New Tourist Tax as a Tool for Municipalities in the Czech Republic
DOI:
https://doi.org/10.4335/18.3.1095-1108(2020)Keywords:
tourist tax, tourist charge, local tax, local charge, Czech RepublicAbstract
The Czech Republic is one of many states where the new legal regulation of tourist taxes was introduced to limit the shortcomings of the original regulation. The aim of this paper is to define the opportunities and threats of the new regulation in the Czech Republic in the area of tourist taxes. To achieve the purpose of this article, the tourist tax is defined and Czech legal regulation valid until the end of 2019 and since 2020 in the given area is analysed. The hypothesis that the new regulation is perfect and ideal for the tax administration and for the municipalities was confirmed only partially. While most of the critical issues were solved and the new tourist charge is a good step for both municipalities and the tax administration, the charge rate of 21 CZK in 2020, resp. 50 CZK in the following years is not adequate. With the new regulation, municipalities got new opportunities, primarily to increase their revenues. The single tourist charge makes the system easier for all stakeholders: for municipalities, for tourists, and for quartermasters. Issues arise especially concerning the simplified evidence and the non-chargeable long-term stays. Municipalities should be particularly careful when defining the exemptions and differentiating the charge rate for specific dates in the year, or specific parts of the municipality. The unequal treatment might be seen as discrimination or even unfair public incentive.
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