The economic agents will be exempted from the tax on packing, if they recover or recycle the packing which they introduce on market. The parliament adopted a draft law to this effect in the second reading today.

The document was worked out, in order to remove legislative inconsistencies for the efficient implementation of the producers’ extended responsibility (REP). The REP mechanism obliges economic agents to recover, turn to account and recycle the products taken out of use, either individually or collectively. Concomitantly with the enforcement of the REP mechanism, the producers and importers of goods pay the tax for the goods which cause pollution of the environment during use. This creates a double financial pressure on the business environment. In this respect, decision-makers introduce a mechanism of exemption from tax on packing of the economic agents which recover of recycle the packages which they introduce on market.

For 2023, the targets of collection and recycling are calculated having as calculation basis the packing put on market starting the date of the entrance into force of the present law.

The document also sees that the quota of the tax on packing should be calculated depending on its weight, just as the legislation sees at present.

Another provision of the draft regards the introduction in the law on the payment for the pollution of the environment of new tariff positions, which according to the combined classified list of goods, represent packing made of paper, cardboard, plastic, glass, metals, wood and composite, which will be imposed the tax on packing. Presently, only the packing made of plastic, composite primary packing and the aluminium primary packing are taxed.

The topic of Extended Producer Responsibility has been debated on the platform of the Economic Council to the Prime Minister of the Republic of Moldova in 2018. The business association sector alerted the fact of double taxation for waste management asking the authorities to remove this phenomenon for economic agents implementing EPR. The Secretariat of the Economic Council and the members of the Platform ensured dialogue between all stakeholders in order to overcome the situation and promote the respective changes, including on the parliamentary platform. The legislative initiative to amend the Law on Payment for Environmental Pollution belongs to the Vice-Chair of the Committee on the Environment, Climate and Green Transition, Ina Coșeru.

The Secretariat of the Economic Council to the Prime Minister is supported by the European Bank for Reconstruction and Development, funded by the UK Government’s Good Governance Fund, and the International Finance Corporation’s Investment Climate Reform Project funded by the Government of Sweden’s International Development Agency.

The Secretariat of the Economic Council to the Prime Minister is supported by the European Bank for Reconstruction and Development, funded by the UK Government’s Good Governance Fund.