Skopje, 5 February 2025 (MIA) - The Ministry of Finance said Wednesday it will proceed upon the Constitutional Court decision to cancel the Law on Solidarity Tax once it is published in the Official Gazette.

The Ministry said it would not comment the court decision, as a result of which the state will have to repay EUR 49.2 million to 156 companies.

The solidarity tax was a one-off public fee in 2023, paid by companies that had profits exceeding EUR 10 million in 2022, with the aim of mitigating the crisis effects and contributing to public expenditure in solidarity.

The Constitutional Court initiated the procedure on assessment of the constitutionality of the law in November 2024, and merged several initiatives submitted by various companies, associations and chambers.

Court President Darko Kostadinovski told a press conference after today's session that the companies are entitled to ask for a refund within five years, if they consider that their rights had been violated.

"This retroactive effect of a law is absolutely unlawful. Legal entities must be entitled to legal predictability and security. Rules of the game cannot be changed during a match. This is the core of the rule of law - this amount of profit means this amount of tax. Anything else leads to legal unpredictability and insecurity," said Kostadinovski.

At the end of the day, he added, the message sent to investors is that the country can introduce a tax whenever it wants.

"This time it is a solidarity tax, the next one will be for something else. The severity of this violation and especially the retroactive effect were key in taking this decision," said Kostadinovski.

MIA file photo