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Operational Group: Government takes significant steps to protect the economy

Norbert Izer, state secretary for Tax Affairs at the Ministry of Finance, reported today on the economic measures taken by the government in the fight against the coronavirus.

During today’s Operational Group press conference, Norbert Izer, state secretary for Tax Affairs at the Ministry of Finance, reported on the economic measures taken by the government in the fight against the coronavirus.

The state secretary said the government has so far spent HUF 600 billion on the purchase of equipment to defend against the virus while tax reduction measures have left HUF 300 billion in the pot for families.

The government has also granted a four-month exemption from fixed-rate tax of small (KATA) taxpayers in 26 scopes of activities, meaning a HUF 26 billion tax release. The tax authority also canceled the four-month tax liability for 131,000 companies this week.

The government's tax relief leaves HUF 66 billion in the tourism and agriculture sectors, social contribution tax has also been reduced by 2 percentage points, which will be maintained in the long run. The small business tax rate will be reduced from 12 to 11 percent from January 1, meaning a total saving of HUF 10 billion for 50,000 companies.

Meanwhile, Chief Medical Officer Cecília Müller talked about the world-class Hungarian compulsory vaccination system, as 99.8 percent of the population are vaccinated against diseases like TBC, diphtheria, whooping cough, mumps and chickenpox, creating a favorable epidemiological situation across the whole country.

“As we have avoided the exponential growth of infections so far, we can hope that with the discipline of the population it is possible that this will remain the case,” Müller said. “Obviously, everyone is waiting to meet with their elderly relatives again, but we should only return to the old routines with due care,” she said, adding that patience and following the rules are essential.

Finally, in relation to the easement of restrictions, Müller said Hungary will ease them as much as the numbers will allow them to do so.