Local Taxes and Fees Act
Local taxes and fees act, Local fees, Property tax, (last amended December 2015 / extract)
Local Taxes
Local taxes and fees act – Art. 1. (1) The following local taxes shall accrue to the municipal budgets:
1. immovable property tax;
2. inheritance tax;
3. gift tax;
4. tax on onerous acquisition of property;
5. transport vehicle tax;
6. licence tax;
7. tourist tax;
8. any other local taxes as determined by statute.
(2) The Municipal Council shall determine by ordinance the amount of the taxes covered under Paragraph (1) under the terms, according to the procedure and within the range established by this Act.
(3) Where the Municipal Council has failed to determine the amount of the local taxes for the current year until the end of the last preceding year, the local taxes shall be collected on the basis of the amount effective at the 31st day of December of the last preceding year.
(4) Changes in the amount and manner of determination of the local taxes, as adopted by the Municipal Council, shall be inadmissible in the course of the year.
Local taxes and fees act, Article 2. Local taxes shall be paid in cash at the cash departments of the municipal administration, or by bank transfer by means of crediting the relevant bank account.
Local Fees
Local taxes and fees act, Ar. 6. (1) Municipalities shall collect the following local fees:
Local fees- (a) for disposal of household waste;
Local fees – (b) for use of retail markets, wholesale markets, fairs, sidewalks, squares and street roadways;
Local fees – (c) for attendance at crèches, provision of cooked take-away meals from baby-food kitchens, attendance at kindergartens, residence at specialized institutions for provision of social services, camps, dormitories, and use of other forms of municipal social services;
Local fees – (d) for raising and upbringing activities in the compulsory pre-school education to be used by the kindergarten or the school beyond the activities financed by the state;
Local fees – (e) for technical services;
Local fees – (f) for administrative services;
Local fees – (g) for lease of grave plots;
Local fees – (h) for general support activities within the meaning of the Pre-school and School Education Act, which are not financed from the state budget and which are carried out by personality development support centers;
(i) for dog ownership;
(j) other local fees as determined by statute.
(2) The competent Municipal Council shall set a price for any service provided or any right, including under Paragraph (3) granted by the municipality with the exception of such covered under Paragraph (1).
Property tax
Immovable Property (Real estate) Tax
Local taxes and fees act, Artic. 10. (1) Immovable property tax shall be levied on the buildings and lots located within the territory of Bulgaria, which are situated within the development limits of the nucleated settlements and the dispersed settlements, as well as the lots outside such development limits, which, according to a detailed plan, have the intended purpose under Item 1 of Article 8 of the Spatial Development Act, as well as after the intended purpose of the land is changed, where required by the procedure of a special law.
Local taxes and fees act, Art. 11. (1) Property tax – The taxable persons shall be the owners of taxable corporeal immovables.
Local taxes and fees act, Ar. 13. Property tax – Tax shall be payable irrespective of whether the corporeal immovables are used or not.
Local taxes and fees act, Arti. 14. (1) Property tax – The owner of, or the holder of the limited right in rem to, any newly constructed or otherwise acquired property, as the case may be, shall notify the municipality exercising competence over the situs of the property within two months after the said construction or acquisition by submission of a tax return for annual immovable property taxation.
(4) Property tax – Upon acquisition of a property by succession, the tax return referred to in Paragraph (1) shall be submitted within the time limit referred to in Article 32 herein (in term of 6 months).
Art. 15. (1) In respect of any newly constructed building or part of a building, tax shall be due as from the commencement of the month next succeeding the month wherein the said building or part thereof was completed or when use thereof began.
(2) Property tax – Upon transfer of a property, the transferee shall be liable for tax as from the commencement of the month next succeeding the month wherein the alteration in ownership or use occurred, unless the tax has been paid by the transferor.
Art. 19. (1) The tax shall be assessed on the basis of the assessed value of the corporeal immovables covered under Article 10 (1) herein at the 1st day of January in the year wherefore the tax is due and shall be communicated to the persons not later than the 1st day of March in the same year.
Art. 21. (1) The assessed value of any corporeal immovable appertaining to enterprises shall be the higher of the book value of the said property and the assessed value arrived at according to Annex 2 hereto, and the assessed value of any residential property shall be the assessed value arrived at according to Annex 2 hereto.
(4) Should accounting data be unavailable, the assessed value shall be determined by a municipal administration officer for the account of the taxable person. In such cases, the municipal administration officer may resort to the services of experts.
