Recreational voucher initiative approved by parliament

A recreation contribution for employees willing to spend their holiday in Slovakia will be added to the Labour Code as of January 2019, with Parliament adopting an amendment to the law on supporting tourism drawn up by the coalition Slovak National Party (SNS) on Tuesday. Firms will be required to provide this contribution to employees who have worked for them at least for 24 months and who have applied for the scheme. It should equal 55 percent of eligible costs and amount to €275 at most. The money will be exempt from income tax and deductions for both employees and employers. Furthermore, the vouchers will be mandatory for firms employing more than 49 people. Companies with fewer than 49 employees can issue the vouchers on a voluntary basis. Parliament also approved an amending proposal concerning the law submitted by the coalition Most-Hid party, according to which employees will be able to use the vouchers to pay for holiday camps for their children. Meanwhile, Parliament also voted in favour of an SNS-sponsored amendment to the law on value added tax, reducing VAT on accommodation services to 10 percent. Both amendments are slated to be introduced as of January 1 2019.