Specifics of Real Estate Taxation in the Czech and Slovak Republics

Abstract

This article is focused on the real estate tax in the Czech and Slovak Republics. Different approaches to the tax are applied (determination of construction elements and tax collection method) in both states, hence the reason for conducting research in these states. Many researchers deal with real estate taxes from the perspective of municipalities or states. The motivation for this research was finding solutions for real estate tax reform in the Czech Republic from the perspective of taxpayers. 1352 questionnaires were evaluated (839 from the Czech Republic and 513 from the Slovak Republic). The tax justification was reviewed with regard to investing the revenues from real estate tax into improving the life of citizens in the municipality. The questionnaire using was assessed within the descriptive statistics, the Kruskal-Wallis test and the Pearson chi-square test. Based on empirical research, the median real estate tax is lower in the Czech Republic when compared to Slovakia. Nevertheless, the percentage of respondents who perceive the tax burden as high is 3.3% higher in the Czech Republic than in Slovakia. The perception of tax justice varies. Respondents in the Czech Republic perceive less improvement in their municipal infrastructure. Conversely, almost half of the respondents from Slovakia mentioned improvements in infrastructure in the municipality. The majority of respondents in both countries knew how collected funds are utilized and what specific projects were carried out in their respective municipalities.