According to the amendments to the Ordinance on the implementation of the General Tax Act (OG, No. 144/21), the period for non-taxable donations to help persons from the area declared a disaster caused by the earthquake, ie Sisak-Moslavina, Zagreb, and Karlovac counties, has been extended.
The period has been extended for the next year, ie until 31 December 2022.
This means that VAT payers are exempt from VAT on the supply of goods and services, made without compensation or countermeasures to help disaster-stricken areas, for all deliveries to be made by the end of 2022.
Therefore, donations related to disaster relief in these areas given to legal or natural persons are considered tax-deductible expenses (from the point of view of income taxation) and tax-deductible expenses that do not increase personal deduction (from the point of view of income taxation). 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.
TAX TREATMENT OF DONATIONS FOR EARTHQUAKE MITIGATION
As a reminder, if you are a donor, it is useful to know that:
- Legal and natural persons who are liable to pay income tax, for donations given in kind or in cash, may determine tax-deductible expenses up to the amount of 2% of the income realized in the previous year;
- Personal income taxpayers, taxpayers who are receiving income from self-employment, and other citizens, for given donations in kind or cash, can increase their personal allowance up to 2% of receipts by submitting the form ZPP-DOH or annual income tax return. When submitting the form or income tax return, a certificate of donation or a copy of the cash transfer to the state budget account is required.
This applies when submitting annual profit income and personal income tax returns for 2020, 2021, and 2022 i.e., for all donations that will be given by the end of 2022.
If you are a natural person and recipient of donations, it is useful to know that if you receive a donation from local government units under special regulations, or your employer, provided that the aid is provided to all workers who suffered damage – received the gift will not be considered income.
Likewise, a donation received by individuals will also not be considered income if it is collected in humanitarian actions or publicly announced actions.
Donations for health needs will not be considered as income either, provided that the payment of incurred expenses is made to the giro account of the recipient of the gift or health institution and based on authentic documentation. If the donations received are not entirely spent for the health needs of the recipient of the donation, the remaining part of the donation will be considered a taxable income.
Taxpayers registered for VAT are exempt from paying VAT on supplies of goods and services performed without compensation or counter-performance and have the right to deduct input tax for donated goods or services performed without compensation or counter-performance. The exemption applies to all donations of goods and services provided from December 2020 until the end of the year 2022.
WANT TO DONATE, BUT YOU DON’T LIVE IN CROATIA?
If you do not live in the Republic of Croatia, but in another EU Member State, it is useful to know that donations of goods from the other EU Member States are not subject to VAT in the Republic of Croatia. The VAT exemption does not apply to the purchase of goods and services from donated funds.
The import of goods obtained free of charge to meet basic human needs, imported by state, humanitarian, and charitable legal entities and institutions, is exempt from VAT.
The import of equipment sent from outside of the European Union free of charge to the above organizations and institutions to meet their operational needs and achieve their humanitarian goals is also exempt from VAT.
