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Basic characteristics of The Czech Republic’s tax system. 1. Direct Taxes Personal Income Tax is regulated by Act No. 586/1992 Coll., on Income Taxes. Its payers are all natural persons having their residence in the territory of the Czech Republic or persons living there. The tax period is the calendar year. The tax base is the sum of all incomes, which the law divides into income from employment, income from business, income from lease, capital income, and other income. As from 2008, the employment Income Tax base is the gross wage plus Social and Health Insurance contributions paid by the employer (called Supergross Wage). From certain kinds of income, payers may deduct expenses incurred to generate, secure and maintain the income, either in their actual amount or as a percentage of their income fixed by law (depending on the type of business, it ranges from 40% to 80%). As from 2008, the paid Social and Health Insurance contributions are not deductible from the tax base. Losses may be carried forward to the next five years and deducted from the income of the future periods. Income from the sale of certain kinds of assets is exempted from tax if a period of time fixed by law has passed between their acquisition and sale (e.g. 6 months in the case of securities, or 5 years in the case of apartments). As from 2008, the tax rate has been flat, set at 15 %. Tax Returns must be filed by 31 March of the following year or by 30 June if the Tax Return is prepared by a Tax Adviser. The taxpayer must pay instalments depending on the tax amount. Employees are not required to file Tax Returns, as this obligation falls on the employer. The Act provides for a number of tax allowances related to the personal and family situation of the taxpayer. The Act also enumerates tax reliefs. For example, taxable persons can deduct from their tax base donations for charity purposes, interest paid on mortgage, and amounts paid on the pension savings or life insurance systems. Corporate Income Tax is also regulated by Act No. 586/1992 Coll., on Income Taxes. Its payers are all types of juristic persons depending on the address of their registered office or the place from where their activities are directed. The tax period is the calendar year or another twelve-month period beginning on the first day of any other month than January. The tax base is the difference between income and expenditure relating to the tax period concerned. The income and expenditure are ascertained from accounting documents according to Czech national bookkeeping standards. Only tax allowable expenses, i.e. those incurred so as to generate, secure and maintain the income, may be deducted from the income. The depreciation of assets is made individually. Tangible assets are divided into 6 depreciation categories, with depreciation periods of 3 to 50 years. Losses may be carried over for 5 years into future periods and deducted from the incomes of those periods. Tax returns must be filed within 3 months of the end of the tax period, or within 6 months if the Tax Return is prepared by a Tax Adviser, or if the law requires verification of the financial statement by an Auditor, which is the case of most juristic persons. The taxpayer is obliged to pay instalments depending on the amount of the tax. As from 2010, the tax rate is 19%. The Act also provides for a number of tax reliefs. These are primarily investment incentives (tax holidays) for a period of up to five years. They also include support for Science and Research, whereby taxpayers may deduct 100% of their expenditures on scientific and research projects from their tax base. Property Tax is levied on land and buildings. As from 2010, the rates on most real estate were doubled, but the tax amounts are still relatively low. Road Tax is only charged on vehicles used or intended to be used for business purposes. Vehicles used exclusively for personal use are not liable to tax. The tax rates are firmly fixed annual amounts. Other taxes are the Inheritance Tax, Gift Tax, Real Estate Transfer Tax with a 3 % rate, and a number of administrative and local charges and rates. 2. Indirect Taxes Value Added Tax (VAT) is regulated by Act No. 235/2004 Coll., on Value Added Tax. VAT registration liability applies to persons with a turnover exceeding CZK 1 000 000/approx. EUR 39 500 a year. Persons with a lower turnover may register voluntarily. As from 2008, the Act makes it possible for a group of persons tied by capital to register as one VAT payer. Persons engaged in tax exempt activities (e.g. financial services) are not required to register. For persons with a turnover of up to CZK 10 million, the tax period is the calendar quarter, for persons with a higher turnover, it is one month. The Tax Return is to be filed on the 25th day after the end of the tax period. A VAT registered person is liable to apply VAT to all its taxable activities and to issue a document to that effect, i.e. the invoice or sale document. Imports of goods from states outside the EU are liable to VAT. Transactions between EU states are subject to the harmonised rules, which include the obligation to make summary reports. The tax base is the value of all taxable supplies taken together. There are two VAT rates. As from 2010, the standard rate is 20% and it is charged on most goods and services. The reduced rate is set at 10%. The lower rate is applied to food, medicaments, houses and apartments up to a certain size, books, newspapers and magazines, accommodation services, etc. Certain transactions are exempt from VAT, such as transfers of land other than building sites, and the lease of land and buildings. The introduction of VAT relief on bad is since April 