Zvizdić: Support for businessmen's request to pay VAT on the last day of the month

Regarding the announced amendments to the VAT Law, the adoption of which is expected in the coming period by the Management Board of the Indirect Taxation Authority of BiH, after which it will be sent for consideration to the Council of Ministers of BiH, I expect that, along with accompanying expert opinions and analyses, the request of a large number of businessmen in BiH to postpone the deadline for VAT payment to the last day of the month, as well as to reduce the daily default interest rate, will be accepted and incorporated, it was announced from the office of Prime Minister Denis Zvizdić.

- I support such requests from business associations and chambers of crafts; they are justified and will certainly lead to an improvement in the business environment in BiH, as postponing the VAT payment deadline will improve the liquidity of companies, and reducing the default interest rate will significantly reduce costs and facilitate business. At the same time, by postponing the VAT payment deadline to the last day of the month, tax legislation will be harmonized with the provision on the deadline for fulfilling monetary obligations between entrepreneurs in monetary transactions.

In addition to extending the deadline for VAT payment and reducing default interest, as a measure to support the development of the business sector, in the way provided for by the reform agenda, I expect the Indirect Taxation Authority to act in accordance with the defined guidelines of the Council of Ministers of BiH as soon as possible, and to create the necessary conditions for the introduction of electronic payment of VAT and direct taxes, which will reduce the burden on resources and save time for businessmen in fulfilling their obligations.

If we add to this the amendments, i.e., an increase in the threshold for entering the VAT system, harmonization with EU legislation, as well as the aforementioned introduction of an e-payment system, then the amendments to the VAT Law will have a real and effective goal, which will mean understanding the needs of businessmen, in terms of facilitating their business, further development and new investments, and ultimately, most importantly, new employment - stated in Zvizdić's announcement.

Otherwise, a major proponent and initiator of the amendments to the VAT Law is the SDP BiH Member of Parliament Saša Magazinović. Thus, the amendments were presented in cooperation with the Kult Institute, in a way that introduces a system of VAT payment based on collected, rather than issued, invoices, which was rejected once by the Management Board of the Indirect Taxation Authority with a brief and contradictory explanation that the proposed system is unacceptable.

In an attempt to explain that the proposed amendment to the VAT law, supported by over 30,000 businessmen, is complicated to implement, they did not explain how it is not complicated and how such a VAT collection system functions in most EU member states and in countries in the region.