News in Brief, December 2023

DOMESTIC NEWS

• The president has signed an act amending certain laws in connection with the consolidation of public budgets, which is just waiting to be published in the Collection of Laws. We informed you about the consolidation package in the November issue of Tax and Legal Update.
• The GFD has published information material on the amendment to the Real Estate Tax Act adopted as part of the consolidation package. The material contains an overview of the changes related to the obligation to file a tax return for the 2024 taxable period as well as answers to some other questions.
• The senate has passed the top-up tax bill (global minimum tax). The bill is awaiting the signature of the president and publication in the Collection of Laws. The law is proposed to become effective on 31 December 2023. 
• The senate has approved a draft amendment to the VAT Act, which introduces an obligation for payment service providers to report selected information to the Central Electronic System of Payment Information (CESOP) with effect from 1 January 2024.
• The chamber of deputies has approved an amendment to the Energy Act and some other laws related to the development of community energy. The accompanying amendment to the VAT Act includes, among other things, a new definition of the date of taxable supply for energy commodities, water and electronic services.
• The GFD has published its Information on VAT returns, VAT ledger statements, and VIES summary reports for 2024. 
• The MIT has prepared a Call for Support of Electromobility. CZK 1.95 billion has been earmarked for entrepreneurs. 
• Decree No.341/2023 Coll. establishes the meal allowance rates applicable for 2024 abroad. Rates are being increased for 22 countries, including Croatia, Hungary, Cyprus (EUR 45), Norway and Sweden (EUR 65), and Spain (EUR 50). The rates for Slovakia (EUR 35), France (EUR 50), Germany and Austria (EUR 45) remain the same as in 2023.
• The Ministry of Justice has submitted to the government a draft amendment to the Act on the Legal Profession. The draft contains changes covering several key areas, such as strengthening the digitisation of processes related to practicing law; extending protection against the provision of legal services by persons who are not legally authorised to do so or who carry out this activity illegally; and regulating the verification of the client's electronic signature (eLegalisation) including attorneys’ access to certain necessary client data from selected public administration information systems. The amendment should enter into effect on 1 July 2024, with the exception of the provisions on eLegalisation coming into effect on 1 January 2025.
• The Ministry of Justice has sent a draft law on experts, expert offices, and expert institutes to the inter-ministerial comment procedure. Among the proposed innovations are, e.g., the abolition of the time limitation of the validity of the authorisation to perform expert activities by experts - natural persons registered in the list of experts and interpreters; the extension of the validity of the expert authorisation of expert offices and expert institutes obtained under the previous legislation by 3 years, i.e., until 31 December 2028; the partial relaxation of the conditions for the performance of expert activities in the form of expert offices and expert institutes. The amendment is to enter into effect on 1 January 2025.

FOREIGN NEWS

• The Economic and Financial Affairs Council of the EU (ECOFIN) has approved the member states’ statement and the accompanying European Commission’s statement reaffirming their political support for the first and second pillars of the OECD's international tax reform. They also confirm the compatibility of the safe harbour rules and the administrative guidelines agreed under the OECD/G20 Inclusive Framework.
• EC Regulation No. 2023/2468 of 8 November 2023 has been published in the Official Journal of the EU, transposing into EU law the amendment to International Accounting Standard 12 (of 23 May 2023) on top-up taxes introduced under Pillar 2 of the OECD's international tax reform. This amendment includes a temporary exemption from accounting for deferred taxes arising from the implementation of the OECD Pillar 2 model rules and introduces targeted disclosures in the financial statements of selected entities. All EU listed companies will be bound by the amendment to IAS 12. We reported on the forthcoming amendments to Czech accounting regulations based on the amendment to IAS 12 here.