Donate 1+1% of your Hungarian personal income tax to support a good cause
Personal income tax in Hungary
Personal income tax in Hungary is 15% of your gross salary or your dividends if you are a business owner. Normally, Parliament will decide how your taxes will be spent, and you can influence that decision only indirectly: through your elected representatives, and through the elections held every 4 years. Additionally, Hungary has a unique tradition: you can make a direct decision on how 1+1% of your personal income tax will be used. When you file your yearly tax returns, you will have the option to redirect 1% of your personal income tax to a church, and another 1% to an NGO.
Since these organizations will receive money from you without providing anything directly in exchange, redirecting your 1% is considered a donation. However, since both churches and NGOs work for the good of the community, you do get something in exchange through the improvement you will be able to see in your community, whether that means better public health, improved elder care, or less strays on the streets.
This donation costs you nothing, since you have already paid your personal income tax anyway. If you do not indicate how you want to spend your 1+1%, two things might happen:
- If you donated your personal income tax last year, the same organizations will receive it this year automatically.
- If you did not make this donation in previous years, your taxes will simply be assigned to the common government budget.
How to donate 1+1% of your taxes?
You can make the donation while you are filing your personal income tax returns. If you submit the form online at https://eszja.nav.gov.hu/, you will find an additional set of forms next to the main tax returns. You will need to fill in two forms, one for churches and one for NGOs. If you are filing on paper, you will simply have two additional forms for this in the package you receive.
When you file online, you can search the database of eligible organizations right on the form, or you can look up organizations online in advance. If you file on paper, it is best to look up the tax number of organizations you want to support in advance. Over the next two months, you will see many advertisements from organizations asking for your 1% – on billboards, in newspapers, and on the internet. Think about which causes you want to support, and make a note of the tax numbers.
Need suggestions?
Most churches and NGOs promote some kind of agenda and do some kind of charity work. If you are not sure where to donate, consider what kind of causes are important to you, and find some charities based on that. You can also try and find local charities where you live. Helpers also organizes a charity drive every year, where our colleagues select NGOs to support. For even more ideas, you can browse the list of organizations that received the most support last year – check out the full list on the below link, or just the Top 10 right here.
Non-Governmental Organizations
From taxes paid for 2024, more than HUF 20.2 billion (ca. EUR 51.5 million) was redirected to 30,800 NGOs by more than 1.8 million taxpayers in Hungary. The 10 most popular recipients were as follows:
| Name | Taxes donated (HUF) | Number of donors |
| Telex a Szabad Sajtóért Közhasznú Alapítvány (Foundation for press freedom) | 580,563,356 | 39,812 |
| Partizán Rendszerkritikus Tartalomelőállításért Alapítvány (Foundation for creating content scrutinizing the regime) | 471,852,992 | 38,383 |
| Országos Mentőszolgálat Alapítvány (Foundation for the National Ambulance Service) | 383,699,256 | 36,073 |
| Heim Pál Gyermekkórház Fejlesztéséért Alapítvány (Foundation for the development of Heim Pál Children’s Hospital) | 373,707,533 | 32,510 |
| Bethesda Kórház Alapítvány (Foundation for the development of Bethesda Children’s Hospital) | 260,299,312 | 21,717 |
| Daganatos.hu Alapítvány (Foundation for supporting children who have cancer) | 255,854,045 | 28,864 |
| Bátor Tábor Alapítvány (Foundation supporting the therapeutic recreation of chronically ill children and children with cancer) | 250,751,118 | 21,318 |
| Szent Márton Gyermekmentő Szolgálat Közhasznú Alapítvány (Foundation supporting an ambulance service specialized in helping children) | 136,908,672 | 13,033 |
| Magyar Gyermekmentő Alapítvány (Foundation for the Children’s Ambulance Service) | 129,816,330 | 11,806 |
| Kutya-segélyszolgálat Alapítvány (Foundation supporting injured or chronically ill shelter dogs) | 120,176,672 | 14,066 |
Churches
More precisely, this category should be called “organizations with a technical tax number”. Churches belong here, but also the Hungarian Genius Program, a government agency that is supposed to coordinate talent support programs around Hungary.
From taxes paid for 2024, almost HUF 19 billion (almost EUR 48.5 million) was redirected to almost 180 churches by more than 1.8 million taxpayers, and another HUF 3 billion (almost EUR 7.7 million) to the Hungarian Genius Program by an additional 300,000 taxpayers. The 10 most popular recipients were as follows:
| Name | Taxes donated (HUF) | Number of donors |
| Magyar Katolikus Egyház (Catholic Church in Hungary) | 7,969,512,815 | 785,599 |
| Magyarországi Református Egyház (Reformed Church in Hungary) | 3,440,546,298 | 338,289 |
| Magyarországi Evangéliumi Testvérközösség (Hungarian Evangelical Fellowship) | 1,399,174,955 | 113,661 |
| Magyarországi Krisna-tudatú Hívők Közössége (Hungarian Society for Krishna Consciousness) | 1,119,215,709 | 102,544 |
| Magyarországi Evangélikus Egyház (Evangelical-Lutheran Church in Hungary) | 1,080,864,387 | 98,281 |
| Magyarországi Baptista Egyház (Baptist Church of Hungary) | 638,914,701 | 58,573 |
| A Tan Kapuja Buddhista Egyház (Dharma Gate Buddhist Church) | 455,954,094 | 39,629 |
| Gyémánt Út Buddhista Közösség (Diamond Way Buddhist Community) | 360,356,612 | 32,691 |
| Hit Gyülekezete (Faith Church) | 221,904,834 | 33,224 |
| Magyarországi Zsidó Hitközségek Szövetsége (Federation of Hungarian Jewish Communities) | 181,128,156 | 13,196 |
Make the most of your Hungarian tax residency
Obviously, all this will be relevant to you only if you pay personal income tax in Hungary. You will have nothing to redirect if you are not a tax resident, or if you do not pay personal income tax because you are eligible for tax benefits.
If you pay taxes here, this is a unique opportunity to make a difference in your community.
Make a choice, and submit your 1+1% donation forms by May 20, 2026.
About Helpers Hungary
Helpers supports international clients in Hungary, primarily with services relates to business setup and residency application. At the same time, our mission is to make navigating Hungarian bureaucracy easier for everyone living, working, and doing business in Hungary, and we also regularly engage in charity projects.
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