Although the shop salad on the menu is 10-12 leva, its real price is 15 leva, since the prices of the products have risen a lot, said Richard Alibegov
Shop salad should hit 18-19 BGN, if the idea of the Ministry of Finance is accepted, the rate of VAT for a restaurantity, which is now reduced to 9 percent, to return to 20 percent. Such a one price however, there is no way to put it on the menu and half the branch will close, he is categorical Richard Alibegovhead of the Bulgarian Association of Restaurants, reports “Telegraf”.
Due to the premature elimination of the zero excise duty for propane-butane and methane, these are the same fuels can become more expensive by 20-40 cents. The removal of these tax breaks are part of the measures announced by Finance Minister Rositsa Velkova to patch the hole that is emerging in the budget. The MoF’s proposals for changes to the tax laws were due to be published for public consultation yesterday, but by the time the issue went to press they had not yet come out. And what will ultimately be accepted depends on the vote in the parliament.
Prices
Although the shop salad on the menu is 10-12 BGN, the real one price is BGN 15, as the prices of the products have gone up a lot. If and VAT is picked up, the Shopska or Caesar salad, which are among the ordered ones, should realistically reach 18-19 BGN. No one a restauranthowever, he will not write one in his menu price, because there will be no one across the street to buy them, Alibegov explained. According to him, if the ideas of the Ministry of Finance are accepted, half the sector will close because there will be no one to shop. And if it is accepted to stop compensations for electricity and to introduce an excess profit tax, we will not be talking about any business at all, he added.
Experience
According to Alibegov, the return of VAT at 20% for a restaurantit will not be adopted again in the National Assembly. This is the third attempt in a row, but this time it will not be successful either, he believes. Although it is not yet clear how the forces will be distributed in the future parliament, the branch relies on the parties that have supported it so far – GERB, DPS, “Vazrazhdane” and part of the BSP. When the new National Assembly is formed, a restaurantyors will ask for the discounted one VAT to stay permanently. Now the 9 percent is set to apply only until the end of this year. The reasons are that the industry cannot yet recover from the closure during the COVID crisis. Since 2 years of COVID we have not been able to take advantage of that 9% rate at all for nine months as we were closed. The damage done in 2 years cannot be erased with an eraser because someone said there is no more COVID crisis, Alibegov said.
Fuels
The Ministry of Finance plans to propose and abolish the zero excise duty on methane and propane-butane. From July 1 and VAT for natural gas it should return from 9 to 20 percent. It is not yet clear whether the department will offer excise duties for these fuels to return to their old level before last year’s budget update, when these reliefs were voted along with other measures to support households and businesses due to inflation.
The elimination of the reliefs will lead to an increase in the price of methane by 20-30 cents, up to 40 cents per kilogram, predicts the volleyball legend and owner of methane stations Lyubo Ganev. He pointed out that priceof natural gas is currently very high worldwide. Changed the way of calculation of pricewell, it used to be tied to oil. The method of delivery has also changed – instead of pipes, it is transported by ships, which makes it more expensive by $100 per 1,000 cubic meters, Ganev pointed out. Until new suppliers are found, priceit will remain high, he believes.
Taxis
Currently the average price of methane is BGN 2.79 per kilogram, and propane-butane is sold for BGN 1.20 per liter, according to data from the fuelo.net site. The rise in price of these fuels will raise the cost of the taxi service. But after the recent fare increases, there is no longer much room for correction, commented Krasimir Tsvetkov from the National Taxi Union. However, if prices skyrocket again, businesses must respond, he said. Tsvetkov recalled that the branch could not take advantage of the 25 cent discount for the prices of fuelsso. The only relief he received was through the tax relief for fuelsso.
At the same time, car rents have increased, and the dispatch service has also become more expensive. If we include the fuel, the taxi drivers are already at minus 100 BGN when they wake up. Before going to work, the driver must write off this money, then get on the car and work it out, Tsvetkov pointed out.
Due to the increase in the price of methane, which at one time had exceeded 6 BGN, many of the cars installed propane-butane systems. About 70% of yellow cars are already on this type of fuel. The rest are on methane, there are also diesels in the province.
The carriers
The carriers will ask for a freeze on the toll fee and discounts for those operating on the Bulgarian market when certain kilometers are covered. This was announced by Yordan Arabadzhiev, head of the Union of International Carriers.
He recalled that the raising of toll taxthey were delayed for 6 months and they haven’t picked up since the beginning of this year. However, carriers will insist in such a period when there is high inflation and contracted consumption, toll taxthey remain frozen. The branch will present its demands at a meeting of the Ministry of Finance and Industry on Monday. We are supporters of consistent policy and predictability of government actions. Eventually pricethe Bulgarian citizen will pay it, because the higher toll fee will be included in pricethat of any goods that are transported by heavy-duty and light-duty vehicles, said Arabadzhiev.
They introduce an excess profit tax, we pay in cash up to 5 grand
A tax is introduced on excess profits of companiesthem, and the ceiling for cash payments drops from BGN 10 to BGN 5,000. These are part of the Finance Ministry’s proposals to reduce the budget deficit and keep it within 3%. The draft changes to the legislation through amendments to the Tax and Insurance Procedural Code were published for public consultation late yesterday evening.
It is offered companiesthat they pay a solidarity contribution for the excess profits generated in the period from July 1, 2023 to December 31, 2023. The main factor for determining the solidarity contribution will be the difference between the taxable profit for the period from July 1 to December 31 of this year. and 50 percent of the average value, increased by 20 percent, of tax profits for 2018, 2019, 2020 and 2021. The measure will be temporary, its purpose is to preserve the stability of public finances, the MoF states. From there, they add that a total of BGN 11.2 billion has been provided to businesses in the form of benefits, compensations and reduced tax rates for the period 2020-2022.
Another measure proposed by the MoF is to deduct 10 percent of legally recognized expenses when determining the taxable income from the sale of virtual currencies. The aim is to encourage individuals to declare these incomes.
