The restaurants were fighting with the rest of the industry for VAT

Should the low VAT rate of 9% for restaurants continue to apply next year? This issue brought various business representatives to the fore.

The chairman of the Business Capital Association in Bulgaria, Vasil Velev, said that this option, which was introduced as a temporary measure in the covid pandemic, should definitely be canceled. According to Velev, against the background of the large budget deficit and the threat of raising taxes, it is essential to return 20% VAT for restaurant services.

However, the head of the Bulgarian Restaurant Association, Richard Alibegov, countered that the restaurant industry is not to blame for the hole in the finances and warned that if VAT for the sector is raised to 20% again, that many workers will be laid off. and there will be a reduction in wages.

9% VAT for restaurants and gyms was introduced four years ago, when they were administratively closed several times due to the pandemic. Three years in a row, the impact of this low level has been extended, although there has been no pandemic for a long time, the sector has recovered and even surpassed pre-covid levels , raising prices significantly as well.

“In the EU, there are different VAT rates for several goods, and there this does not hinder anyone,” Alibegov told BNT, explaining that there should be lower taxes in the restaurant business, as the manual labor was very large and ate up the profits. However, Alibegov misses that VAT is paid by the end user, ie it is not a direct tax levied on companies.

“In Bulgaria, we have a different tax system and employers’ organizations are against change,” answered Vasil Velev. And he explained that AIKB as an employers’ organization protects the common interests of its members and cannot allow taxes to be raised to the industry.

“It is obvious that consumers who go to a restaurant are not poor people, and there is no reason to feel so sorry for them. We should not carry a social policy with taxes,” said Velev. The head of AIKB explained that the restaurant sector is developing well, that the flow of tourists is growing, while the processing industry is in the red. “Should we raise their taxes?” he asked Alibegov.

“It is not the fault of the restaurants that incompetent politicians have mismanaged us for four years,” replied Alibegov. And at the same time, he threatened that the association would talk to him the political parties and defends 9% VAT in 2025 as well, in previous years, the Ministry of Finance was definitely against the extension of the low VAT rate, but in the National Assembly voted almost -all political parties for foodies.

“The budget situation is dire. Without neutral measures, we cannot continue like this. The holidays are over, we can’t take loans and have fun for a long time without earning this money,” concluded Velev.

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