Old car tax increase was adopted at first reading in Parliament

The tax on old cars from 2019 will go up by nearly 30%. The increase was adopted at first reading in Bulgaria’s Parliament on 18^th of October.

There are two main arguments for raising the tax on old cars: to increase state budget revenue and to enhance environmental indicators.

The opposition were against the rise in the tax, but only after the texts were adopted at first reading. According to data, the change in the taz size would affect owners of nearly 67% of the vehicles traveling on the roads in Bulgaria.

Menda Stoyanova, Chair of the Budget Committee in Parliament: The increase is quite moderate and no more than 20-30% on these cars, given that they are generally with lower tax, this sum will not be such a burden for people, but I think it's high time for us as a society to decide if we want to continue to breathe bad quality air.

Ivan Ivanov, MP from the opposition BSP: I do not know if MP sunderstand what we did today with this draft law. Today, we put the most vulnerable social groups to another test - namely those Bulgarian citizens who drive cars over 15 years old, that is the mass of Bulgarian citizens. How many Bulgarians can afford a new environmentally friendly car?

MPs also adopted an amendment today, which cancels tax cuts for people who have declared more than one main dwelling. In addition, notaries will have the right to check electronically for tax obligations on the movable and immovable property.