Refuse collection tax to increase by up to 20 percent in next few years

Refuse collection tax will increase by up to 20 percent in the coming years, as stipulated by the draft amendments to the Local Taxes and Fees Act made public last night. The formula used to calculate domestic waste tax will be altered as of 2021, until then municipalities are given a period of transition.

The amendments proposed introduce the “polluter-pays principle”. Several methods of calculation are put forward – depending on the amount of domestic waste for each household in terms of plastic bags, volume of the containers or the number of household members.

As this may result in a drastic hike in refuse collection tax, the ministry of finance is giving municipalities a grace period until 2021, during which the new principles shall not be applied. After this period, the tax may shoot up by more than 20 percent.