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Asen Vassilev
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Today, Vice Asen Vassilev announces a package of measures for BGN 2 billion in aid
They tax cigarettes more for more money in the budget
BGN 50 supplement for each child, from July propane-butane and methane for cars to be excise-free and to be subject to 9% VAT. The excise tax on electricity has been falling since the middle of the year.
These are some of the government’s measures to tackle the crazy prices of everything that will be announced today. On Sunday on BNR, Deputy Prime Minister Asen Vassilev said that the rise in prices would slow down because most companies had already calculated the accumulated inflation in the prices of their goods and services.
“We are currently debating how to give these 50 levs – whether through vouchers in schools and kindergartens to have an incentive for children to visit them, or to give to working parents to have an incentive to work,” he told BNR. BSP MP Petar Kanev.
Among the measures is a reduction in the price by 50 cents per liter when refueling to 50 liters. Several options have been developed – for each refueling or for a limited number, such as to monitor the identity card of a family member or the number of the car, commented Kanev. Last week, it was initially announced that a 25-cent discount on each liter would be given, but apparently the aid has now doubled.
It was decided to have additional taxation on the excess profits of energy companies and to increase the excise tax on cigarettes in order to have higher revenues in the budget. The threshold for VAT registration will be raised from BGN 50,000 to BGN 100,000, but from January 1 next year.
The introduction of a tax-free minimum and a lower VAT on food has been dropped, but a reduction has been considered for fixed-price goods such as medicines and electricity.
For pensioners, the BGN 60 benefit will remain after June, but it will be included as part of the indexation of money for adults. There are two options under discussion – to increase pensions by 10 or 21% from July 1, which will compensate for inflation.
BGN 2 billion will in some form go into people’s pockets, and the funds will come from additional revenues from excess profits from electricity and increased revenues from inflation, said Peter Kanev.
Compensation for the business due to the expensive electricity remains after June 1, until other mechanisms are found, said Deputy Prime Minister Asen Vassilev.
The measures in the program were discussed by an expert working group on Friday night, and are expected to be approved by the leaders of the four parties in the coalition within ten days, so that they can be included in the July budget update.
The biggest effect, such as cheaper, of the proposed measures will be for propane-butane, whose price will fall by about 50 cents from the removal of excise duty and lower VAT. In the case of methane, the reduction will be 35-40 cents.
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