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Lithuanian lawmakers pass amended real estate tax reform
VILNIUS, June 26 (Xinhua) -- The Lithuanian parliament on Thursday adopted amendments to the Law on Real Estate Tax, the most hotly debated part of the current tax reform, after the ruling coalition modified both the original government proposal and its later revision in response to criticism from the public and some politicians.
The bill passed with 77 votes in favor, 46 against and four abstentions.
Lithuania had pledged to broaden the real estate tax base as part of its commitments to the European Commission and failure to do so could cost the country significant funding, according to the Baltic News Service (BNS).
The amendments set the threshold for taxing a primary residence at 450,000 euros (526,440 U.S. dollars) per person or 900,000 euros for co-owners. Secondary and subsequent residential properties will be taxed starting at a value of 50,000 euros.
Municipalities will set tax rates ranging from 0.1 percent to 1 percent on primary residences. (1 euro = 1.17 U.S. dollar)
