Czech Monetary and Fiscal Policies: Big Deficits and Challenges

Abstract

Czech monetary and fiscal policies require fundamental reform, even without considering the current war in Ukraine. The tax structure can be rationalized within 1–2 years. The very introduction of a single collection point must be taken seriously, and there is no need to undertake a fundamental tax reform to implement its main stage. Czech social security contributions are very specific, dominated by their tax nature. This allows for a quick consolidation of employer contributions into one levy to the state budget and the inclusion of employee contributions in personal income tax. Only slightly more politically challenging is the integration of dividend income taxation into corporate tax and the removal of interest from corporate tax costs. The OECD recommendations are one-sided, mechanically oriented according to the neoliberal welfare regime. Our analyses and subsequent proposals do not foresee and do not require any reform of social security benefits, including public funding of healthcare. Strengthening value-added tax in the tax structure is completely wrong. The overall insufficient taxation of value added in the Czech financial sector needs to be eliminated. Czech monetary policy is not very effective in the fight against inflation, the link to overall economic policy is lacking. This policy has created excessive foreign exchange reserves that can be transferred to the state assets. It is economically desirable to link the Czech currency to the euro. The proceeds of the issue of all money belong to the state budget.