On August 23rd 2022, the National Assembly of the Republic of Slovenia adopted the Act on an emergency measure in the field of value added tax to mitigate the increase in energy prices. The measure aims to reduce the tax (VAT) from 22% to 9.5% on district heating and on the supply of electricity, firewood and natural gas for the period from September 1st to May 31st 2023, for which all users are eligible.
One of the proposals was to reduce VAT on heating oil, since statistics show that around 15% of the population in Slovenia uses it, however such measures are not permitted under the EU Directive regulating the supply of heating oil. However, in view of the rise of the price of petroleum products, a model for a softer regulation of heating oil prices will be considered. It would be based on the current price regulation model for petroleum products.
At the same time, on August 31st 2022, the National Assembly of the Republic of Slovenia adopted the Act on Aid for the Economy due to High Increases in Electricity and Natural Gas Prices, which provides state aid in the form of subsidies for the costs of electricity and natural gas consumption.
According to the Act, the state will co-finance 30% of the costs of electricity and natural gas in 2022 above twice the increase in their prices in 2021. The law provides for three types of aid, namely:
- simple aid for the economy of up to EUR 500,000 and up to 30 % of eligible costs;
- specific aid for the economy of up to EUR 2,000,000 and up to 30 % of eligible costs, with a ceiling on the calculation of costs at a maximum of 70 % of spending in 2021; and
- aid for energy-intensive businesses up to a maximum of EUR 2,000,000 and up to 50 % or in some cases up to 70 % of eligible costs.
The beneficiaries of the aid are legal and natural persons carrying out economic activities in the Republic of Slovenia who were registered as companies, sole traders or cooperatives by December 1st 2021. The beneficiary must not be the subject of bankruptcy or liquidation proceedings at the time of the submission of the application, and must not have outstanding tax liabilities and unpresented and unpaid withholding tax returns for employment income for the last year of EUR 50 or more. It should also be pointed out that undertakings which are eligible for a regulated price for natural gas or electricity under other regulations or which have included the increase in the cost of electricity and natural gas in the price of their products or services are not eligible for State aid. The above also applies to companies, sole traders and cooperatives whose primary activity is agricultural production and fisheries or aquaculture. They are only eligible for EUR 62,000 of maximum aid for agriculture and EUR 75,000 for fisheries.
Beneficiaries can submit their applications in the electronic application of the Public Agency SPIRIT Slovenia until November 15th 2022. The payments will be made in two instalments, i.e. for the eligible period from June 2022 to September 2022, the payment will be made by December 31st 2022, and for the eligible period from October 2022 to December 2022, the payment will be made by March 15th 2023.
