Flash News Archive

This article explores the practicalities of applying recent amendments to the Real Estate Tax (RET) Act. You may want to read our Flash News edition of 15 June 2010 first. Read further »

This edition of Flash News begins a series of articles that will be exploring the lawmaker’s activities in the area of natural resource tax (NRT) in 2010 and late 2009 (i.e. following the amendments of 12 June 2009 to the NRT Act) in order to help our subscribers understand whether any NRT changes have gone unnoticed. This article takes a look at what we perceive as key amendments to Cabinet Regulation No. 404, which explains the general assessment and payment of NRT (the NRT rules) as well as Cabinet rules concerning the terms and conditions of waste management contracts. Read further »

Draft amendments to the Excise Act and to Cabinet Regulation No. 662 of 30 August 2005, Circulation of Excise Goods, were announced at a July meeting of state secretaries. This article takes a quick look at these amendments. Read further »

When restructuring and recovering their loans, banks incur collateral-related expenses. Read further »

This report summarises and analyses information on the tax burden in the 27 EU member states over the period from 1995 to 2008 and provides an overview of how the economic crisis has affected the level and structure of tax revenues. The trends and findings outlined are both interesting and instructive. Read further »

An individual may carry on a business not only as a sole trader or using a company they own but also through a partnership. This article takes a look at how Latvian tax-resident individuals should assess and pay income tax. Read further »

The Taxes and Duties Act lays down, among other things, liability for understating the amount of VAT payable to the government and for overstating the amount of VAT refundable by the government. Under the Taxes and Duties Act, the State Revenue Service (SRS) conducting a tax audit has the power to assess the amount of tax lost (plus a late charge) or to reduce the overstated tax credit, as well as imposing a penalty of 30, 50, 70 or 100 per cent in either case according to the criteria prescribed by sections 32 and 32.3 of the law. The Taxes and Duties Act also lays down a procedure for reducing a penalty imposed by the SRS. Although a tax offence in either case is punished in a similar way (the criteria and the method of penalty assessment being identical), a penalty reduction is only possible in the case of a tax understatement. Read further »

In 2009 Latvia was forced to introduce new taxes, to reduce or even abolish some of its tax incentives, and to raise its tax rates. Yet tax changes were made across the EU to curb the drop in inland revenues. This article takes a look at what the EU governments were up to during the period from late 2008 to this May. The information comes from a report on EU taxation trends published by the European Commission on 28 June this year. Read further »

Cabinet Regulation No. 564 came into force on 1 July this year which, among other things, lays down a new procedure for expatriates registering their residence permits. This article takes a look at the key points. Read further »

The Microbusiness Tax (MBT) Act, adopted by Parliament on 9 August this year, will come into force on 1 September this year. This law will give existing and newly-formed businesses the opportunity of acquiring microbusiness status and registering for MBT. This article explores what we perceive as key clauses in the final version of the law. Read further »