The Head of State has received draft decrees regarding the harmonisation of a number of legal acts relating to the Tax Code, which came into force on January 1st. The amendments primarily apply to land charges and other administrative procedures, particularly, the collection of state duties, patent and consular fees.
Mr. Lukashenko notes that the taxation system should be flexible. “Of course, everyone is happy when the optimisation of a system leads to reduced taxes,” the President underlined. “Few people appreciate that taxes are what pay for civil servants, doctors, teachers, and those who are in charge of defence and security.”
The President stressed that the tax system should be stable, commenting, “We’ve promised our people that, within this financial year at least, we’ll avoid touching the taxation system. Even better, we’ll leave the system unchanged for five years, while eliminating as many drawbacks as possible.”
The President emphasised that, in this difficult period, fine-tuning is more useful than drastic innovations or increased tax rates.
At the end of the session, the Head of State approved the submitted documents and instructed them to be finalised, to reflect all discussions. He wishes to then see them submitted for signing.
After the session, Belarus’ Finance Minister, Vladimir Amarin, told reporters that the amendments are technical in nature and will not affect taxpayers. “We aren’t going to raise major tax rates or worsen conditions,” he said.
By Vladimir Khromov
