The new year brings new opportunities, challenges, but also changes. Entrepreneurs must constantly keep a watchful eye on what is changing and how, and below are the most important changes in the tax regulations for 2022.
NEW AMOUNT OF MINIMUM GROSS SALARY
We have already written about the new amount of the minimum gross wage, where a new Decree on the amount of the minimum wage for 2022 was adopted. (OG 117/2021) was adopted. The new Minimum Wage Regulation applies to about 51,000 employees with a minimum wage. This Regulation applies to full-time workers, while the minimum wage for part-time work is set in proportion to the minimum wage for full-time work, as well as the hours of work for which the worker is registered. The new amount of the minimum gross wage increased by 10.3% and starting at 2022 amounts to HRK 4,687.50 in gross amount, or HRK 3,750.00 in net amount, which is an increase in the amount of the minimum wage for 2022 compared to the 2021 year of HRK 437.50 in gross amount, or HRK 350.00 in net amount.
In the construction industry, the application of the Collective Agreement for Construction has been expanded, where the minimum wage will be determined according to the complexity of the work on which the employee works. These are ten levels of complexity, so the minimum gross salary in construction will range from HRK 4,200.00 to HRK 11,130.00 per month.
Also, as of December 1, the number of allowances that increase the minimum wage has been increased and the powers of the labor inspectorate to monitor the application of the Minimum Wage Act have been expanded. Employers are required to reconcile employment contracts with workers entitled to a minimum wage by February 1, 2022.
NEW AMOUNT OF BASIS FOR CALCULATION AND PAYMENT OF SOCIAL SECURITY CONTRIBUTIONS
As of January 1, the basis for calculating and paying social security contributions for all compulsorily insured persons has also changed. The new amount of the base for calculating and paying social security contributions for employed members of the Management Board is HRK 6,199.05 per month, for craftsmen subject to income tax it is HRK 6,199.05 per month, and for free professions HRK 10,490.70 per month. It is important to note that the new bases will be applied when paying contributions for January 2022 due in February 2022.
NEW MAXIMUM AMOUNT OF SALARY PROTECTED AGAINST ENFORCEMENT
The new maximum amount of salary protected from foreclosure will be visible already when the salary for December, which is paid in January, is paid. It amounts to HRK 4,724.00 net.
CHANGES IN LABOR LAW
You can read more about the novelties that await us regarding the change of the Labor Law in our article on remote work, and it will mostly concern the work of platform workers, part-time work, and remote work. Thus, according to the proposal of the legislator, written contracts would be concluded for remote working, and the worker would be entitled to reimbursement of overhead costs. Likewise, the new law should better protect workers from precarious contracts and unclear working conditions. According to the proposal, a worker should be able to work for one employer for a maximum of 3 years with a fixed-term contract, and employers should clearly explain the reasons for concluding this type of contract.
Also, unions are advocating for better-regulated rights to paid annual leave, parental leave, sick leave, weekends, and eight-hour working hours. The new Labor Law should be adopted in the first part of this year, and it will incorporate the provisions of the European directive on work-life balance. This directive provides for mandatory ten days of paid paternity leave for fathers, as well as two months of non-transferable paid parental leave.
The novelties also concern the Ordinance on covid certificates, which clearly states that every employer who keeps records of covid certificates should have an appropriate ordinance, harmonized with the GDPR.
NEW AMOUNT OF COMPENSATION FOR NOT COMPLYING WITH THE MANDATORY EMPLOYMENT QUOTA OF PERSONS WITH DISABILITIES
With the entry into the new year, the amount of compensation for non-compliance with the mandatory quota for the employment of persons with disabilities also changes. Find out what incentives for the employment of people with disabilities exist, but also how to fill the required quota in an alternative way. Since the minimum amount of gross salary has changed, the amount of compensation for non-employment of people with disabilities also changes. Recall, employers who employ 20 or more workers are required to hire 3% of workers who have the status of a person with a disability. If they do not meet this quota, they must pay a monthly allowance of 20% of the minimum wage, which means that from 1 January they will pay an allowance of HRK 937.50 per month. It should be noted that the first payment of the new amount will be mandatory when paying the commitment for January 2022, which is due in February 2022.
