As part of a national effort to increase the birth rate in Hungary, the Prime Minister has announced that mothers of four or more children will be exempt from paying income tax for life.
Viktor Orban has also offered to include grandparents in paid maternity leave, reduce mortgage payments for people with children, give state aid for purchasing larger family vehicles, add day care options and introduce new loans for families.
According to CNA, the birth rate is looking dire in Hungary, where fertility has dropped to 1.45 children per woman. In order for a population to be considered sustainable, it needs a fertility rate of 2.1 children per female.
State Secretary for Families Katalin Novak told the BBC that: “Increasing the number of births is very difficult, because we have fewer and fewer women of child-bearing age.”
Orban also emphasised that Hungary, which has some of the most stringent immigration policies in Europe, was not interested in bolstering its workforce through immigration, Aleteia reported. Instead Orban told the Washington Post: “Instead of just numbers, we want Hungarian children. Migration, for us, is surrender.”
Meanwhile, according to the Budapest Business Journal, Hungaryʼs National Tax and Customs Administration (NAV) has started sending employers certificates for employees who are eligible for payroll tax exemption, taking over the administrative burden from employers. In the past, it was up to employers to obtain the necessary certificates.
The certificates exempt employers from paying payroll taxes on remuneration up to the minimum wage for hires who were jobless for at least six of the previous nine months. The same applies to mothers of young children who are returning to the labour force. Employers may claim the full exemption for the first two years and 50% in the third year.
Emma Woollacott is a freelance business journalist. Her work has appeared in a wide range of publications, including the Guardian, the Times, Forbes and the BBC.
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As part of a national effort to increase the birth rate in Hungary, the Prime Minister has announced that mothers of four or more children will be exempt from paying income tax for life.
Viktor Orban has also offered to include grandparents in paid maternity leave, reduce mortgage payments for people with children, give state aid for purchasing larger family vehicles, add day care options and introduce new loans for families.
According to CNA, the birth rate is looking dire in Hungary, where fertility has dropped to 1.45 children per woman. In order for a population to be considered sustainable, it needs a fertility rate of 2.1 children per female.
State Secretary for Families Katalin Novak told the BBC that: “Increasing the number of births is very difficult, because we have fewer and fewer women of child-bearing age.”
Orban also emphasised that Hungary, which has some of the most stringent immigration policies in Europe, was not interested in bolstering its workforce through immigration, Aleteia reported. Instead Orban told the Washington Post: “Instead of just numbers, we want Hungarian children. Migration, for us, is surrender.”
Meanwhile, according to the Budapest Business Journal, Hungaryʼs National Tax and Customs Administration (NAV) has started sending employers certificates for employees who are eligible for payroll tax exemption, taking over the administrative burden from employers. In the past, it was up to employers to obtain the necessary certificates.
The certificates exempt employers from paying payroll taxes on remuneration up to the minimum wage for hires who were jobless for at least six of the previous nine months. The same applies to mothers of young children who are returning to the labour force. Employers may claim the full exemption for the first two years and 50% in the third year.
Emma Woollacott is a freelance business journalist. Her work has appeared in a wide range of publications, including the Guardian, the Times, Forbes and the BBC.
OTHER STORIES THAT MAY INTEREST YOU
National protests due to overtime-related "slave law" shake Hungary
Hungary to continue payroll tax cuts - if wages rise fast enough
