The VAT rate is still 12% in the HoReCa sector.
This follows from the official response of the Ministry of Finance to the request of the National Association of Restaurants and Recreation Areas (Măr) regarding the interpretation of the so-called Law on the reduction of the VAT rate for the HoReCa sector during an emergency or emergency in health care. The Ministry of Finance referred to the fact that the official interpretation of laws other than the Constitution and constitutional laws is carried out exclusively by the parliament through the adoption of relevant laws, and the Ministry of Finance appealed to parliament back in May to obtain methodological support on the entry into force of the above-mentioned law, but did not receive an answer so far. In this regard, the department presented its interpretation of the law, but as an opinion. “In accordance with the Law on Normative Acts, amendments to the Tax Code, the Customs Code and the Law on the Customs Tariff, to the laws on the enactment of sections of the Tax Code, as well as laws related to tax policy, enter into force no earlier than 6 months from the day of publication. The legislative initiative adopted by the parliament contains the norms of tax policy regarding tax rates,” the Ministry of Finance emphasizes. Thus, the said law, according to the Ministry of Finance, should come into force 6 months after its publication in Monitorul Oficial (the Official journal of Moldova), that is, on November 21. At the same time, the Ministry of Finance pays attention to specific conditions that imply the application of a reduced VAT rate - the period of emergency and / or emergency in public health. “In accordance with the decision of the National Public Health Emergency Commission, starting from April 29, the “red code” of danger related to the spread of coronavirus is introduced in settlements in which the number of infections in the past 14 days has exceeded 100 cases per 100 thousand inhabitants. Hazard levels and associated measures are set by territorial public health emergency commissions. At present, based on the national epidemiological situation, no emergency situation in public health has been announced in any administrative-territorial unit of Moldova,” the Ministry of Finance notes. Thus, according to the position of the Ministry of Finance, there are currently no grounds for applying a reduced VAT rate. Let us remind you that the mentioned law was published on May 21. It provides that a reduced VAT rate during a public health emergency and / or emergency will be set on food and / or beverages (excluding alcoholic beverages), prepared or unprepared for human consumption, together with related services allowing their immediate consumption carried out within the framework of activities classified as Section I of the Classifier of Economic Activities of Moldova. Also, the reduced rate will apply to accommodation services, regardless of the level of comfort, in hotels, apartment hotels, motels, on tourvillas, in bungalows, tourist boarding houses, agrotourist boarding houses, camping, at recreation centers or in summer camps. // 22.06.2021 – InfoMarket