2011. Within the struggle against tax evasion, the same date was introduced to transfer tax liability to the buyer in some transactions (reverse charge), and to make the buyer liable for tax that has not been paid by the supplier if the buyer has known or should have known about it (joint and several liability). Excise Duty, too, is harmonised by the EU directives concerned. Excisable goods include mineral oils, alcohol, beer, wine, and tobacco products. The duty is charged at fixed rates (with the exception of cigarettes, where the duty is a combination of the fixed rate and a percentage amount of the final retail price). The tax period is the calendar month. The duty becomes payable at the moment the goods are released into free circulation, i.e. when they have left the consignment warehouse. It is due on the 40th day after the end of the tax period concerned. Excise duty on cigarettes is paid in the form of tobacco labels. The duty is due within 60 days of the purchase of the tobacco labels. Energy taxes, introduced in 2008, are fully harmonised by the relevant EU directive. Energy taxes are charged on electricity, solid fuels (coal and coke) and natural gas. Excise duty rates on cigarettes, mineral oils, spirits and beer have been raised slightly as from 2010. Source:Ministry of Finance

Natural persons are deemed to be Personal Income Tax payers. The amount and way of determining the payer’s final tax liability depends on the determination of his/her residence status. A payer deemed to be a Czech tax resident has an unlimited tax liability, which means that he/she is required to pay Tax in the Czech Republic on all his/her worldwide income. A payer deemed to be a Czech tax non-resident is only required to pay Tax in the Czech Republic on income derived from sources on the territory of the Czech Republic, as specified by Czech regulations and the particular International Double Taxation Prevention Treaty. According to Czech tax legislation, a Czech tax resident is a person having his/her permanent place of residence(1) or habitual abode (domicile)(2) in the Czech Republic. If the payer is deemed to be a Czech tax resident and is simultaneously a resident of another State, his/her final tax residency shall be determined on the basis of the particular International Double Taxation Prevention Treaty. The provisions of the Double Taxation Prevention Treaty have priority over the Czech tax law. In the case of the Czech Republic not having a bilateral Double Taxation Prevention Treaty with a particular country, the situation may arise where the payer will be deemed to be a tax resident in both States. Object of Tax Employment income is generally defined as income derived from current, previous or future employment(3), where the employee carries out work for the employer according to his instructions; this category also includes emoluments of members of the statutory bodies of juristic persons and remuneration of executives(4). These incomes comprise wages, bonuses, wage compensation and all employer provided benefits in both monetary and non-monetary form. On the other hand, travel expenses compensation within the statutory limit and various other income and benefits, such as luncheon voucher compensation, cultural and social fund benefits and temporary accommodation compensation up to CZK 3 500 (approx. 140 EUR), are not objects of Personal Income Tax under certain conditions. No expenses related to income from dependent activity are tax deductible. For the purpose of tax base computation, the income from dependent activity is augmented by the percentage of Social Security and Public Health Insurance premiums, which the employer is obliged to pay on such income (supergross wage). In the case of the employee participating in a foreign Social Security and Healthcare Insurance system, his/her income is augmented by the amount of the hypothetical Czech premium(5), which his/her employer would be obliged to pay if the employee were party to the Czech system. Tax-Deductible Items To calculate the overall tax base, the dependent activity tax base as defined above must be consolidated with all the other partial tax bases (e.g. income from rent, proceeds from capital). Before the actual computation of tax liability, tax deductible items are deducted from the overall tax base. The most important items are, for example, donations for public utilities purposes, interest on housing credits, contributions to supplementary Pension Insurance and private Life Insurance premiums paid by the employer. Applicable to all these items is the fact that the employer is obliged to support the payments for the said purposes with documentation and to ensure that all the conditions allowing the deduction are met. Tax Rate The employee’s tax liability is computed from the tax base reduced by deductions, using the 15% linear rate. Tax Allowances The computed tax liability can be further adjusted for tax allowances. Every employee is entitled to a Taxpayer Allowance (CZK 23 640 in 2011 (approx. EUR 945 ). The full amount of this allowance can be claimed, regardless of the taxpayer’s tax residency status. In the case of the income of the taxpayer’s spouse in the particular tax period not exceeding CZK 68 000.