Latvia: Digital economy – mobile phone app as tax payer’s unit.

On 3 July the Cabinet of Ministers revised the amendments to law “On Taxes and Duties” (the Bill), which provides the Latvian State Revenue Service (SRS) with significant authorisation to control and request additional information from digital economic market players.

The Bill’s aim is rather noble. Namely, all the amendments are designed to minimise grey economy in digital economy market. SRS has identified the tax potentials from digital media sites who provide selling and advertisement services.

The Bill expands the meaning of tax payer’s unit (department), stating that the tax payers unit is also a web site or mobile application, which provides goods and services trading or collecting possibilities, ordering system or payment system.

This means that the holders (owners) of such units will have to register the web sites as their tax units at SRS.

It should be noted, that the Bill provides that web sites designed purely for information and marketing activities do not qualify as the tax payer’s registerable unit, if it does not directly allow to perform business activities.

In our further articles, we will inform our readers on other amendments in The Bill. The Bill should also be reviewed and accepted by Parliament.

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