Mission Statement

Regulation (EU) 2016/679 on the protection of natural persons with regard to the processing of personal data and on the free movement of such data.

The regulation is an essential step to strengthen citizens' fundamental rights in the digital age and facilitate business by simplifying rules for companies in the digital single market. A single law will also do away with the current fragmentation and costly administrative burdens.

The regulation came into force on 24 May 2016 and will apply from 25 May 2018.

The filing of tax return is based on self-assessment. The tax authority prepares a plan for the tax return of private individuals who are not entrepreneurs on the basis of the available data. This plan becomes final if the private individual accepts it or he/she does not file the tax return in any other way.

Employers and payers are obliged to deduct taxes and/or tax advances from wages and other payments. Private individuals are obliged to pay income tax and/or income tax advances themselves if their income is from sources other than payers or employers.

Private individuals must file their annual tax returns by the 22 May, 2018, private individuals required to pay VAT and individual entrepreneurs must file by the 25 February, 2018. The possible outstanding taxes are also to be paid by these dates, taking the already withheld tax and paid tax advance into consideration.

The obligation to file a tax return must be performed on the ‘SZJA form of the current year –in the case of income for the year 2017 on 17SZJA form.

Rental income arose from residential property will be subject to a 15% individual income tax (as earlier) health care charge of 14% will be dismissed even income is higher than HUF 1 million / year.

Increase in amount of housing allowance to facilitate mobility that can be provided tax-free.

Alongside modifying the detailed rules, the bill would significantly increase the amounts that can currently be provided tax free. The monthly allowance would increase from the current ratios to 60 percent in the first 24 months of employment, 40 percent in the next 24 months, and then to 20 percent over the following 12 months.

There are already three properties to choose for a regular flat-rate short-term activity next year. A license is required for the activity and can be provided for the same private individual up to 90 days. The flat tax is HUF 38,400 per room and per year.

The VAT rate on Internet access services will be reduced from 18% to 5% and the VAT rate on fish products will be reduced from 27% to 5%.

The reduction of the limit requiring detailed VAT reporting (monthly returns, domestic statements) from HUF 1 million to HUF 100,000, which was planned to become effective as of 1 July 2017, has been postponed to 1 July 2018.

The requirement to report to the tax authorities invoices with a minimum value of HUF 100,000 has been postponed to 1 July 2018.

Hungarian corporate entities will be required to declare foreign bank accounts by 31 January 2018.

Itemised tax of small businesses (“KATA”)

From next year full-time students registered in institutes of secondary or higher education will no longer be considered as full-time entrepreneurs, which means that they can will only have to pay 25,000 HUF as the small taxpayer’s flat tax instead of 50,000 HUF.

Under current regulation “ KATA” subject status will be terminated if the net tax debt of the small taxpayer exceeds HUF 100,000 on the last day of the calendar year. From next year it will be allowed for the tax authority to suspend the process if the taxpayer pays his debt until the declaration becomes legally binding and confirms it.

Small business tax (“KIVA”)

While it was part of the tax package submitted earlier, it is still worth noting that the “kiva” tax rate will continue to decrease further from 2018, by another percent point, to 13%. In the future, the taxpayer status will not be terminated if the business pays its outstanding tax obligation exceeding 100,000 HUF by the date when the decision on the termination of the tax status becomes effective.

In harmony with earlier interpretations of the law, the text of the legislation will clearly provide now that in case of switching to “KIVA” taxpayer status, an independent business year is to be closed, and the business needs to prepare and publish its report on that business year.

Hungarian legislation had a new requirement for all business organizations to arrange their official affairs through a safe, secure platform.

Business organisations included in the company register must register their contact details used for electronic communication (business gate) at the register for administration orders (hereinafter referred to as: E-Administration Register) or at the court of registration by 30 August 2017.

The online registration site is available at the following addresses (currently only in Hungarian):

• http://cegkapu.gov.hu by clicking on “bejelentkezés”,
• http://ekozig.mo.hu/ugyintezes by clicking on the banner for the business gate at the top of the page,
• http://ekozig.mo.hu/ugyintezes/32/Vállalkozás by clicking on the business gate link or icon, then on the “elektronikusan” button.

http://wtsklient.hu/en/2017/08/01/business-gate-registration/

The Hungarian healthcare system is largely free of charge for anyone who can provide a Hungarian social insurance number and card (TAJ szám, TAJ kártya) or who holds a valid EU International Health Card (EHIC). Medical services in Hungary are substantially financed by the state budget, which takes a monthly contribution from every locally contracted employee’s salary, and no payment is claimed for the actual treatment. With a valid Hungarian social security account, you are entitled to full medical care, excluding prescription charges.

