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Dubnikov: we have a chance to become a green state
Marius Dubnikovas, Vice President of the Lithuanian Business Confederation (LVK), says that the changes are necessary for Lithuania to become a green country.
The analyst is convinced that the current registration tax, which came into effect a year ago, is ineffective and even harmful, and does not encourage the replacement of an old car “because it is a car replacement tax.”
“Lithuania has a unique opportunity to be a very green ecological state, in the future this business card could be commercialized, that is, both in terms of tourism and life. And we need to review auto taxes. Sometimes it will be unattractive and in this sense it is not attractive. But the tax must be changed, because today’s tax “locks” the consumer in a polluting car, “Dubnikov told BNS.
According to him, looking at the examples from Germany or Latvia, you can see that a regular tax on a polluting car can make you switch cars and think about the environment.
“I think such tax changes will receive very high resistance and similar things, because in Lithuania the park is very polluting and in this case adoption will be difficult. But someone has to take the initiative and stop polluting the environment in which we live ”, said the vice president of LVK.
Dubnikov believes that a profitable and value-generating business will not suffer too much from the tax changes, and the changes will become an incentive to renovate the park.
“Taxes on all that are introduced are certainly a bit of pressure for both companies and society. “It can be an incentive, it will be unequivocal and I think that in the near future we will be able to talk about the business buying cleaner cars in general,” said the analyst.
“This is happening today, but as the supply of electric cars increases, it will probably be inevitable,” he added.
T. Povilauskas: this is a logical direction
Tadas Povilauskas, an economist at SEB Bank, says that the new taxes are a good and logical direction that should be effective in restricting the arrival of polluting cars in Lithuania. According to him, the proposals are more decisive in changing the self-determination of the population than the current registration rate.
“Two years ago, there was a strong enough attempt to show that we were starting to collect taxes on pollution, but we were very reluctant to scare people that those taxes would be high and we got a strange solution, the registration fee was small and it did not affect Habits of the people. As the needs and time arise, it is normal for a balanced solution to emerge, “T. Povilauskas told BNS.
According to him, last year the newest cars registered in Lithuania were 2006-2008, such as the Volkswagen Passat, Volkswagen Golf, Volkswagen Tauran or Audi A6, the price of which is 3-5 thousand. euros and will all be the most taxed.
“For these cars, both the registration fee and the usage fee will be high. The registration fee alone can be as high as 10-20 percent of the purchase price,” said T. Povilauskas.
According to him, people with lower incomes will be more affected by taxes, but he welcomes the fact that benefits are offered to retirees, family cardholders and the disabled.
In addition, T. Povilauskas emphasizes that it is especially important to adequately communicate that there are alternatives to the cars we currently have, when less polluting cars can be bought for the same price.
Ž. Maurice: Vision is needed
Sigismund Mauricas, an economist at Luminor, said changes in the area of car taxes could have been expected, but the timing of the proposals is somewhat surprising given the ongoing pandemic and the unseen vision of the entire tax system.
It predicts that if the changes proposed by the Environment Ministry are approved, the biggest outrage could come from people living outside of big cities, where there are few alternatives to the private car. Then Ž. Maurice would be more in favor of the idea of extending taxes to metropolitan areas.
“For example, to tax all the yards, the first car could be free at the beginning, and maybe a fee would come later. And that charge is more like an infrastructure charge. Then people would know more about what they are paying for. And people living in Vilnius, Kaunas, big cities have other transport alternatives, ”the Luminor economist argued to BNS.
The economist lacks the broader context of the proposed automobile pollution taxes. According to him, such measures should stimulate discussion, not disappoint.
“We need to start more with the vision, from the narrative – why are we doing what we are proposing, what alternatives (…) To make people accept the tax more, to understand why it is being introduced, rather than someone Abandon the directive? (…) Politicians, incidentally, often use it as “all countries have and we should have.” Why do we have to have it, if everyone has? ”He commented Ž. Mauricas.
He also commented on proposed tax breaks, such as age.
“Everyone will now look for their parents, grandparents, they will write cars on them, especially those with lower incomes (…) The avoidable taxes that encourage such legalized fraud are not personally acceptable to me,” said Ž . Mauricas.
Ministry: concessions are also granted
On Thursday, the Deputy Minister of the Environment, Gintarė Krušnienė, stated that it is planned to tax only cars imported into Lithuania and their first registration.
“Another element is the strengthening of pollution taxes and the goal of moving the entire car fleet, not just acquisitions. In addition to the import fee to Lithuania, there is also an annual user fee from 2023,” he said. G. Krušnienė at the press conference.
According to the deputy minister, based on the flow of cars that entered Lithuania in 2020, a third of the cars would have to pay the registration fee. Another quarter would cost up to 250 euros for a gasoline car and a little more for a diesel car. At that time, 13 percent. for the most polluting cars, this charge could amount to 500 euros or more.
At that time, you don’t have to pay a user fee for a quarter, and about 20 percent. – up to EUR 100 per year and EUR 200 or more for the most polluting substances.
The project provides benefits for large families, drivers over 65 and other groups. Until the end of 2024, there will be a transition period for all drivers who purchased a vehicle before the first pollution tax in 2020.
The tax changes would apply to passenger cars owned by natural and legal persons.
After the renewal of the car pollution tax, it is expected to accumulate one billion by 2030. The Sustainable Mobility Fund will be used to develop mobility by bus and bicycle in municipalities.
