In addition, Highgate Law & Tax is also celebrating its win in the “Capital Markets” category, proving itself to be a comprehensive law firm with an extensive portfolio of expertise and the ability to successfully navigate diverse legal challenges.

The awards gala evening, which was organized by the media and educational group EPRAVO Group and the weekly TREND, was held at the Double Tree by Hilton hotel in Bratislava. For Highgate Law & Tax it was not only an opportunity to celebrate its success, but also to thank its clients and partners for their trust and support, without which this milestone would not have been possible.

This double triumph confirms Highgate Law & Tax’s excellent reputation for legal and tax services and reinforces its position as a leading player in the legal services market in Slovakia.

Článok Highgate Law & Tax and its double triumph in the prestigious Law Firm of the Year competition je zobrazený ako prvý na Highgate.

Článok Hello world! je zobrazený ako prvý na Highgate.

Read the full article: https://hg.amcef.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/03/Varga-Peter-HN-Konto.pdf

Článok Wave 2 and government measures to mitigate the economic impact je zobrazený ako prvý na Highgate.

In the article you will learn, among other things, what conditions business owners must meet in order to be able to pay a dividend from the company even in times of deteriorating solvency and to avoid possible risks and objections from creditors. The article also thoroughly describes the obligations and the extent of liability of the statutory and owners in cases where the payment of dividends and other own funds would lead the company into bankruptcy.

An online version of the article is available here https://pravo.sme.sk/c/22388093/ako-si-vyplatit-zisk-z-firmy-v-case-pandemie.html

Článok Interview for the daily SME on the possibilities and limitations of dividend payments je zobrazený ako prvý na Highgate.

The full interview is available here – https://www.etrend.sk/podnikanie/advokat-varga-dovera-v-ekonomiku-sa-neobnovi-zo-dna-na-den.html

In April 2020, we also organised a webinar on the possibilities of using state measures aimed at partial compensation of entrepreneurs affected by the corona crisis, not only for our clients – http://zachranfirmu.sk/webinar/znizovanie-nakladov/.

Článok Interview for TREND on tax-legal measures related to the corona crisis je zobrazený ako prvý na Highgate.

Interview for business magazine FORBES

At the beginning of April 2020, the founders Peter Varga and Tomáš Demo gave an interview for the Slovak edition of the renowned global business magazine FORBES. In addition to talking about our services, clients and added value compared to our competitors on the Slovak market, we also talked about our project www.zachranfirmu.sk and the opportunities and tools that companies and entrepreneurs can use to make their business financially survive the economic consequences of the coronacrisis.

The full article is available here https://www.forbes.sk/nie-vsetkym-podnikatelom-vie-stat-v-krize-naozaj-financne-pomoct-snazime-sa-o-to-aj-my/

Article on dividend payments for the daily SME

In April 2020, we were also approached by the SME daily newspaper with a request for an expert opinion on the possibility of dividend payments during a pandemic. In his article, Tomáš Demo presented the possibilities, limitations and risks associated with the payment of profits and excess liquidity from companies to the owners and statutory bodies of companies. One of the main themes of the article was the obligations and liability of the statutory bodies and owners of companies for the bankruptcy of the company and the damage caused to creditors by the unauthorised payment of funds from the company’s assets.

An online version of the article is available here https://pravo.sme.sk/c/22388093/ako-si-vyplatit-zisk-z-firmy-v-case-pandemie.html

Contribution to Hospodárske noviny on tax optimisation in 2019

One way for businesses affected by the coronary crisis to reduce their costs and improve their company’s chances of surviving the economic crisis caused by the pandemic is to reduce their tax liability for 2019. The fact that even in 2020 some entrepreneurs still have options to reduce their tax liability for the tax period of 2019 and what some of these options are described by Peter Varga in an article for Hospodárske noviny.

Interview for the economic weekly TREND

In response to the compensatory measures adopted by the government for entrepreneurs, the economic weekly TREND also approached us in April 2020 with a request for an interview. Peter Varga talked to TREND’s editor not only about the possibilities and conditions for using the measures adopted by the state to support entrepreneurs affected by the coronary crisis, but also about the tools offered by our tax and tax system that can help entrepreneurs to reduce their tax liability for 2019 even in 2020.

