Chaos at the FBiH Tax Administration: Unprepared for e-signatures, yet taking over fiscalization

By: A. Čorbo-Zećo

It is the beginning of 2026 when companies submit balance sheets and tax returns, but this year, as far as the FBiH Tax Administration is concerned, everything is going with difficulty.

The Tax Administration of the Federation of Bosnia and Herzegovina was not ready for the seamless and uninterrupted implementation of electronic tax return submission using a qualified electronic signature (QES). The Rulebook on the Method of Submitting Tax Returns, adopted back in 2024, stipulated that the new practice would start applying from the beginning of 2025. However, the deadline has already been extended once – to January 5, 2026.

Even after more than a year since the adoption of the Rulebook, the FBiH Tax Administration has not managed to implement adequate software solutions that would enable uninterrupted electronic signing of returns. The fact that the possibility of using qualified electronic signatures issued by the Indirect Taxation Authority of Bosnia and Herzegovina (UIO BiH), which most taxpayers already possessed and used in other procedures, was not considered at all during the system planning is particularly concerning.

Instead, taxpayers are being forced to use signatures from specific providers, such as HALCOM or Post, with the number of users of Post's QES being negligible. Such an approach not only creates additional costs and administrative obstacles for entrepreneurs and accountants but also indicates a serious lack of systemic planning and coordination among institutions.

Precisely because of these difficulties, employees of the Tax Administration have received notification that they will still accept returns in written form.

This situation represents a clear example of chaos within the FBiH Tax Administration, which is simultaneously expected to lead one of the most demanding reform processes – the implementation of the Law on Fiscalization of Financial Transactions.

If an institution is unable to implement the electronic signing of tax returns without delays, the question of its readiness to implement a significantly more complex fiscalization system is justifiably raised.