The value added tax (VAT) rate for fresh fruit, berries and vegetables native to Latvia will remain at 12 percent in the next years as well, Minister of Agriculture Armands Krauze (Greens/Farmers) told Latvian Television this morning.
He said that he supported the reduced VAT rate for fresh fruit and vegetables typical of Latvia and insisted that it should be maintained in the future.
“I am in favour of the reduced rate. I made it clear in the spring that it would be 12 percent and I will insist that it is maintained,” Krauze said, adding that the reduced VAT rate of 12 percent will continue for the next years.
At the same time, the Agriculture Minister noted that in the future, work should be done to ensure that this reduced VAT rate on food products is applied more widely.
As reported, the reduced VAT rate of 5 percent should be restored for fresh fruit, berries and vegetables native of Latvia in order to reduce the shadow economy, to meet the needs of farmers and consumers, and to give people the opportunity to buy Latvian produce more cheaply, Martins Trons, agricultural policy expert and board member of the Farmers’ Assembly (Zemnieku Saeima) association, told LETA on Tuesday.
Source: BNS
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