The full interview is available here– https://www.etrend.sk/podnikanie/advokat-varga-dovera-v-ekonomiku-sa-neobnovi-zo-dna-na-den.html

Article for Hospodárske noviny with a practical comparison of state contributions

In response to the economic restrictions caused by the coronavirus, the Slovak Government has taken a number of measures to maintain employment and partially compensate businesses for the reduction in their operations and the decline in sales. Many entrepreneurs find it difficult to navigate the many measures, the conditions for obtaining them and the restrictions on their use.

Peter Varga, therefore, in order to help entrepreneurs to navigate through the tangle of measures, described in an article for Hospodárske noviny several model cases showing which combination of individual measures is the most advantageous for entrepreneurs and employers in specific cases.

An online version of the article is available here https://hnonline.sk/prakticke-hn/2135859-padate-ku-dnu-ale-neviete-ktory-z-prispevkov-statu-si-vybrat-tu-je-prehlad

Contribution to Hospodárske noviny on the possibilities and limitations of agreement employment during the state of emergency

Our colleague and attorney Lukáš Makara gave an interview for Hospodárske noviny, in which, among other things, he talked about the possibilities and limitations of employment on agreements on work performed outside the employment relationship during the state of emergency and also with regard to the possibility of drawing state benefits.

An online version of the article is available at https://hnonline.sk/prakticke-hn/2148713-dohodari-ak-vam-klesol-prijem-aj-vy-mozete-mat-kompenzaciu

Interview for the daily POSTOJ

In an interview with the conservative daily POSTOJ, Peter Varga talked to the editor about the tools of tax optimization in 2019. Given the low flexibility of the Labour Code and the resulting, in many cases, liquidation costs associated with the termination of employment, another topic of conversation was the employment of freelancers and the possibilities and limitations associated with this. In the interview, Peter also briefly and practically explained how entrepreneurs can move and separate a healthy part of their business from another part of their business for which the economic impacts have been liquidating.

The full interview is available here https://www.postoj.sk/54044/ak-sa-zacnu-tocit-peniaze-ekonomika-sa-rozbehne-podcast

***

In addition to the above media contributions, we organised free advisory webinars for entrepreneurs throughout April via our www.zachranfirmu.sk project .

Článok Our advice and media outputs on the corona crisis and assistance to affected entrepreneurs je zobrazený ako prvý na Highgate.

In the interview, Peter also talked about what standard tools such as valuation allowances, tax losses or depreciation can be used by entrepreneurs to reduce their tax liability for 2019 even in 2020. Given the extremely low flexibility of the Labour Code, for many employers the only chance to survive and maintain employment is to switch their employee relations to contracts with sole traders. The possibilities and limitations of employing sole traders was another topic discussed.

In the interview, Peter also briefly and practically explained how entrepreneurs can separate and continue to operate the healthy part of the company, for example the eshop, from the contaminated part, for example the brick-and-mortar operation, for which the economic impact has been devastating, under a new company.

The full interview is available here https://www.postoj.sk/54044/ak-sa-zacnu-tocit-peniaze-ekonomika-sa-rozbehne-podcast

We also held an online webinar on the possible combinations of government measures with existing tax reduction tools – https://zachranfirmu.sk/webinar/dane-2019/

Článok Interview of Petr Varga for the daily POSTOJ on measures to reduce economic losses of entrepreneurs je zobrazený ako prvý na Highgate.

Given the many variants of the measures available and the fact that eligibility for some of the measures is, for example, precluded by the use of sick leave, vacation leave or sick pay on the part of employees, it is not easy for many businesses to navigate the various measures and the conditions for obtaining them. As a clear guide to navigating the tangle of measures, Peter Varga has provided an overview of several model cases in an article for Hospodárske noviny showing which combination of individual measures is the most advantageous for entrepreneurs and employers in specific cases.

