction as education expenses, the costs must be borne by the person concerned. Where costs are reimbursed (tax-free), for example by the employer, no deduction is available. If education costs are reimbursed in a year later than the one in which they were deducted, this results in negative education expenses.
For individuals who are (or may be) eligible for student finance, the deduction of education expenses does not apply. See also our article Study cost deduction further restricted.
Threshold/maximum
For the deduction of training expenses, a non-income-related threshold of € 250. Training expenses are deductible only to the extent that the total exceeds the threshold. Outside the standard period of study, a maximum amount of training expenses is deductible € 15.000.
Only the costs of a course or training programme undertaken by the taxpayer themselves are deductible. Education costs paid on their behalf by a tax partner may also be deducted by the taxpayer as education expenses. The threshold and maximum limit mentioned above apply separately to each tax partner.