Montenegro: Montenegro hikes VAT rate and amends excise duties
International Tax Review is part of the Delinian Group, Delinian Limited, 4 Bouverie Street, London, EC4Y 8AX, Registered in England & Wales, Company number 00954730
Copyright © Delinian Limited and its affiliated companies 2023

Accessibility | Terms of Use | Privacy Policy | Modern Slavery Statement

Montenegro: Montenegro hikes VAT rate and amends excise duties

intl-updates-small.jpg

Montenegro has recently sharpened its focus on fiscal consolidation with a target to achieve budget surplus and to establish a declining trend in the level of public debt from 2019. On the revenue side, additional measures will be aimed at further harmonising the excise policy with the EU's rules. Additionally, the government is set to increase the standard VAT rate by two percentage points as of 2018, an adjustment which will not disturb the Montenegrin tax system.

The fiscal strategy has a redefined social policy, and the protection of certain categories (particularly pensioners) was taken into account. The effects of fiscal consolidation measures are expected to be reflected in the macro-fiscal indicators in such a way that it is predicted that the budget deficit will continue to decline and enter the surplus zone by 4.5% of GDP from 2020. Changes and amendments to the Excise Act envisage changes for products that do not directly affect the standard of living of citizens, such as tobacco products, ethyl alcohol and carbonated water with added sugar.

For these three types of products, an excise calendar has been established by law, according to which excise taxes will be increased once a year until 2020. Montenegro plans to introduce two new excise products – non-combustible tobacco and liquids for charging electric cigarettes. With the amendments to the law on excise taxes, a new excise product is also included: coal, to which excise duty will be applicable from January 1 2019.

The basic amendments and supplements to the VAT Law refer to the increase of the standard rate from 19% to 21%, effective as of January 1 2018. The aim of these changes is to reduce the public debt to a level of 67% by 2020.

The increased rate is expected to contribute to the increase of budget revenues. Amendments have only dealt with the standard rate, while the reduced one has remained unchanged.

zivkovic.jpg

 

Jelena Zivkovic

Jelena Zivkovic (jelena.zivkovic@eurofast.eu)

Eurofast

Tel: +382 20 228 490

Website: www.eurofast.eu

more across site & bottom lb ros

More from across our site

Mexico is advised to eliminate its zero-rating for VAT, Hong Kong cuts stamp duty, road tax rates fall across the OECD and G20, and more
Ulf Johannemann, who has been on trial in Frankfurt since September, was the firm’s most senior tax partner until 2019
Important dates for the Women in Business Law Awards for 2024 revealed
More than 1,000 PwC staff in China and Hong Kong engaged in improper answer sharing, it is understood
Yusuf Akhmadi of Indonesia’s Directorate General of Taxation reports on the country’s latest domestic and cross-border initiatives to clamp down on tax evasion
The new rate is a blow to Samsung, while two law firms have made significant tax hires into their respective Washington DC offices
Rema Serafi, KPMG’s first-ever female vice chair for tax, talks about breaking the mould in an exclusive interview with ITR
The metal multinational’s victory, in a case worth $12 million, continues the trend of companies coming out on top against India’s revenue department
Guy Bud and Matthew Greene from litigation firm Stewarts review a dispute on tiered partnerships, which raises questions on corporation tax and partnership law
The stagnating pay and tax bonuses cap follow slashed payouts for the deals team and business consolidation in the last month