Net collection of revenues from indirect taxes in BiH in the first eight months this year fell by 9.4 percent compared to the same period last year, according to the Department for Macroeconomic Analysis of the Indirect Taxation Authority (ITA) of BiH.
In teh report, it is stated that in August the negative trends in the collection of revenues from indirect taxes caused by the appearance of coronavirus significantly deepened.
According to the preliminary report of the ITA on cash flow, in August this year, 582.4 million BAM of gross income was collected, which is 118.1 million BAM less than in the same month last year. The analysis shows that the monthly decline in net collection compared to August 2019 is as high as -20.1 percent.
Continuation of negative trends in August led to an increase in the cumulative deficit in the collection of indirect taxes to 555.5 million BAM, while the deficit of net income, due to a decrease in refund payments of 15.4 percent, amounted to 402.9 million BAM.
”The main factors of the negative growth of VAT in August are the large drop in imports, and the unexpected growth of VAT refunds based on international projects. Although the consumption of non-residents (diaspora, tourists, in transit, cross-border consumption) was expected to contribute to the recovery of VAT and excise duties in the summer months, this did not happen due to the maintenance of restrictions on entry into BiH by both domestic and other countries,” is added in the analysis.
In addition, the slow recovery of the EU has a negative impact on the BiH economy, employment and consumer spending, and thus on the collection of indirect taxes.