An online version of the article is available here https://hnonline.sk/prakticke-hn/2135859-padate-ku-dnu-ale-neviete-ktory-z-prispevkov-statu-si-vybrat-tu-je-prehlad

Článok Article for Hospodárske noviny with a practical comparison of state contributions for entrepreneurs je zobrazený ako prvý na Highgate.

You might also be interested in:
https://www.etrend.sk/podnikanie/advokat-varga-firmam-by-teraz-pomohol-system-dph-ako-reverse-charge.html

On 2 April, however, Switzerland was the first country in Europe (there may be others) to see a reduction in the number of active cases (more people were cured than infected on that day). 4. Austria also joined in April. So-called. The growth index was up for the first time since 23.2. two days in a row below the coefficient of 1, which indicates some hint/suggestion of a decline. Even good weather and government measures bring hope. But while the weather is supposed to be consistently positive for the next few days, government measures are naturally not yet able to satisfy (fully) all hungry mouths. A number of entrepreneurs with lower sales may have invested in illiquid assets (since what drives the economy and our standard of living is mainly that the money is spinning) and their employees may have salaries higher than the average monthly wage and there is naturally a big problem keeping it together.

Government measures

I spent all this weekend reading those lex-COVID laws and resolutions, and I have to say that given the shortness of time, the pressure and the enormous complexity of the issues that the drafters had to take into account, I consider the following measures 1. aid as being of good quality not only from a legislative point of view, but also, after further reflection, from an economic and social point of view. Those contributions for employers and self-employed, sick pay, unemployment benefit and nursing allowance are mainly social transfers. And social transfers so that we don’t have looting of shops here, because our numerically modest army might not help us. A company with employees on €2,000 wages and a drop in sales is not going to be very happy with them – there is probably an assumption that the financial potential (i.e. savings, unemployment benefit) to socially overcome the crisis is greater for the employees as well as the employer. On the other hand, in a post-corona world, positivity will need to be restored to the consumer and investment mood. Governments do this by encouraging lending or even, to encourage consumption, by “throwing money out of the helicopter” (see US).

For simplicity’s sake, we try to give clients those government measures in a headline form, and then we stop at each client individually. So today we have mainly these types of help on the table:

• Postponement of income tax returns and advance income tax payments until the end of the calendar month following the month in which the pandemic ended;
• Deferment of levies if your net sales have fallen by more than 40% year on year;
• Employer’s allowance for an employee to whom you are unable to assign work due to a drop in sales of more than 20%;
• Extension of sick leave + the possibility to go on sick leave directly with parental leave (useful for employees with children and thus reduces the company’s costs);
• Exemption from several obligations in tax proceedings (e.g.: suspended tax audits or tax executions);
• Assistance with financing through bank guarantees or interest payments;
• Changes in the Labour Code in favour of the employer;
• Extension of unemployment benefits (a very effective safety net for employees in the event of layoffs);

For each client, the most effective use of these measures is subject to individual assessment. Individual measures (especially the contributory ones) are in some cases easy to abuse and thus to use them contrary to their intended purpose. The one I understand is to help keep jobs, particularly in low-income groups; that is, a form of social transfer. When someone asks me about the lack of ethics and morality in tax optimization, in addition to the standard defensive explanation of the illogic of such reasoning, I sometimes go on the counterattack, as in the case of the Panama Papers interview (see the second paragraph of the article). But to put it in perspective, I find the misuse of these contributions contrary to their purpose in today’s situation to be grossly unethical and advisors should distance themselves from it. I find the legal reduction in tax liability for 2019 to be absolutely ethical.

Tax optimisation 2019

The government’s measures therefore provide a solution for companies in terms of the tax burden for the pandemic period, but what they naturally do not and probably cannot address is the tax liability. Even if companies are in loss for the following months/years, they will not pay income taxes. However, the 2019 tax liability will still apply to them and we can be of assistance there. In the interview, I mentioned some of the options for reducing 2019 taxes in 2020 as well. We have more options listed on our website www.zachranfirmu.sk with a link to a webinar on tax optimization. I’d love to see you there (logged in).

Článok Government measures and can tax optimisation still be done in 2020 for the 2019 tax year? je zobrazený ako prvý na Highgate.