VAT in academies: when teaching is exempt and how to invoice it

It is one of the most frequent questions when opening an academy, and one of those that generate the most mistakes: does teaching carry VAT or not? The short answer is that a great deal of teaching is exempt, but not all of it, and that the boundary depends more on what is taught than on what the centre is called.

This article summarises the criteria in the Spanish VAT Act and of the Directorate-General for Taxes (DGT) for the most common cases. It does not replace a review by your adviser: the case law is broad, and there are nuances that depend on each activity.

The general rule: article 20.One.9 of the VAT Act

Act 37/1992 exempts, among other things, school, university, and postgraduate education, language teaching, and vocational training and retraining, when they are provided by public-law bodies or by private entities authorised to carry out those activities.

The exemption requires two things:

• What is taught: subjects included in some curriculum of the Spanish education system, whether national or regional.
• Who teaches it: a public body or an authorised private entity.

The second requirement is the one that raises the most doubts. The DGT, following the case law of the Court of Justice of the European Union, has been interpreting authorisation according to the nature of the activity: what is decisive is that the teaching corresponds to subjects in the curricula, more than the existence of a specific formal procedure. Binding ruling V0965-12, of 7 May 2012, on language teaching, records this.

Case by case

• Language academies: the DGT has considered that language teaching is included in the curricula of the education system, so the exemption can generally be applied.
• School tutoring and support classes: when the classes cover curriculum subjects, such as mathematics, language, or physics in compulsory secondary education (ESO) or Bachillerato, they fit the criterion of subjects included in curricula. This is the most common situation in tutoring academies, although it is worth confirming with your adviser.
• Music and dance: there are regulated artistic studies in music and dance, so the exemption can apply when the content corresponds to those studies. Activities with a more recreational character raise more doubts.
• Sport and leisure activities: they are not usually treated as teaching included in curricula, and they are taxed at the applicable rate.
• Online training: services provided electronically in an automated way are not covered by this exemption. Live online training with a teacher has a different treatment, and it is an area where the specific case is worth reviewing.
• Training for companies: vocational training and retraining can also be exempt. If you also manage subsidised training, we explain it in FUNDAE subsidies for academies.

An academy or private lessons: they are not the same

The Act has a different exemption, in article 20.One.10, for private lessons given by a natural person on subjects included in the curricula. The DGT recalled its requirements in ruling V2630-25, of 23 December 2025: that the lessons are given by a natural person and that they cover subjects in some curriculum of the education system.

That exemption does not apply when the activity requires registration under the business tariffs of the tax on economic activities. An academy organised as a business, with premises, staff, and several groups, is analysed under article 20.One.9, not under 20.One.10.

What the exemption covers and what it does not

The exemption reaches teaching and some directly related services provided by the centre itself. But not everything an academy charges for is teaching:

• Materials, books, or uniforms sold by the academy: supplies of goods are usually taxed separately, at their own rate.
• Recreational activities or camps with no curricular content: they can be taxable even if an academy organises them.
• Letting space to third parties: that is another activity, with its own treatment.

If the academy mixes exempt and non-exempt items, each should appear on its own line, with its own treatment.

How to invoice exempt teaching

An exempt transaction is not taken out of the system: formal duties remain.

• When to issue an invoice: in many cases of exempt teaching, invoicing rules do not require one to be issued to private individuals, but there are cases in which they do, for example when the client is a company, and many academies issue one anyway for every family.
• What it must state: when it is issued, the invoice must indicate that the transaction is exempt and the reason, for example with a mention such as "Transaction exempt from VAT under article 20.One.9 of Act 37/1992".
• Invoicing software: if invoices are issued with computer software, it must comply with the invoicing-systems regulation (Verifactu), whether or not the transactions are exempt. We explain it in the Verifactu guide for schools.

What happens to the VAT on your purchases

The other side of the exemption: an academy that only provides exempt teaching does not charge VAT, but it also cannot deduct the VAT it pays on its purchases, such as the rent on the premises, the furniture, or the software. That input VAT becomes another cost.

If the academy combines exempt and taxable activities, such as exempt classes and the sale of materials or leisure activities, it will have to apply the pro-rata rule to deduct only the share that corresponds to the taxable activities. That is another reason to separate the items clearly from the first receipt.

Before you decide: three checks

1. List your services and, for each one, whether it corresponds to subjects in some curriculum.
2. Separate what is not teaching: materials, leisure, lettings.
3. Where there is a reasonable doubt, check with your adviser or request a binding ruling from the DGT. Applying an exemption that does not apply can mean regularising the VAT of several years, with surcharges.

Conclusion

Most language and school-tutoring academies can apply the VAT exemption, because they teach subjects included in the curricula. The most common mistakes are in the details: mixing teaching and materials on the same receipt, forgetting the mention on the invoice, or not planning for the fact that VAT on purchases is not deductible.

If you want to see how to set up fees, exempt and non-exempt items, and invoices with the right mention on a single platform, see Edena for academies or book a demo.