The tax payers who are private individuals will be able to transfer 2% of the annual income tax to general and vocational educational institutions, as they do now for NGOs and religious organizations. The given provisions are contained in a bill that is to take effect on January 1, 2024. Also, until September 1 next year, the parent associations will be liquated or will need to have their status changed, IPN reports.

PAS MP Larisa Novac in a press briefing said the main objective of the bill is to exclude the abusive norms and reduce the informal payments in educational institutions, collected through the agency of parent associations whose declared goal is to improve school infrastructure. This way, the new provisions suggest a number of solutions that would discourage the collection of informant payments in general vocational and educational institutions and would ensure transparency in accumulating and managing extra-budgetary funds.

“We also offer the private individuals and legal entities the possibility of supporting by donations, grants and sponsorships, exclusively the material resources of educational institutions, the education and training of children and students. These actions will be implemented directly at educational institutions, not through the agency of the founded parent associations,” explained the MP.

The bill also contains fiscal amendments. Under these, it will be possible to deduct donations for the benefit of general and vocational educational institutions equal to at most 10% of the average monthly official salary forecast and approved by the Cabinet. “This proposal will also help to accumulate financial resources that will be used exclusively to develop the given educational institutions. All the collected amounts will be managed by the educational institution through an extra-budgetary account, in accordance with the methodological norms approved by the Ministry of Finance,” stated Larisa Novac.

The list of educational institutions eligible for the 2% mechanism will be annually compiled by the Public Services Agency in coordination with the Ministry of Education and Research. To ensure more rigorous control over the management of extra-budgetary funds, the Ministry will be empowered with inspection duties.

The bill is to be examined by the parliamentary commissions and to be debated by Parliament in two readings.