Nezavisne novine: BiH belongs to a group of countries with the most expensive and biggest number of taxes which burden the citizens and economists, has been claimed by Mesud Lakota, chairman of the Consumer association of canton Sarajevo. The biggest tax is being paid in the RS and it can cost 100.000 KM. It is paid for registration of the ownership and hypothecation in land registry, which is 0.2% of a value of the real estate or a height of the insured claim by hypothecation.
"For ensuring of claim in the amount of 1.000.000 KM, or a registration in hypothecations, hypothecate obligor must pay a tax in the amount of 2.000 KM, and the law stipulates the biggest amount of tax of even 100.000 KM", has been said by Marinko Plavšić, chairman of the Notary chamber of the RS.
In respect to the fact that all registrations in land registries have been burdened by a very high judicial tax, as Plavšić says, in procedure is a change of the Law on judicial taxes in sense of the reduction of that remuneration.
"Administrative, communal and judicial remunerations in BiH represent a robbery of people, by which a huge administrative apparatus is being financed", Lakota claims. He explains that the regulations in taxes in the FBiH are being brought by the ministries of the FBiH and cantons, and municipalities.
Desperate citizens:"In order for us to be issued a simple confirmation, one must get ten additional papers. Each municipality adopts the regulations on taxes for itself. In such situation the rights of people are endangered. The most expensive taxes in the FBiH are in canton Sarajevo and canton 10", Lakota has said. He explains that the confirmations as are the ones on citizenship cost around 30 KM in those cantons.
"That is disaster. We have situations that the medical confirmations cost from 50 to 180 KM. Different requests, which should be free, cost from 2 to 10 KM. Some things, which should go automatically, as are inheriting the real estate from parents, are being paid only in our system. This administration only looks for the ways to collect money from people", Lakota has said.
Citizens of Sarajevo are also disappointed by a number and prices of taxes, which make their lives harder.
"When I need to go to a municipal office to submit some request or to get a confirmation, I get sick. There are always thousands of papers required, and each one needs to be paid. At the end, besides money, you lose your nerves and time. They steal from people wherever they can. Even the RTV subscription is regulated as a tax. For a land telephone number one must allocate 15 KM per month, even though you did not spend an impulse. That is shame", has been said by Nermina M. from Sarajevo.
Lakota thinks that the laws which regulate that area are bad. He adds that in this moment, when the recession hits the economy, country takes money from economists to launch the companies.
"We talk about launching the economy for years, but for opening of private market 500 KM should be paid, and 3.500 KM for opening of company, while in all countries of Europe and the region, the country stimulates launching the business. From the other side, all money collected from taxes should be somehow returned to people", Lakota has said.
In BiH, as he says, that money goes to financing the administration.
"Each change of a number has to be paid and that is already a known recipe in the world in the moment when municipality runs out of money. Taxes are too high and they de-motivate people", Lakota has said.
Taxes in the RS: Height of taxes in the RS, which has been determined by legal regulations, according to the opinion of many citizens, is not either adapted to the life standard in the RS, because by buying the apartment there has to be paid a tax of 100 KM, which is also a price of judicial tax for complaint because of moving out.
For a complaint because of the cancelation of contract on loan or rent of things, for a complaint on cancelation of contract on renting the business offices, there has to be paid a judicial tax of 200 KM, and for the proposal to admit the decision of the foreign court on status things for tax, 200 KM must be allocated. For complaint against the adopted solution, tax costs 300 KM and 50 KM for complaint because of disturbing the property.
S.M. from Banja Luka, who bought the apartment last year, says that he had to pay the judicial tax twice: first time by transcription of the apartment to a name of his mother, and second time by verifying the mother's contract, by which he has become the owner of the apartment.
"I have paid the tax of 100 KM twice. Therefore, you need 200 KM only for those two documents and I think that this is too much, considering the other expenditures. Those taxes should be smaller", S.M. has said.
Height of tax is determined by laws of the judicial tax which are being prescribed by the Law on judicial taxes, and for the administrative ones, there is being applied a Law on administrative taxes.
As it has been said by Plavšić, units of local self governance can by their normative acts determine the height of tax for certain procedures which are being led by those authorities.
"For the acts and affairs in procedure by the authorities of local self governance, or municipalities and town, there are administrative taxes being paid by regulations of municipality and town", Plavšić has explained.
Exempted from payment: Persons disabled in war and work, and children who receive disability funds by the age of 26, for acts and affairs related to education in all schools, are exempted from paying the administrative tax. Those taxes do not pay disabled who are exempted from paying the annual remunerations for the usage of motor vehicles, in the procedure of professional check of those vehicles because of the registration. Exempted are also the citizens for application to a contest for employment, and students for all acts and affairs related to education.
