On April 2, 2020, National Council of the Slovak Republic approved extraordinary financial measures in relation to crisis due to COVID-19. The measures came into effect by their publication in Collection of Laws on April 4, 2020.
The adopted measures are to be applied during period from March 12, 2020, when the Government of the Slovak Republic declared emergency situation in relation to public health risks, until the end of the calendar month in which the government abrogates the emergency situation and until the expiry of the latest deadline according to the law (the pandemics period). According to the recent development of economic, social or healthcare situation, the Government of the Slovak Republic may maintain in force certain measures even after some time after the end of the emergency situation.
We would like to draw your attention to the following officially approved measures in the area of taxation and accounting obligation in Slovakia:
Tax administration
1. The taxpayer who is not obliged to communicate with Financial Administration using electronic means (system portal of Financial Administration) and the submitted document is not in prescribed structural form (e.g. Tax Return), can submit document using different electronic mean, e.g. e-mail during pandemic.
2. If the taxpayer does not perform specific action (e.g. Tax Appeal filing, filing of the documents with the tax administrator) during the pandemic within the statutory period or the required period by the tax administrator, he/she will be legally remitted for the missing deadline on condition, that he will make the specific action by the end of the calendar month following the of the pandemic period at the latest. This does not apply to the Tax Return submission and the payment of the tax.
3. For delivery of documents to the taxpayer, conditions of a post office shall be followed. At the same time, delivery fiction is being adopted and will occur on the last day of the period in which the consignment was stored in the post office.
4. During the pandemic period, the tax inspection which began before the start of the pandemic period, can be suspended at the request of the taxpayer. The taxpayer may submit the request for suspension also by telephone with the tax administrator who will draft the official record.
If the tax inspection is initiated during the pandemic period, the period for its execution shall be interrupted on the day following the day of its commencement until the end of the pandemic period. During the tax inspection of the eligibility of the excessive VAT deduction, the tax administrator may issue a partial protocol in order to refund the excess tax or its part to taxpayer during this difficult economic situation if they know with certainty that it legitimately belongs to the taxpayer.
5. Taxpayers who will not pay the tax during the pandemic period or there will be reasons for cancellation of the VAT registration during the pandemic period, will not appear in the lists published by financial directorate. The list of the deleted VAT payers will not be updated during the pandemic as well.
6. During the pandemic period, the tax proceeding which started before the pandemic period is interrupted upon the request of the taxpayer. The request may be submitted even via a phone agreement with the tax administrator who will draft the official record. The tax proceeding starting during the pandemic is interrupted as well. This does not apply in the case when it is decided to refund tax overpayment or the excess tax.
7. The period for the expiry of the right to levy tax and the period for the recovery of the tax is interrupted during the pandemic as well.
8. The tax arrears of a taxpayer during the pandemic period are considered as if he had no tax arrears in case it is paid by the end of the calendar month following the end of the pandemic period.
9. Pending tax executions are postponed during the pandemic period.
10. Taxpayers will not be penalized for the breach of the obligation to file a supplementary income tax return during the pandemic period, if they fulfil this obligation by the end of the calendar month following the end of the pandemic period.
11. The taxpayer will not be penalized with the interest on late payment, if he additionally, i.e. by the end of the calendar month following the end of the pandemic period, makes payment in the specified amount or in the amount specified in the decision of the tax administrator of income tax or collected tax advance, withhold tax or withold amount for tax security, which became payable during the pandemic period.
Import of goods
12. The Ministry of interior of the Slovak Republic is designated as the competent authority to approve charitable and philanthropic organisations which will be entitled to import goods with the exemption from the custom duties and VAT.
Vehicle tax
13. The deadline for submitting the vehicle tax return and due date of the tax payment, which has not expired before the start of the pandemic period or has begun to run during the pandemic (e.g. the cases of taxpayers who are dissolved without liquidation, with liquidation, etc.) shall be deemed to have been met if the tax return is submitted and the tax is paid by the end of the calendar month following the end of the pandemic period.
Administrative fees
14. Administrative fee shall not be paid for submissions that are subject to the administrative fee, if there is proven direct causal coherence between the act and the procedure of the administrative authority with the pandemic.
Accounting
15. The deadlines to meet by an accounting entity are extended during the pandemic period, as well as the obligation to file accounting documents in the register of financial statements by the end of the third calendar month after the end of the pandemic or until the deadline for filling a tax return, whichever is earlier.
Income tax
16. The deadline for filing of the income tax return and the tax payment is postponed by the end of the calendar month following the end of the pandemic period. For example, if the Government of SR declares the end of the pandemic in July 2020, the deadline for the submission of the tax return ends on August 31, 2020, and the tax is due within this period. Within this new period, the taxpayer may also remit % of the tax for special purposes. In certain cases, the taxpayers may extend the deadline in order to prevent the taxpayer from being penalized by shortening the deadline, which he would have in a longer period according to the valid income tax law.
17. The statement of remittance of the tax paid on the taxpayer´s income, to whom the employer as a tax payer carried out annual clearance and whose deadline for submission expires during the pandemic period, may be submitted by the end of the second calendar month following the end of the pandemic period. Upon the request of the employee, the employer is obliged to prepare the confirmation on paid tax for the purpose of remitting the proportion of income tax paid no later than on the 15th day of the second calendar month following the end of the pandemic period.
18. A special period for filing the notification on withhold tax and its transfer by the healthcare provider is set, and that is by the end of the calendar month following the end of the pandemic period. The withhold tax shall be transferred within the same period.
19. The deadline for filling the tax report on the clearing of the personal income tax is extended for the employer by the end of the second calendar month following the end of the pandemic period.
20. The annual clearance and the calculation of income tax whose deadline will expire during the pandemic period shall be carried out by the employer not later than by the end of the calendar month following the end of the pandemic period. The proof of the annual clearance carried out must be delivered to the employee by the end of the second calendar month following the end of the pandemic period at the latest. The employer is obliged to pay the employee the overpayments when the wage is cleared for the second calendar month following the end of the pandemic period at the latest.
We will gladly assist you in applying the measures – do not hesitate to contact us! We will keep you informed about other tax and accounting measures.
CONTACT
Katarína Balogová
Tax Director
Tel: +421 2 325 53 000
E-mail: katarina.balogova@accace.com