Kosovo budget risks losing around 200m euros

The measures Kosovo has taken to prevent the spread of corruption, such as restrictions on exercising economic activities, paying off and postponing tax obligations and other measures, are estimated to affect the reduction of revenues for Kosovo's budget.

The institutions responsible for collecting taxes, taxes and various financial obligations are the Kosovo Tax Administration and Customs.

Acting Minister of Finance and Transfers Besnik Bislimi has indicated that from the forecasts made, the state budget may have up to 200m euros less in revenues.

Depending on the duration of the pandemic problem, on an annual basis, projections point to a possible quantum drop in revenues from 7.5 to 12.5 percent of the annual budget. In monetary terms, this means that the state budget may have up to 200m euros less inflow than those calculated in February”, Bislimi said.

The two institutions that contribute mostly to the Kosovo budget filling are the Kosovo Tax Administration and Kosovo Customs.

Kosovo's 2020 budget is 2.3 billion euros. Under this budget, Kosovo Customs for the state ark must raise over 1.2 billion euros, while Kosovo Tax Administration will raise around 600m euros.

Collecting these inflows after the condition created by the body of the coronary pandemic is considered to be difficult and feasible, officials of these two institutions say.

Kosovo Tax Administration General Director Ilir Murtezaj told Radio Free Europe that they have not made any predictions of how few revenues could be, but since March only that there has been a decline.

Murtezaj adds that for March at the Kosovo Tax Administration, as a result of the pandemic, revenues will be up to 14m euros less.

“Dmim will be multidimensional not only in terms of revenues, but also in terms of reducing the liquidity of private business. Based on the budget plan for 2020, ATK is scheduled to collect an estimated 557.5m euros. If it were in a normal economy like before the pandemic, we would have managed by the end of the year this plan”, Murtesaj says.

Less influence by the coronary pandemic is expected to have customs revenues. Kosovo Customs spokesperson Adriatic Stavileci told Radio Free Europe that no customs revenues have been observed so far, but there is a decline in imports.

“As in all other aspects, the pandemic has also affected Kosovo Customs, therefore we have a slight decline in import, but the income performance at the moment is above last year. At the moment we are above last year, about 3.6 per cent or 8m euros more”, Stavileci said.

The Kosovo government has taken numerous measures with the aim of halting the spread of coronary. Many private businesses, which have been practicing various activities, have been closed.

The measures against the spread of the coronary have started since March 13th, when the first cases of infection, COVOD-19, were presented.