Belgrade, December 1 – The abolition of VAT in Serbia would increase food donations by nearly 160 million dinars and would total almost 700 million dinars annually showed the cost-benefit analysis conducted by RBF Serbia and Smart kolektiv within the Framework for giving project.
Therefore, the members of the Coalition for Giving submitted a proposal to the Ministry of Finance to abolish the VAT on food donations before the food expiration date through the new Draft on Amendments to the Law on VAT. The proposal is based on best European practices and EU guidelines. Twenty out of 27 EU countries do not charge VAT on donated food.
“Given that almost half a million people in Serbia cannot meet basic living needs and that the destruction of food is harmful to the environment, we recommend that VAT on food donations should be abolished. Currently, it is cheaper for companies to wait for the food to expire and destroy it without paying VAT, instead of donating it while the food is still good for use”, the Coalition stated.
Amendments to the Law on VAT would create an opportunity for companies to donate food worth hundreds of thousands of euros to the most vulnerable citizens and contribute to the fulfillment of the United Nations’ sustainable development goals, to which Serbia is committed.
Members of the Coalition for Giving – Ana and Vlade Divac Foundation, Trag Foundation, Smart Kolektiv, Catalyst Balkans, Serbian Philanthropy Forum and Forum for Responsible Business submitted the proposal based on the analysis of a cost-benefit analysis of abolishing the obligation to pay VAT in Serbia conducted within Framework for Giving project implemented by the Coalition for Giving and funded by the USAID.
