Corporate Scholarships for Students and Researchers: Tax Deductions from 2026

The State Tax Inspectorate (VMI) has published an official commentary (Letter No. (18.10-31-1 Mr) RM-51420) explaining the application of amendments to Article 17(2) and the newly added Article 30-3 of the Law on Corporate Income Tax (CIT). Enacted by Law No. XV-285, these rules take effect on January 1, 2026, and apply to the calculation and declaration of CIT and advance CIT for the 2026 tax year and subsequent periods.

Under the new provisions, corporate scholarships directly disbursed to eligible students will qualify as limited deductible expenses. Deductions apply when the scholarship is paid to students enrolled in higher education institutions within the European Economic Area (EEA) or in countries maintaining a double taxation treaty (DTT) with Lithuania. The study program must strictly belong to STEM disciplines—mathematics, life sciences, engineering, or technology—and the acquired qualification must directly correlate with the company's business activities.

The deductible amount is capped at 2,500 EUR per student per tax year. Any scholarship payments exceeding this threshold in a given tax period constitute non-deductible expenses for CIT purposes. The deduction mechanism also applies to scholarships awarded to researchers engaged in research and experimental development (R&D) projects.

To qualify for the deduction, a written tripartite agreement must be signed by the company, the academic institution, and the student or researcher. Legal restrictions explicitly prohibit scholarships to related parties: recipients cannot hold more than 10 percent of the company's shares, cannot be company employees, and cannot be immediate family members (spouse, child, adopted child) of employees or qualifying shareholders. Scholarships cannot serve as disguised remuneration or compensation for past, current, or future work or services.

Companies planning to fund academic talent will need separate bookkeeping tracking for eligible and excess scholarship payments. Updated PLN204 annual corporate tax return forms and reporting lines for the 2026 tax period are currently in development by the tax authorities.