News in Brief, November 2023

DOMESTIC NEWS

• The Chamber of deputies has approved a bill on top-up taxes (global minimum tax). The bill will be further discussed by the Senate. The proposed effective date is 31 December 2023.
• In the second reading, the chamber of deputies discussed a bill amending laws connected with the development of the financial market. The bill contains an amendment to the Income Tax Act regulating the tax treatment of long-term savings products. Within this amendment, the coalition also submitted two amending proposals concerning the taxation of employee shares and the simplification of proving research and development allowances. Most of the provisions are proposed to take effect on 1 January 2024.
• The chamber of deputies has approved an amendment to the Act on Investment Incentives. The amendment's main objective is to shift the process of approving individual incentives from the government to the Ministry of Industry and Trade. The amendment is now to be discussed by the Senate.
• The Ministry of Finance has published a draft decree amending certain tax submissions using prescribed forms for 2024.
• The EU list of tax non-cooperative jurisdictions approved by the EU Council has been published in Financial Bulletin 12/2023.
• Deputies have approved an increase in the parental allowance through an amendment to the Act on State Social Support. The allowance for parents of children born after 1 January 2024 will increase by CZK 50 thousand, i.e., from the original CZK 300 thousand to CZK 350 thousand. At the same time, the time of drawing the allowance will be reduced from four to three years. The amendment also simplifies communication with Czech labour offices. More information can be found HERE.
• The Ministry of Labour and Social Affairs has sent to the inter-departmental comment procedure an amendment to the Labour Code introducing a minimum wage indexation mechanism. More information can be found HERE.
• The Ministry of Justice has organised a conference on cross-border delivery (service of documents) and taking of evidence, focusing on the following topics: the digitisation of cross-border judicial cooperation in the EU, recent CJEU case law, the role of the European Judicial Network in civil and commercial matters, and current challenges in the delivery service and taking of evidence in selected non-EU member states.

FOREIGN NEWS

• The OECD has published a Minimum Tax Implementation Handbook under Pillar 2, changing neither the model rules, the commentary, the agreed administrative guidance, nor their interpretation. The handbook is intended for tax administrations and other stakeholders.
• The Council of the EU (ECOFIN) has decided to add Antigua and Barbuda, Belize, and Seychelles to the EU list of tax non-cooperative jurisdictions and to exclude three jurisdictions from the list, namely the British Virgin Islands, Costa Rica, and the Marshall Islands.
• The Council of the EU (ECOFIN) has approved a directive introducing the exchange of information on crypto-assets and certain other areas (DAC8). The final wording of the directive will be published in the Official Journal of the EU and will enter into force within 20 days after publication. The member states should implement the new rules by 31 December 2025 so that they can take effect from 1 January 2026.
• Detailed information from the EU and international institutions from KPMG EU Tax Centre’s experts with the possibility to subscribe to a regular newsletter can be found here.
• The European Commission has approved a €2.5 billion (CZK 60 billion) Czech aid scheme to help manufacturing companies decarbonise their production processes and improve energy efficiency. The aim is to support the transition to a climate-neutral economy in line with the Green Deal industrial plan. The support will be financed by the EU's Modernisation Fund and should take the form of direct grants, in particular for the benefit of companies covered by the EU Emissions Trading Scheme.