169th regular session of the Government of the Republic of Slovenia

Today, the Government reviewed the starting points for preparing changes in the taxation of natural persons who carry out an activity and determine the tax base based on actual income and normalised expenditures. Among other things, a proposal was put forward to consider adjusting the conditions for entry and existence in the so-called system of normalised expenditures by increasing the income ceiling. The Government will submit the starting points to the Economic and Social Council for consideration. The system of determining the tax base based on normalised expenditures is a simplified method of determining the tax base from income from an activity. It is primarily intended for administrative simplification in the initial stages of a business operation and with a small volume of business transactions. As it turned out that the system brings various anomalies, we have adapted it several times in the past. We most recently adjusted it with an amendment to the Personal Income Tax Act, which came into effect at the beginning of the current tax year and which, among other things, lowered the threshold for entering into and existing in the system of normalised expenditures. In the discussions that followed the latest amendment, it was highlighted in particular that lowering the thresholds for entering into and existing in the system has a negative motivational impact on individuals when it comes to expanding their scope of business activity. In order for entrepreneurs to be able to devote themselves to their work and create added value as much as possible, without wasting time on administrative tasks, it was consequently proposed to reconsider making changes to the system of normalised expenditures. It was proposed that additional consideration be given to raising the threshold for entering into the system of normalised expenditures from 30,000 euros to 50,000 euros in revenue for so-called afternoon quotas or from 60,000 euros to 120,000 euros for so-called full quotas, and accordingly, the threshold for exiting the system would also be raised to 50,000 euros for so-called afternoon quotas or to 120,000 euros for so-called full quotas. This would ensure that, despite the expansion of their business activities, sole proprietors can still remain in the system of normalised expenditures and consequently maintain an administratively simple method of determining tax liability.

The Government reviewed the proposed starting points for discussing the introduction of a mandatory right of workers to the payment of a 14th monthly salary (Christmas bonus) and is submitting them to the Economic and Social Council for consideration. The introduction of a 14th monthly salary or Christmas bonus aims to provide all workers in the same position with additional income in each individual year, which would help improve the financial positions of workers and thus improve their satisfaction and motivation for work. According to the proposal, the amount of the 14th monthly salary paid would be exempt from taxes and contributions. In order to mitigate the differences between tax payers from a tax treatment perspective, the 14th monthly salary would be treated for tax purposes in the same way as a payment for business performance, i.e. it would be taken into account within the framework of the tax benefit that already applies for business performance in the present state.

Today, the Government approved a proposal for a new Central Credit Register Act, which will upgrade the current law and, among other things, bring new features regarding the mandatory reporting of data for creditors who are included in the Central Credit Register. The Central Credit Register is a centralised collection of data and information on the indebtedness of business entities and the credit risks and other exposures assumed by creditors when dealing with business entities, as well as the indebtedness of natural persons arising from credit transactions. The Central Credit Register, among other things, enables the Bank of Slovenia to more effectively implement its tasks and powers in the areas of conducting monetary policy, ensuring financial stability and macroprudential oversight. It also contributes to effective credit risk management by enabling the exchange of data and information within the framework of the information exchange system for creditworthiness assessment and credit risk management. With the new measures regarding the mandatory reporting of data on credit transactions to the Central Register, the European Directive on Consumer Credit Agreements will be partially transposed into national legislation. The remaining part of the aforementioned Directive will be transposed by the law governing consumer crediting.

The Government of the Republic of Slovenia reviewed the European Commission's report on the state of the rule of law in the European Union for 2025. At the same time, it tasked the competent ministries and bodies in the composition to study the chapter on Slovenia, with an emphasis on the European Commission's recommendations to Slovenia, and to prepare a comprehensive response regarding a review of the current situation, implementation plans and the time frame for their fulfilment. According to the report, Slovenia has made progress in practically all areas discussed and has made progress on all of last year's recommendations. In reference to Slovenia, the report notes that significant progress has been made in the field of justice in the recent period. Guarantees for the independence of the judiciary and the autonomy of prosecutors in parliamentary investigations have been introduced, the salaries of judges and state prosecutors have also increased, while efforts are underway to improve the protection of judicial workers. The National Assembly is debating important legislative changes concerning disciplinary procedures, the appointment of Supreme Court judges and the reform of the court network. Digitalisation efforts continue, although challenges remain in eliminating the backlog of court cases, particularly in the areas of money laundering and corruption. In the area corruption prevention, a new strategy and action plan were adopted, which strengthen investigations, prosecutions and court proceedings. The Commission for the Prevention of Corruption has stressed the need for greater transparency in the appointment of high-ranking public officials, and lobbying guidelines and rules on political financing have also been improved. The technical capacity of the Commission for the Prevention of Corruption has improved, although staffing challenges remain. Regarding the media, the report notes that the media regulator maintains its independence, albeit with limited resources, and the independence of public media is strengthening, although financial challenges are affecting the private media sector and media pluralism. The framework for access to information remains favourable, and further measures have been taken to protect journalists. Legislative changes have relieved the burden on the Constitutional Court and expanded the powers of the Ombudsman, further developing the Slovenian civil space into a more open one. In the report, the European Commission made recommendations to Slovenia to take further measures to ensure permanent results regarding investigations, prosecutions and final judgments in cases of criminal acts of corruption, including high-level cases; to continue the process of adopting legislative and non-legislative protective measures to improve the protection of journalists, taking into account European standards regarding the protection of journalists; and to complete the reform to ensure rules or mechanisms for ensuring the financing of public service media that is adequate for the performance of their public service tasks while ensuring their independence.