Tax revenues are rising year on year, but the amount the state returns to companies as value-added tax (VAT) refunds has fallen for two consecutive years. The trend is also reflected in the latest report by the Public Revenue Office for 2025, which records a contraction in VAT refunds over the past year.
According to the Public Revenue Office’s annual report, VAT refunds fell by 1,129,997,960 denars, or 3.29 percent, between January and December 2025 compared with the same period in 2024, Faktor reports.
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The document shows that businesses received 540,238,172 euros in VAT refunds in 2025, compared with 558,612,122 euros the previous year. Meanwhile, the Public Revenue Office recorded an increase in receipts across all VAT categories — from domestic sales, imports of goods and donations.
The decline in VAT refunds in 2025 follows a similar drop in 2024. In 2023, companies received 629,814,385 euros in refunds, but in 2024 the amount fell sharply by more than 70 million euros. The difference between 2023 and 2025 is around 90 million euros.
A VAT refund is the amount a company claims from the state when, under tax legislation, it has accumulated more VAT than it is required to pay. For businesses, this is not merely a tax issue but a matter of liquidity — whether they will have enough funds to cover wages, suppliers, loans and other obligations.
The Ministry of Finance said last year that additional checks were being carried out on companies identified by the system as high risk, and that investigative procedures were under way into large-scale VAT refund abuse. According to the ministry, this had caused delays in returning funds to businesses.
