Fiscal devices

Draft Regulation amending Regulation N-18 of 2006 on recording and reporting sales at retail sites by means of fiscal devices, the requirements for business management software and the requirements for persons who make sales via an e-shop

Regulation N-18 of 2006 on recording and reporting sales at retail sites by means of fiscal devices, the requirements for business management software and requirements for persons who make sales via an e-shop (Regulation N-18 of 2006) was issued under Article 118(2) and (4) of the Value Added Tax Act (ZDDS) and Article 9(1) of the Income Taxes on Natural Persons Act.

The proposed amendments stem primarily from the option introduced by the ZDDS, whereby, in the case of sales of goods or services via an e-shop, the fiscal receipt recording the sale may be generated in an electronic form and sent to the email address of the recipient without issuing a paper fiscal receipt (Article 118(3)). In connection with this regulation, the draft Regulation proposes that a functional requirement be introduced for fiscal devices to generate a fiscal receipt in electronic form that can be sent to the person’s email address.

The amendment introduces an option for taxable persons, at their own choosing, to provide the fiscal receipt in electronic form instead of in paper form. Thus, by use of modern communication technologies, the persons performing commercial activities via an e-shop will be able to provide their clients electronically with the document proving the recorded sale of the purchased good or service.

In accordance with Article 118(19) ZDDS, the draft introduces provisions that regulate the procedure for entering in and deleting from the public electronic list of e-shops, and its content.

The draft lays down proposals aiming to make existing provisions more precise and to comply with Decision No 704 of the Council of Ministers of 5 October 2018 on the adoption of measures intended to transform the administrative service model.

Another proposed amendment aims to introduce additional forms of fiscal/service receipts for illustrative purposes and to make existing ones more precise. More than 87% of industry and employers’ organisations surveyed by the National Revenue Agency state that the initially set deadlines are impossible to meet with reference to the requirements for sales management software. This is especially valid for enterprises using complex business management systems (ERP systems). Taking into account the need for reworking existing business management systems, including the involvement of developers located abroad, the processing time for installation, tests and staff training, the extension of the deadline will allow economic operators to meet the regulatory requirements. In this regard, in view of the readiness level of businesses and the complexity of the processes of bringing in line with the requirements, an extension of the deadline for sales management software users to 30 September 2019 is proposed.

The introduction of an electronic fiscal receipt aims to relieve the activity of economic operators doing business on the Internet by providing them with the opportunity to generate and send an electronic cash receipt to the buyer’s email address. This is a new functional feature of the fiscal devices, which is expected to be developed and implemented as part thereof and therefore its stand-alone assessment is not possible.

At the same time, the proposed amendments to Regulation N-18 of 2006 regarding e-shops will affect taxable persons only if fiscal devices with functionality for generating electronic fiscal receipts are used. In this regard, the costs that will be incurred are roughly the same as those that would be incurred if a fiscal device without such a functionality is used. In view of this, the financial impact on persons cannot be assessed, insofar as this depends on whether they have opted to use fiscal devices that have the capability to generate an electronic fiscal receipt.

Pursuant to the second sentence of Article 26(4)of the Act on Legal Acts (ZNA), the deadline for public consultation in respect of the draft Regulation is 14 days. The need for the implementation of this regulatory option stems from laying down provisions aiming to extend the deadline for persons using sales management software to bring their activity in line with the regulatory requirements relevant for that activity. The introduction of a new deadline is of considerable public importance, insofar as there are objective circumstances hindering the implementation of the regulatory requirements by these persons within the original deadline. The proposed extension of the deadline is entirely in the interest of the persons concerned; it aims to provide them with the necessary processing time to organise their activities.

The shorter deadline for public consultation will also benefit persons who make sales via an e-shop as the alternative possibility set out in the draft – that the fiscal receipt, at the time of recording the sale, only be sent to an email address specified by the customer – aims to facilitate the business of traders who have chosen this reporting method. The shorter deadline will encourage the persons to make their choice regarding the recording and reporting of their sales via the e-shops and to implement it in their activity as soon as possible.

Furthermore, as of 1 January 2019 a new paragraph 19 of Article 118 ZDDS has entered into force (published in SG No 98 of 2018), according to which the National Revenue Agency shall create and maintain a public list of e-shops, as the procedure for entering in and deletion from the list, as well as its content, shall be determined by Regulation N-18. The deadline for the implementation of the legal norm is six months, as set out in provision § 61 of the Transitional and Final Provisions of the Act Amending and Supplementing the Corporate Income Tax Act (SG No 98 of 2018). Considering the implementation of these provisions, it is necessary to introduce in the Regulation a procedure for entering in and deleting from the public electronic list of e-shops, as well as its content, which is implemented by the current proposals for its amendment.

The proposed amendments to the Regulation will not lead to additional expenditure from the budget of the National Revenue Agency.

The proposed draft act will not have an impact on the state budget.

The draft Regulation does not implement standards under EU law.

The proposed draft Regulation and the motives thereto were published on the website of the Ministry of Finance and the Public Consultation Portal pursuant to Article 26 of the Act on Legal Acts.