Tax & Legal Update
Liberation package III postpones filing of tax returns and payment of tax
In Financial Bulletin No. 9, the Ministry of Finance has published a third liberation package, generally and under certain conditions waiving tax, interest, and penalties. Among other things, sanctions for the late filing of personal and corporate…
"Semafor" – new rules for travelling across the Czech border
On 1 June 2020, the government approved the Ministry of Health’s new protective measure entering into effect on Monday 15 June. The measure is called "Semafor", owing to its visual similarity to traffic lights. It regulates the conditions for…
How and when to apply for COVID Rent support
Last week the European Commission approved the COVID Rent programme, and the related call to apply for support should be announced by the Ministry of Industry and Trade (MIT) any day now. Applications can be filed through the MIT’s new information…
Eight-day deadline to register/deregister employees reinstated
On 27 May 2020, a bill reducing penalties for the late payment of social security premiums and state employment policy contributions by employers in connection with the emergency measures adopted during the COVID-19 pandemic was promulgated in the…
Antivirus programme with a new coat
The government decided to extend current Regime B of the Antivirus programme and, simultaneously, the chamber of deputies approved long-awaited Regime C, involving the waiver of part of social security premiums and state employment policy…
Anti-crisis tax package: reduction of VAT and road tax
The chamber of deputies passed an anti-crisis tax package involving, apart from the long-discussed tax loss carry-back, a reduction of the VAT rate on selected services as well as a reduction of certain road tax rates. The bill is now to be…
Refunding undisputed retained excess VAT deduction confirmed by CJEU
In a case involving a Czech entity, the Court of Justice of the EU (CJEU) confirmed that EU law does not preclude refunding an undisputed portion of a retained excess VAT deduction, under certain conditions. This should also be reflected by an…
Who is liable to pay VAT upon imports – the declarant, or the goods‘ owner?
The Supreme Administrative Court (SAC) held that the customs declarant, i.e. the ‘regime holder’ is liable to pay tax upon the import of goods from a non-EU country. In the court’s opinion, by lodging the customs declaration, such an entity…
Effect of COVID-19 on transfer pricing of intra-group loans
The current pandemic puts pressure on firms to keep positive cash flows and cash balances. Multinational groups are thus facing the issue of financing their companies. In the most affected industries, access to bank loans has worsened, leading to an…
Changes to tax loss carry-back
The chamber of deputies has passed an anti-crisis tax package that, among other things, introduces the option to carry back tax losses. The originally proposed concept has been further extended: for instance, it should be possible to claim a 2020…
Czech Republic deposits MLI with OECD depositary
On 13 May 2020, the Czech Republic deposited its instruments of ratification for the Multilateral Convention to Implement Tax Treaty Related Measures to Prevent Base Erosion and Profit Shifting (MLI) in Paris. So far, the MLI has been signed by 94…