NEW AMOUNT OF MINIMUM INTEREST RATE ON LOANS BETWEEN RELATED PARTIES
Related parties are also expecting new rules, so the amount of the minimum interest rate on loans between related parties is also changing. Taking into account that when determining interest expenses on loans received from related parties, accrued interest is recognized up to the interest rate that would be realized between unrelated parties at the time of loan approval, as a tax payer’s income tax expense for 2022 is recognized for tax purposes. interest up to 2.68%. Thus, the new interest rate on loans between related parties is 2.68%, while we wrote in more detail about the new interest rate recently.
CHANGES IN PAYMENT OF HGK MEMBERSHIP FEES
We wrote in more detail about the changes in the payment of the membership fee of the Croatian Chamber of Commerce recently, but it does not hurt to repeat the material. From 4 January 2022, membership in the Croatian Chamber of Commerce is still mandatory for all legal entities engaged in economic activity. The financial plan of the Chamber states that the membership fee will not change for medium and large companies, but only for micro and small entrepreneurs who decide to pay the monthly membership fee of the Croatian Chamber of Commerce. Thus, medium-sized companies will continue to pay HRK 1,083.00 per month, while large companies will continue to pay HRK 3,973.00. What is changing for large and medium-sized companies is the offer of packages in proportion to the paid membership fee, ie the right to a larger amount of available services.
Micro and small entrepreneurs who decide to pay membership fees will have 2 packages of services at their disposal. Entrepreneurs in the category of membership fees of HRK 150.00 will be able to use services worth HRK 5,000.00, and those entrepreneurs who will pay a membership fee of HRK 300.00 will be able to use the package worth HRK 7,000.00.
Micro and small entrepreneurs who choose not to pay membership fees will remain members and will have access to the chamber system in the public services segment.
TAX RATE CHANGES
The representative body of local self-government units may prescribe the payment of income tax and additional tax, which we call surtax, to the taxpayers of income tax from their area. Surtax belongs to the unit of local self-government in the area of residence or usual residence of the person liable to pay a surtax on income tax. For some municipalities and cities, the surtax rate changes on January 1, so Karlovac reduced the surtax from 12 % to 9%, Rijeka from 15% to 14%, Varaždin from 10% to 7.5%, and you can find a detailed overview of the surtax rate on the website of the Tax Administration.
EXTENDED PERIOD FOR NON-TAXABLE DONATIONS FOR ELIMINATION OF EARTHQUAKE DISASTER
According to the amendments to the Ordinance on the implementation of the General Tax Act (Official Gazette, No. 144/21), the period for non-taxable donations to help persons from the area declared a disaster caused by the earthquake (Sisak-Moslavina, Zagreb, and Karlovac counties) has been extended, this means that value-added taxpayers are exempt from VAT on supplies of goods and services, made without compensation or countermeasures to help disaster-stricken areas, for all supplies to be made by the end of 2022.
These provisions apply to the filing of income tax returns and income tax returns for 2020, 2021, and 2022, for donations given until 31 December 2022. You can read more in our recent article on non-taxable donations to eliminate the catastrophe caused by the earthquake.
NEWS IN FISCALIZATION PROCEDURES AND NEW BUDGET LAW
The Ordinance on cash fiscalization prescribes the procedure for correcting invoices if the seller (obligator of fiscalization) needs to change the information on the method of payment of a previously issued invoice. You can read more in the Law on Fiscalization and Cash Transactions.
Finally, a new Budget Law has been adopted, the purpose of which is to increase transparency in the planning and use of budget funds. According to the new law, budget costs must be presented transparently, clearly, and understandably.