Judicial taxes
Judicial tax is in the law suit procedure being paid according to a value of the law suit subject. So, for complaint, countercharge, proposal for repetition of procedure, proposal to admit the decision of foreign court and decision of foreign arbitrary court, tax is being paid according to the value of law suit subject. If a value of the subject goes up to 1.500 KM, tax is 50 KM, and if a value of subject is from 1.500 to 3.000 KM, tax will be 100 KM. Tax of 500 KM is being paid for the subjects of value from 10.000 to 50.000 KM. If a value of the law suit is bigger than 100.000 KM, tax will be 1% on a marked value of law suit, but it cannot be more than 10.000 KM. As it has been said by Plavšić, the court can exempt the tax payer from paying the taxes if by that his/her existence and the existence of their household members would be endangered. "Decision on exemption from tax adopts the court to a written request of tax payer. Before the adoption of decision, the court will especially take into consideration a value appropriate for payment of tax, total income and property of tax payer and members of his/her household, as well as the number of persons alimented by a tax payer", Plavšić has explained.
Request for reduction: Nihad Imamović, chairman of the Association of employers of BiH, says that the association has sent to the Government of the FBiH the request for reduction of taxes for personal incomes of workers in order to assist the economy.
He adds that the economists have big burdens and that each worker costs a company around 25.000 KM per year.
"In the FBiH personal incomes are 69% of net salary, and 52% in the RS. That should be reduced in this moment by the Government of the FBiH, which should also find a solution with the Union. Plan is to reduce the contributions in this year by 3% and 15% in the next three years. In this moment the public spending must be reduced. We have asked for the public administration reform. That will go very hard because those who are fine do not need a change", Imamović has said.
Hajrudin Hadžimehanović, assistant of the minister of finance of the FBiH for fiscal and tax policy, says that the problem is in the whole set of smaller public revenues.
"Problem is how to reduce the burdens for economic subjects. There is a whole list of remunerations and we suggest proposing the bases of those taxes, in order for them to be moderated. Each ministry has its regulations on taxes. The Government of the FBiH is aware of this problem and abolishing of particular remunerations is already in process, as let us say resident taxes", Hadžimehanović has said.
Regulations on taxes are being looked at differently in cantons and municipalities. In the Ministry of Finance of canton Sarajevo they have said that the Government of this canton will deliberate on the law on judicial taxes.
"Taxes in canton Sarajevo have not been changed in last 13 years, except for those which are important for economic subjects. We will see if they are going to be reduced now", has been said in this ministry. They think that taxes in that canton are not high.
"We have proposed the highest price of taxes, and municipalities determine the price. The fact that they have preferred the highest prices, they should be asked about it. From the other side, money from taxes is being returned to citizens through the budget. Out of which would we normally build all these highways", has been said in the Ministry of Finances in canton of Sarajevo.
In the municipality of Novo Sarajevo they claim that the prices of all municipal taxes have been adopted at municipal councils to a proposal of the Government of canton Sarajevo.
"Local community has a problem because all taxes are being paid by us, and they end up in the budget of canton. Only around 80% of money from taxes is being returned to municipality", has been said in the Press service of this municipality.
Those who are exempted are also paying: War veterans, who are exempted from paying of all taxes in the RS, because they are not informed or the servants do not care in particular institutions, they sometimes pay the tax.
A.V. from Banja Luka, 100% war disabled, says that by collecting of documentation for buying the apartment in Banja Luka in the Administrative service of town he had to pay the administrative taxes, even though, as he says, he knows by the law that he is exempted from those expenditures.
"As the 100% war disabled, I know that I am exempted for paying of all taxes, and several years ago, when I was collecting some documentation, I did not have to pay any tax, or verification of document. However, last time, last year, when I have bought the apartment, I was verifying some papers, and have paid the taxes", A.V. has said.
He adds that it probably depends on the referent if the law regulations are going to be respected, or not. As he says, first time when he came to the Administrative service of Banja Luka, the servant has informed him that he does not have to pay a tax, but the second time another servant has asked him to pay the stated expenditures.
"I have collected papers and paid the tax, even though I knew that by law I was not supposed to pay those", A.V. has explained and added that for one of those taxes he had to allocate more than 50 KM.
Sava Marčeta-Ožegović, who has been working for a long time in the Department for war veteran/disabled protection of the Administrative service of Banja Luka, admits that there were situations that war veterans, who have been exempted from paying of all taxes, sometimes have had to pay for those because they were not informed.
Refund of tax: A.V. says that he did not know about the provision of the Law on judicial taxes related to the refund of tax, according to which the person who was not supposed to pay the tax, has a right to get a refund of tax.
Right on a refund also has a person who has paid a tax in the amount bigger from prescribed, and a person who has paid a tax for judicial affairs which for some reason were not done.
In the paragraph 33 of the Law on judicial taxes there has been stated that the procedure of the tax refund is being initiated to the request of person who has paid a tax, and that in the procedure of tax refund the tax is not being paid.