Ministry of Finance: new Accounting Act to take effect only from 2026
The Ministry of Finance has published an updated working version of the draft of the new Accounting Act and has confirmed that it is expected to come into effect from January 2026 at the earliest.
The draft of the new Accounting Act, the latest version of which has been published by the ministry, is currently being discussed by the government’s legislative council. Once approved by the government, it will be debated in the chamber of deputies. The new law is followed by an accompanying law that amends 130 related legal regulations including a major amendment to the Income Tax Act. The accompanying law has undergone an inter-ministerial comment procedure, and the comments are currently still being processed. For this reason, it is no longer realistic that the pending legislation will come into effect on 1 January 2025, which was the date envisaged. According to the ministry's statement, the new law will therefore not take effect until 1 January 2026 at the earliest.
The debate in the chamber of deputies will be crucial for the completion of the legislative process. For comparison, the draft amendment to the VAT Act was debated by the deputies for four months. If the chamber of deputies fails to pass the new Accounting Act and its accompanying law before the autumn elections, the entire legislative process will have to start again in the newly elected chamber of deputies.