VAT for agricultural goods returned

30/04/2013 00:00

Farmers will not profit from the removed Value Added Tax for their raw
materials. One month after the Parliament passed the law that removed
it, the government has canceled the law and presented a new scheme.

“For a given time that will be decided by a decision from the Prime Ministry, which could be three months, four months or one month, all farmers who have bought raw materials such as chemicals or seeds from registered subjects, will take the receipt and will send it to the local offices, where he will make the request to receive the VAT reimbursement”, declared Arjana Dyrmishi, director of fiscal policies at the Ministry of Finances.

For the opposition, the new scheme that is based on the reimbursement of farmers in cash is an electoral lie that cannot be implemented on terrain.

“The entire formula is unrealizable and abusive. If you cannot control the agricultural input importers, how can you deduct the prices from a VAT that they will not pay. But telling farmers today that you will do something that you cannot control is even more shameful”, declared the Socialist Party Parliament Member, Ilir Bejtja.

“It is very simple to be effective, because the profit will go directly to the farmer. I’m saying this because we are practically applying such a scheme. We have subventions for fruit trees, vineyards and olive trees which farmers receive through this scheme. There is no room for doubts if this will work or not, since it works”, declared the Democratic Party Parliament Member, Edmond Spaho.

Arben Malaj, former Minister of Finances, declared that the frequent changes of the tax laws are disorienting the business by slowing down their investment rates.

“I guarantee you, even based by the contacts I have with businesses, that they will ask: ‘Will this new policy enter in act, or not? Will that be this month or the other month? Should we invest now or should we wait?’ Besides abusing with the fiscal policies in this electoral time, there are bigger damages made to businesses. Hence, fiscal packages will never be spontaneous. You cannot do it by meeting people and having the Prime Minister make promises”, Malaj declared.

Removing VAT for the agricultural raw materials is a move that the government brought with pride, and the Prime Minister has often mentioned in his meetings with farmers that it is a measure that will encourage economy and production.

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