ZAGREB, March 25, 2020 - The Tax Administration received about 2,000 applications for tax deferral on the day the government put this measure in place, and about 14,000 businesses applied to the Labour and Pension System Ministry for financing of the minimum wage for 71,000 workers, Finance Minister Zdravko Marić said on Tuesday evening.
The two measures, prompted by the coronavirus pandemic, will require at least HRK 5 billion (€65m) for the next three months and this amount was not provided for in the present budget. "But we will secure it," Marić said in an interview with the public broadcaster HRT, adding that reimbursements would start on Thursday.
Asked why the government did not write off tax liabilities, Marić reiterated that businesses would not have to pay their taxes over the next three months, "and what will happen after that, we will discuss in the coming weeks and months."
"We all expect that this will deal a very strong blow to our economy, and given that we don't know how long it will last, we will be adjusting our measures and introducing new ones accordingly," the finance minister said.
More coronavirus news can be found in the Lifestyle section.
