In Two Months, FBiH Government Paid 20 Million BAM in Minimum Wage Subsidies; Will Run Out of Money in the Second Half of the Year!

(Patria) - The Federal Ministry of Development, Entrepreneurship and Crafts of the FBiH Government has submitted to the Economic and Social Council for the territory of FBiH, which is meeting today, data on paid subsidies for part of contributions following the increase in the minimum wage from 619 to 1,000 BAM from January 2025, based on the Decree on financial aid measures for private employers, crafts and other independent activities in the Federation of BiH with the aim of maintaining existing jobs for 2025.

According to data received by ESV members from Minister Vojin Mijatović, which Patria also had insight into, 19,865,300 BAM was spent on subsidies in the first two months of 2025, out of the planned 100 million BAM for the entire 2025.

The first subsidies were paid in March for January, and in mid-April for February.

For January, 11,886 legal and natural persons covering 61,144 workers met the conditions. 8,134,450 BAM was spent on these subsidies. Subsequently, objections were accepted, and an additional 3,044 legal entities with 16,976 workers qualified, for which an additional 2,256,150 BAM was paid. The total amount of subsidies for January is 10,390,600 BAM.

Regarding subsidies for February, 13,697 legal and natural persons met the conditions, covering 71,011 workers, which is less than in January. A total of 9,474,700 BAM was allocated for subsidies in February.

Almost 20 million BAM paid in first two months out of planned 100 for the entire year

If subsidy payments continue at this pace, the FBiH Government will run out of money by mid-year and will need to secure additional funds. On the other hand, according to data from the FBiH Tax Administration, there has been an increase in contribution payments; at the end of February alone, 70 million BAM more was paid than in January, and the growth continued in March.

The allocation of financial aid refers to the refund of the already paid part of contributions for employed workers for the period from January 1 to December 31, 2025. The goal of the financial aid allocation is the sustainability of beneficiaries, preservation of existing jobs, and ensuring liquidity support for this period, as previously announced by the FBiH Government.

The Government specified the conditions that employers and craftsmen must meet to qualify for the subsidy of part of the contributions, and coefficients for calculating financial aid were also determined, the amount of which is calculated by multiplying the unit value of the coefficient (50, 100, 150 and 300 BAM) by the number of employed workers as of November 30, 2024, depending on the salary they had before the minimum wage increase to 1,000 BAM.

The coefficient of 50 BAM applies to all workers for whom contributions were paid on a net salary from 800.01 to 999.00 BAM as of November 30, 2024.

The coefficient of 100 BAM applies to all workers for whom contributions were paid on a net salary from 700.01 to 800 BAM.

The coefficient of 150 BAM applies to workers whose net salary as of November 30, 2024, was from 620.01 to 700 BAM.

And the highest coefficient of 300 BAM applies to workers whose employer paid a salary up to a net of 620 BAM.

At the same time, according to data from the FBiH Tax Administration for the first three months of 2025, the number of employed persons decreased by 8,649. The largest decline was recorded in three cantons – Sarajevo, Tuzla and Zenica-Doboj.

The Economic and Social Council will today also analyze problems in the trade sector following the introduction of a non-working Sunday, as well as the continuation of the fiscal reform initiated by the FBiH Government through amendments to the Law on Contributions. From July 1, the contribution rate will be reduced by 13.25 percent, which was borne by employers.