Tuition fees for private schools tax deductible
Oct 30, 2025
Many parents decide to send their children to private schools despite the associated costs. This raises the question for families of how these costs should be treated for tax purposes.
Parents can deduct 30% of the school fees paid on their tax return, up to a maximum of €5,000 per child per year. In concrete terms, this means that with annual school fees of €5,000, parents can deduct €1,500 from their taxes, or, conversely, the maximum amount of €5,000 can be claimed if the school fees amount to €16,666 per year.
Privately funded schools or independent schools, such as Waldorf schools or Montessori schools, are eligible for tax deductibility. In some cases,
denominational schools also charge partial tuition fees. Schools in other EU countries and certain international schools are also recognized.
However, the costs for technical colleges and universities are excluded, as no general school qualifications are obtained here. Under certain conditions, however, these can be deducted by the pupils and students themselves.
In addition to the pure tuition fees, certain additional contributions that directly serve to maintain the school can also be taken into account for tax purposes, e.g., donations to the school's support association or contributions to it, construction and maintenance contributions, and contributions to the school's sports and cultural programs.
In addition to the pure school fees, certain additional contributions that directly serve the maintenance of the school can also be taken into account for tax purposes, e.g., donations to the school's support association or contributions to it, construction and maintenance contributions, or investments in learning materials.
However, costs for meals, extracurricular care, or accommodation are excluded. Under certain conditions, childcare costs, e.g., for after-school care, can be claimed separately up to an amount of €6,000, of which 80% is now tax-deductible. Previously, this was two-thirds. The maximum tax saving is therefore €4,800.
Source: Section 10 (1) No. 9 EStG