Moldovan finance ministry says meal vouchers not to be cancelled

Chisinau, 24 July /MOLDPRES/ - The Finance Ministry has said that the meal vouchers would not be cancelled; the authorities are set only to change their fiscal treatment. More exactly, the meal vouchers will be taxed in general regime, by the payment of social insurances contributions, mandatory health insurances premiums and income tax.    

In a press release, the Finance Ministry specified that the meal vouchers represented salaries which do not contribute to health, social payments, pensions.

At present, according to estimations, 30,000 persons benefit from meal vouchers, being provided by about 620 employers, according to ministry’s data. “Through a mere transformation of the banking card into meal voucher, there are extremely high risks in 2020 for being recorded a fund of almost one million lei, from which contributions and social and health insurance premiums are not paid. This endangers the sustainability of the state social insurances budget,” the communiqué also reads.  

In these conditions, decision-makers say that it is important that any measure, including the meal vouchers, should be introduced in the situation when the budgetary parameters allow this.

The Finance Ministry’s reaction comes after today the National Trade Unions Confederation of Moldova voiced concern about the intention to cancel the facilities in the use of meal vouchers. The decision aroused criticism on behalf of political actors.