(EUR 2720), the payer is entitled to claim an allowance for the spouse to the amount of CZK 24 840 (EUR 994). Other allowances are, for example, Disability Allowances and Student Allowances. The taxpayer may also claim a Child Tax benefit to the amount of CZK 11 604 (EUR 464). In the case of the taxpayer’s tax liability having been fully covered by tax allowances, the Child Tax benefit can also be used as a Child Allowance or a Tax Bonus. In that case, the Tax Bonus is an amount added to the employee’s net salary or paid to him/her by the financial authority. Taxpayers can also claim proportionate amounts of tax allowances, with the exception of the Taxpayer Allowance, and Child Tax benefits in the case of the conditions for allowing them being met only in certain months of the tax period. An employee deemed to be a Czech tax non-resident may only claim the allowances mentioned above(6) if his/her income derived from sources on the territory of the Czech Republic amounts to at least 90% of all his/her taxable income in the particular calendar year. Tax Collection Each month, the employer is obliged to compute and withhold an advance on the dependent activity Income Tax payable by his employees and to return it to the financial authority concerned. After the end of the tax period, the employee may ask his employer for a statement of the advances returned by him/her to the financial authority(7). If, in addition to his/her earnings from employment, the employee also has other income (e.g. interest or dividends originating in a foreign country, income from the sale of securities) and the amount of that income is more than CZK 6 000 (approx. EUR 240), the payer is required to file a personal Income Tax Return. The employee is also required to file the Tax Return if he/she derives income from several employers simultaneously. The Tax Return for the tax period (the calendar year for Personal Income Tax) must be filed with the financial authority concerned by 1 April of the following year. On the basis of the Power of Attorney issued to a certified Tax Consultant, or on the basis of an Application, the deadline for filing the Return may be extended to 1 July , possibly 1 November of the following year (in the case of payers whose income originates in a foreign country/countries). If, in the course of the tax period, the employee also receives income from a foreign country, the provisions of a bilateral Double Taxation Prevention Treaty will be applicable. Social Security and Healthcare Insurance Premiums Employment income is subject to the payment of Social Security and Healthcare Insurance premiums. The assessment base for premium computation is derived from the amount of income from employment, where the assessment base is the sum of the income subject to Personal Income Tax and not tax exempt. The premium consists of a part to be paid by the employer and of a part to be paid by the employee. The payer of the premium is the employer, who withholds the premium from the employee’s monthly income. The employer pays both these parts to the Social Security and Healthcare Insurance authorities. The employer pays 25% of the Social Security premium and 9% of the Healthcare Insurance premium; 6.5% of their gross wages for Social Security and 4.5% for Healthcare Insurance are withheld from employees. Members of statutory bodies only pay Healthcare premiums, while executives pay both Social Security and Healthcare Insurance premiums; however, the employer only returns 21.5%, and 6.5% is withheld from the executive’s salary. In 2008, a maximum ceiling(8) was set for premiums; when the Social Security and Healthcare Insurance contributions have reached the maximum level, nothing more is paid until the end of the year. In the case of an employee changing his employment in the course of the calendar year, or if he works for several employers simultaneously, the maximum assessment base is calculated for each employer separately. If the amount of the premium the employee has paid exceeds the annual maximum, after the end of the year the employee may claim the return of the surplus. No premium surplus arises to the employer. Employees coming from another EU country, or a country with which the Czech Republic has a bilateral treaty in the area of Social Security and/or Healthcare Insurance, and working in the Czech Republic, or working in another country for an employer having his headquarters in the Czech Republic, may apply for an exemption from premium payment in the Czech Republic. On the basis of such an exemption, employees are not required to contribute to the Social Security and/or Healthcare Insurance systems in the Czech Republic, but remain contributors to their home Social Security and Healthcare Insurance systems. Martina Kneiflová Andrea Schvábová E&Y (1) The place of residence is a place where the payer has a permanent residence, i.e. an apartment which is available to him/her at all times, whether owned by him/her, or rented, and where the payer intends to be staying (depending on his/her personal and family situation). The apartment may be rented to another person, but only in a form enabling the payer its use according to his/her needs. (2) Stays on the territory of the Czech Republic for at least 183 days in the particular calendar year, continuously or over several periods. (3) Or in connection with a previous, current or future performance of dependent activity, regardless of whether the activity is carried out for the payer of the income or not. (4) Hereinafter “income from dependent activity”. (5) In general, 34% of income up to the amount of the Social Security and Healthcare Insurance premium from the maximum assessment base. (6) With the exception of the basic Taxpayer Allowance, which he can claim to the full amount. (7) The condition is that he/she received no other income besides the income from dependent activity exceeding CZK 6 000 (approx. EUR 240) and the income from dependent activity was paid to him/her during the tax period by a single employer, or by several employers, for whom he/she did not work simultaneously. He/she is also required to complete the employer’s forms concerning employment. (8) Amounting to 72-fold average wages; in 2011 it is CZK 1 781 280 (EUR 71 250)