The Hungarian Government introduced two special taxes from 1 May 2020 in order to tackle the financial effects of the coronavirus disease: the special tax on credit institutions and the tax on commercial chains. According to the official communication of the Ministry of Finance „the goal is that the burden of these taxes – that contribute to the improvement of the balance of public finances – are borne not by the consumers but by the actors that are capable of such.”
The tax on credit institutions is only payable in the tax year of 2020 in three instalments. The tax has to be paid after the corrected balance sheet total that exceeds HUF 50 billion, at a rate of 0.19%. The payable tax can be reduced by supporting popular team sports. According to the official communication of the Ministry of Finance, this special tax will be deductible from the already existing tax that has to be paid by financial institutions. Further details of this tax have not yet been elaborated in the laws.
The tax on commercial chains must also be paid from 1 May 2020 until the end of the state of emergency special legal order. The tax base is the net turnover of the taxpayer and the tax rate is specified progressively, provided that the net turnover reaches HUF 500 million on a yearly basis. This special contribution targets not only Hungarian but also international commercial chains (available in Hungary), such as Amazon, Wish or Aliexpress. According to the official statements this special tax will be a permanent tax also after the end of the state of emergency.
By Eszter Kamocsay-Berta, Managing partner, KCG Partners Law Firm