OPEN LETTER/ Come to the dialogue and listen to me speak, otherwise I will cut off your scholarships, you will rot in prison. Please!

 Kliko këtu për të tjera
Voxpress:

2026-10-27 16:24:10Biznes SHKRUAR NGA REDAKSIA VOX

The increase in the profit tax to 17%, the dividend tax from 8% to 15%, the increase in VAT for tourism from 6% to 10%, and the reduction in the VAT threshold to 5 million lek are opposed by business representatives.

The Tirana Chamber of Commerce and Industry and Pro Export Albania warn that the changes foreseen in the 2027 Fiscal Package will increase the burden on entrepreneurship, at a time when businesses are facing high costs and the depreciation of the euro.

The Tirana Chamber of Commerce and Industry explains that it supports the reduction of VAT to 6% for basic food basket products, a measure it says it has been requesting for years. But it opposes that the relief for the basket be accompanied by other tax increases for businesses and consumers.

According to the Chamber, with a corporate tax rate of 17% and a standard VAT rate of 21%, Albania would rank among the countries with the highest rates in the Western Balkans. There is also opposition to increasing the dividend tax from 8% to 15%, which the Chamber argues would burden reinvested profits and domestic capital.

Another point of contention is the increase in VAT for tourism from 6% to 10%. According to the Chamber of Commerce, the measure comes at an inconvenient time for the sector, due to the decline of the euro and the fact that contracts for the 2027 season are being signed at fixed prices.

The Chamber also opposes the reduction of the VAT threshold to 5 million lekë. According to it, this measure will affect shops, craftsmen and neighborhood services, many of whom earn as much as an average salary, creating the risk that a part of small businesses will be pushed into informality.

Business representatives also raise concerns about the way the Fiscal Package is being drafted. The Tirana Chamber of Commerce says that on October 9, it sent the proposals and recommendations of the business community to the Ministry of Finance and the Ministry of Economy and Innovation, but has not received a response. According to it, businesses have learned the contents of the package from the media and no consultation meetings have been held with their organizations.

"Business should not be informed after fiscal policy is drafted. Business should be consulted before it is decided," the Chamber emphasizes.

Pro Export Albania is also positioned against the increase in the fiscal burden, placing emphasis on the situation of the manufacturing and exporting sector.

"For years, this sector has been facing the depreciation of the euro, rising costs, reduced production capacities and job losses. Instead of measures that encourage investment, automation, digitalization and the transition to value-added production, we are discussing further increases in the fiscal burden. We are not against fiscal reforms, but against decisions that are made without assessing the real consequences on production, exports and employment," Pro Export Albania declares.

The Chamber of Commerce is calling for the suspension of changes that increase tax rates until a consultation with business is conducted, the maintenance of the current corporate tax rates, standard VAT and VAT threshold, and the revision of the dividend and tourism proposals. It is also calling for the publication of an analysis of the impact that the changes will have on investment, employment, prices, consumption, informality and competitiveness.

The Chamber of Commerce emphasizes that it is not against fiscal reform, but requests that the 2027 Fiscal Package be returned to dialogue with business before any final decision-making.


Në përputhje me standarded JTI

Video

SHIKO KANALIN NE YOUTUBE
×