Healthcare for EU citizens

EU citizens who are not paid a salary locally but who possess an EHIC are also treated free of charge to an extent. Only those treatments are free of charge, which are considered urgent and necessary by a given doctor. Any additional hospital care or the cost of non-urgent care would need to be settled personally by the patient. When using the EHIC, reimbursement of the cost of treatment varies from country to country, depending on the agreement between Hungary and the given country. Usually the two health insurance authorities settle the re-invoicing of the cost. Before arrival, please investigate this with your own state health authority.

Should your employment be terminated for any reason, then after 46 days of the termination, you need to take out a private contract with the Hungarian state healthcare authority. The fee payable could be less than 7,000 HUF per month but could be somewhat higher, depending on the level of social security contributions you have paid during the current financial year to date.

For a family member of an EU citizen who has been living in Hungary for a year (this is counted from the issuing date of the address card) it is mandatory to make a private contract with the state health authority. The fee payable depends on the given year’s fees when you have to make this contract.

For children under the age of 18 the health care system is free of charge, though parents will need to apply for a Hungarian social security card for any child, once they have obtained a Hungarian Registration and an address card.

Healthcare for Non-EU citizens

A Non-EU citizen is entitled to take any medical care free of charge in case he or she is on Hungarian payroll and an employee of a Hungarian company, just like their Hungarian and EU colleagues.

An employee’s family members in any case need to present proof of comprehensive health insurance for their residence permit application. This is important as family members of non-EU employees on local payroll are not covered by the employee’s Hungarian state social security payments.

It is possible for non-EU family members to access the state healthcare system via a private contract with the health authority. The fee payable is calculated as follows: for children under the age of 18, 30% of that given year’s gross minimum monthly wage needs to be paid (by yellow postal check) per month. For applicants over the age of 18, the percentage is higher, at 50% of the gross minimum wage. Once the first payment is made, the individual has the right to urgent and necessary treatment only. Full access to the system is only given after 7 months’ payments have been made. An applicant may gain full access to the system immediately but then they must pay in 7 months’ contributions immediately. As a non-EU resident it’s not compulsory to contract with the Hungarian state healthcare system, but it certainly is compulsory to hold private health insurance that would cover any possible eventualities.

Private healthcare

There are plenty of private clinics and healthcare options for anyone looking to be treated in English or another foreign language and in more comfortable surroundings than one might find in a typical state hospital or clinic in Hungary. Payment options include already holding an international insurance policy that one of the private clinics accepts or it is also possible to take out a local private policy with one of the clinics. This would give coverage up to a certain point but it’s important to note that most of the private clinics don’t include in-patient care or more complex diagnosis such as CT and MRI and if the patient doesn’t hold state health insurance or a comprehensive international health insurance policy. In general it’s best to talk to at least one private clinic and get a feel for what they do and do not cover.

https://www.interrelo.com/portfolio/hungary/

The aggregated tax base can be reduced with the family allowance (Családi Adókedvezmény).

The volume of the family allowance is equal to the fixed allowance amount multiplied by the number of “beneficiary dependent children”.

The calculation of the family allowance takes into account the number of dependent children of the tax payer. In case of 1 or 2 dependent children the allowance is HUF 62,500 per beneficiary dependent child, while in case of 3 or more children the allowance is HUF 206,250 per beneficiary dependent child.

What constitutes a beneficiary dependent child is determined in the so-called family law.

The amount of tax allowance can be split between spouses or life partners. (https://www.angloinfo.com)

Those who let out their homes and university students in the small taxpayer category may expect further significant easing of red tape and lower liabilities. The bill will make both the short- and long-term letting of residential properties easier. Provided the National Assembly approves the proposal, owners of rented homes will as of next year see substantially lower administrative burdens and higher tax savings, earning some HUF 3bn more.

