Dog Ownership Fee and the Issue of Levy Collection, Tax Exemptions and Rate Differentiation. A Tax-Legal Analysis

Until the end of 2007, there was a dog ownership tax in the tax law system. The dog ownership tax was an obligatory benefit, i.e. municipal councils were obliged to establish and collect this tax (even if the costs of its collection exceeded the proceeds from the dog ownership tax). Consequently, there were calls for the dog ownership tax to be replaced by a tribute collected by municipalities on an optional basis. As of 1 January 2008, the dog ownership tax was replaced by a dog ownership levy. Unlike the dog ownership tax, the dog ownership fee is an optional levy – municipalities may, but are not required to, specify the obligation to pay the dog ownership fee. The municipal council is only empowered to introduce tax relief if the term relief is used in the relevant statutory provision. The power to enact tax reliefs cannot be derived from a provision authorising the municipal council to enact exemptions in local taxes and charges.