Art. 25. (1) A rate rebate of 50 per cent shall apply to the tax due on any immovable used as a main residence.
(2) In respect of any immovable used as a main residence by a person who has lost between 50 and 100 per cent of the working capacity thereof, a rate rebate of 75 per cent shall apply to the tax due.
Art. 28. (1) Immovable property tax shall be payable in two equal installments within the following periods: until the 30th day of June, and until the 31st day of October in the year wherefore the tax is due.
(2) Any taxpayer, who or which prepays the amount of tax due for the whole year until the 30th day of April, shall enjoy a rate rebate of 5 per cent.
Inheritance Tax
Art. 29. (1) Inheritance tax shall be levied on the estate of any decedent Bulgarian citizen located within Bulgaria or abroad when devolved by legal or testamentary succession, as well as on the estate located within Bulgaria where so devolved by any decedent foreign citizen.
(2) The estate of any decedent stateless person shall be taxed as an estate of a Bulgarian citizen, should the said person have been permanently resident within the territory of Bulgaria.
Art. 33. (1) Any decedent’s estate, with the exception of such exempt from tax, shall be identified and valued in lev terms at the date of the opening of the succession, as follows:
1. the corporeal immovables within the territory of the country: at the assessed value arrived at according to Annex 2 hereto;
2. the foreign currency and precious metals: at the central exchange rate of the Bulgarian National Bank;
3. the securities: at fair market value or, where the fair market value cannot be established without considerable cost or difficulty, at face value;
4. the transport vehicles: at the insured value;
5. any other movable things and rights: at fair market value;
6. the enterprises or participating interests in commercial corporations or cooperatives: at fair market value or, where determination of the said value requires considerable expense or causes difficulties, according to accounting data;
7. the corporeal immovables within the territory of another Member State of the European Union or of another State which is a Contracting Party to the Agreement on the European Economic Area or of any other third country: at a tax value stated in a document issued for taxation purposes by a competent authority of the respective State, accompanied by an accurate translation into Bulgarian language performed by a sworn translator.
Transport Vehicle Tax
Art. 52. Transport vehicle tax shall be levied on:
1. any motor vehicles registered for operation on the road network in the Republic of Bulgaria;
2. any ships recorded in the registers of the Bulgarian ports;
3. any aircraft recorded in the state register of civil aircraft of the Republic of Bulgaria.
Licence (Patent) Tax
Art. 61h. (1) An annual licence tax shall be levied on any natural person, including a sole trader, who carries out any activity specified in Annex 4 hereto (licence activity), in respect of the income accruing from any such activity, provided that:
1. the turnover of the person for the last preceding year does not exceed BGN 50,000, and
2. the person is not registered under the Value Added Tax Act, with the exception of registration for intra-Community acquisition under Article 99 and Article 100 (2) of the said Act.
(2) In respect of the license activity carried out, the persons referred to in Paragraph (1) shall not be taxed according to the procedure established by the Income Taxes on Natural Persons Act.
(3) The persons referred to in Paragraph (1) shall apply the provisions on taxes withheld at source and on taxation of expenses under Item 2 of Article 204 of the Corporate Income Tax Act.
Art. 61i. (1) Where, within twelve successive months, any one natural person has ceased to carry out a licence activity and/or has formed a new enterprise which carries out a licence activity, and the aggregate turnover of the said two enterprises exceeds BGN 50,000 for twelve successive months, Article 61k herein shall not apply to any such newly formed enterprise. In such a case, the newly formed enterprise shall be subject to taxation according to the standard procedure established by the Income Taxes on Natural Persons Act for the current tax year.
(2) Where, within the current tax year, the turnover of the person exceeds BGN 50,000 or the person registers under the Value Added Tax Act, the said person shall be taxed according to the standard procedure established by the Income Taxes on Natural Persons Act.
(3) In the cases under Paragraphs (1) and (2), the licence tax for the current year shall be payable until the end of the quarter preceding the quarter during which the circumstances referred to in Paragraphs (1) and (2) have occurred.
(4) In the cases under Paragraphs (1) and (2), the tax payable or remitted, as the case may be, shall be deducted from the annual tax liability according to the procedure established by the Income Taxes on Natural Persons Act.
(5) At the request of the person, the municipality shall issue a certificate of the amount of licence tax due, for which no fee shall be charged.
(6) Where, within the current tax year the person deregisters under the Value Added Tax Act, the said person shall be taxed according to the standard procedure established by the Income Taxes on Natural Persons Act for the entire tax year.
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