As of 2017, owners of residential properties rented for short term may apply the most simple and cost-efficient, so-called flat-rate tax to three instead of the currently permitted one rented flat or holiday home. The payable tax is only HUF 38 400 per room, therefore it is not worth hiding income gained from providing accommodation services. (http://www.kormany.hu/en)

According to the new law, businesses issuing invoices with VAT value of more than HUF 100,000 (EUR 320)- including all modification invoices that relate to the original invoice - must report these invoices online in real time to the Hungarian Tax Authority. The new law also applied to the Hungarian VAT registrations of the foreign entities.

Failure to comply with this obligation may result in a penalty of up to HUF 500,000 (EUR 1,700) per each undeclared invoice.

The deadline of this law will be postponed until 1 July 2018.

Businesses issuing invoices using invoicing software will be required to provide real time data regarding these invoices from 1st July 2018, while businesses will be able to test the real time invoicing reporting as soon as 1 July 2017.

Regarding the new requirements for the invoicing software, companies will need to make invoicing software capable of real time data transfer by 1st of July 2018 at the latest.

It is likely that the new real time reporting obligation will be closely linked to the existing obligation to provide data in the XML format (also known as Standard Accounting File or SAF). We recommend reviewing your SAF export function and extending it further to satisfy the new requirement. Our team of IT and VAT experts can help you to understand these requirements better and provide you with the details of the enhancements needed once the HU TA publishes specification of such communication. (RSM)

Fringe benefits

In accordance with the changes of Act CXVII on Personal Income Tax (hereinafter: PIT) which comes into effect from 1 January 2017 will only be possible to grant fringe benefits to employees on the basis of two legal categories as follows:

• SZÉP Card’s annual frame amount is not changing, payments can be transferred to the existing sub-accounts, not more than 450,000 HUF per year.
• The other item with preferential taxation will be the cash benefit up to HUF 100,000 per year.

The tax base multiplier rete to the fringe benefits will be reduced from 1.19 to 1.18. The employer will pay the 15% PIT and the 14% health care charge on this amount.

Certain specific benefits

Most of the popular and well-known benefits are removed from the scope of preferential tax rated circle, involving the Erzsébet voucher, the school support benefit, the local travel pass, the coverage of school system based educational costs, and the employer contribution paid to voluntary mutual pension, health or assistance fund, or employer pension service institution. Effective from 1 January 2017, these benefits will have a burden of 43.66% instead of the burden of 34.51% paid until 31 December 2016, but will have no upper amount limits.

From year 2017, the opportunity of filing tax return proposals or simplified tax declarations will be overruled. The draft tax declaration will take the previous two methods’ place, and will be based on data reported to the tax authority during the year. The tax authority will prepare draft PIT return for taxpayers who either did not request their employers to prepare it or their request was rejected. The draft tax return will be prepared by the authority for those individuals who are registered for electronic tax filing. Those individuals can also request the tax authority to prepare their draft returns who are not registered for electronic tax filing, but they have to file a written request not later than 15 March 2016.

The draft tax declarations can be corrected and/or supplemented until 20 May. The acceptance of the draft declaration is regarded as the individual’s tax declaration.

The ‘53’ tax return and declaration prepared by the employer are also possible ways of fulfilling legal obligations.

Several VAT rates are used: it has been long overdue in the case of food, the reduction of VAT in hospitality has not really been thought out in detail, and the reduced VAT rate of the Internet is rather a political will than an economic decision. The reporting obligation concerning online billing is significantly tightened and the use of persons authorized to accept service shall also be reported.

The revenue value limit of tax exempt status is increased to HUF 8 million. If the tax-exempt taxpayer exceeded the valid value limit of HUF 6 million in 2015, then he can still choose to be tax-exempt in 2017.

A real property built on the basis of a simple report shall be considered a new real property for a term of 2 years following the date of issue of the official certificate of the completion of construction.

It is obligatory to indicate the tax number of the buyer on invoices if the amount of the charge VAT reaches or exceeds HUF 100,000. This value limit was HUF 1 million in 2016, therefore on invoices issued in 2016 with the fulfillment date in 2017 the rules valid in 2016 shall still be applied.

The VAT rate of Internet provision service is reduced to 18 percent. The beneficial rate may be applied if the date of the issue of the invoice and the date of tax payment are in 2017.

The VAT rate of poultry, poultry offal, egg and fresh milk is reduced to 5 percent. The VAT rate of UHT and ESL milk remains 18 percent.

The VAT rate of hospitality in restaurants is reduced to 18 percent in 2016 and 5 percent in 2018, except the turnover of intoxicating beverages.

