House committee to discuss green tax this week

The impact on households and businesses in sectors such as tourism, industry and agriculture of green taxation and the need to grant compensatory measures will be the focus of a debate in the house energy committee on Tuesday.

The issue, for which the finance minister or his representative has been invited to attend, will be discussed, following a motion by MPs Kyriakos Hatzigiannis, Costas Costa and Stavros Papadouris.

It will be recalled that under the Law on Carbon Tax on Energy Products, the government will impose a tax on motor fuels of 5 cents in 2024 and on polluting industries. At the same time, with the Law on the Imposition of a Residence Tax in the Republic of Cyprus, the government will impose a tax of €2.5 per night.

As stated by Finance Minister Makis Keravnos, the imposition of the green tax will be fiscally neutral, as there will be compensatory measures in the context of the tax reform being implemented by the government. The Centre for Economic Research of the University of Cyprus has already presented scenarios for these taxes and the proposed compensatory measures.