Services related to the construction of real properties subject to simple reporting will also fall in the scope of reverse charge VAT.

The supply of certain medical services generally qualifies for exemption from VAT. Provisions for the VAT exemption applicable to medical services are contained in Paragraphs 2(3) and 2 (7) of Schedule 1 to the Value - Added Tax Consolidation Act 2010. Details of the relevant provisions are as follows:

• Professional medical care services recognized as such by the Department of Health and Children (other than dental or optical services), but only if those services are not supplied in the course of carrying on a business that wholly or partly consists of selling goods.
• Other professional medical care services that, on 1 January 2010, were recognized by the Revenue Commissioners as exempt activities.

These provisions transpose Article 132 (1) © of the VAT Directive 2006/112/EC on which Irish VAT law is based.

It is important to note that it is not just the status of the person providing the service that determines whether it is exempt from VAT but also the actual service that is being provided and the purpose for which it is being provided. In general the full range of medical services carried out for the purposes of protecting, including maintaining or restoring a patient's health, or diagnosing, treating, and if possible, curing diseases and health disorders will qualify for exemption.

Those services also include the following when provided by a recognized medical professional:

• Post-offer of employment medical examinations including medical fitness to operate machinery and undertake manual work,
• Health surveillance services, including sight and hearing tests,
• Health screening, stop smoking, and stress management programs.
• Cosmetic surgery procedures where it is clearly shown that they are required to maintain or restore a patient's health or to treat a patient’s disease or illness,
• Vaccination programs to protect employees where there is a high risk of transmission of infectious diseases.

http://www.revenue.ie/en/tax/vat/leaflets/medical-services.html#section2

Hungary: Parliament Approves VAT Cuts for 2017

On June 7, 2016, the Hungarian Parliament approved Bill T/10537, a supplementary tax package to the Ministry of Economy’s 2017 budget. As previously reported, the bill applies a 5% reduced VAT rate to sales of poultry, fresh milk, and eggs, an 18% reduced VAT rate to restaurant services, and an 18% reduced VAT rate to internet access services, effective January 1, 2017. Restaurant services will be further reduced to 5% in 2018, absent further legislation. Finally, the bill reduces the threshold for registration as a taxable person from HUF 1 million to HUF 100,000. The VAT cuts are intended to reduce the tax burden on working families, and to spur economic growth.

Personal income tax

The aim of personal income tax is for private individuals to contribute to public dues and to ensure tax revenues for the state and municipal budgets.

Taxpayers

Resident tax payers shall be subject to tax liability in respect of all their income (all-inclusive tax liability). The tax liability of non-resident private individuals shall apply to income that originates in Hungary, or income taxable in Hungary on the basis of an international convention or mutuality.

‘Resident private individual’ means: any citizen of Hungary (with the exception of dual citizens without a residence or a place of stay in Hungary), citizens of EEC member states if residing in Hungary for more than 183 days in the year, citizens of third countries with residence permits, persons with residence only in Hungary.

If the relevant countries have entered into treaties on the avoidance of dual taxation, that treaty shall prevail.

Advertisement tax

The publication or commissioning of advertisements in media services, in media published or distributed in Hungary, on outdoor advertising spaces, properties, vehicles, printed materials or on the internet in Hungarian or on a Hungarian language website is taxable in Hungary.

Taxpayers are the media content providers and news publishers that qualify as the publishers of the advertisement as well as persons using the designated device for advertising purposes or publishing the advertisement on the internet. In the case of the publication of advertisements in any of the ways specified by the Act, the taxable person is subject to the tax liability irrespective of his residence.

Subject to certain specific exceptions, the publisher of the advertisement is required to make a statement to the party commissioning the advertisement about his advertisement tax liability. Should he fail to do so, the party commissioning the advertisement will be obliged to pay the advertisement tax.

Royalties received

In Hungary, companies are obliged to pay corporate income tax on their income obtained from business activities performed for profit and other similar activities.

Provided that certain conditions are fulfilled, 50 percent of the revenues accounted as royalties reduce the tax base. The amount of this tax base reduction may not exceed 50 percent of profit before tax.

Hungary levies no withholding tax on dividends, interest or royalties, if payment is made to a company. If payment is made to a private individual, taxes are levied in accordance with the provisions of the applicable double tax treaties.