§ Legislation

• Law on Tax Administration ("Official Gazette of the Republic of Montenegro", No. 065/01 dated 31.12.2001, 080/04 dated 29.12.2004, 029/05 dated 09.05.2005, “Official Gazette of Montenegro", No. 073/10 dated 10.12.2010, 020/11 dated 15.04.2011, 028/12 dated 05.06.2012, 008/15 dated 27.02.2015, 047/17 dated 19.07.2017)
• Law on Administrative Procedure ("Official Gazette of Montenegro", No. 056/14 dated 24.12.2014, 020/15 dated 24.04.2015, 040/16 dated 30.06.2016, 037/17 dated 14.06.2017)
• Order on the manner of payment of public revenues ("Official Gazette of Montenegro", No. 032/11 dated 01.07.2011, 061/11 dated 23.12.2011, 018/12 dated 30.03.2012, 040/13 dated 13.08.2013, 020/14 dated 25.04.2014, 023/14 dated 30.05.2014, 052/14 dated 16.12.2014, 007/15 dated 17.02.2015, 019/15 dated 22.04.2015, 038/15 dated 17.07.2015, 063/15 dated 06.11.2015, 015/16 dated 03.03.2016, 083/16 dated 31.12.2016)
• Rules on the form and contents of the report on payment of withholding tax ("Official Gazette of Montenegro", No.84/17 dated 15.12.2017)
• Rules on criteria for determination of large taxpayers ("Official Gazette of Montenegro", No.31/17 dated 12.05.2017)
• Rules on the consolidated application form ("Official Gazette of Montenegro", No. 083/16 dated 31.12.2016, 087/17 dated 22.12.2017)
• Decree on publishing of the tax debtor list ("Official Gazette of Montenegro", No.056/12 dated 09.11.2012, 053/13 dated 15.11.2013)
• Decree on the amount of costs of enforced collection of tax liabilities ("Official Gazette of Montenegro", No. 24/05 dated 15.04.2005)
• Rules on the form and content of the registration application form of taxpayers ("Official Gazette of Montenegro", No. 010/10 dated 26.02.2010, 032/10 dated 07.06.2010, 030/17 dated 09.05.2017, 050/17 dated 31.07.2017)
• Rules on the manner for determination of the tax base by means of assessment ("Official Gazette of Montenegro", No.036/05 dated 16.06.2005)
• Rules on the manner of sale of taxpayer’s property in the enforced collection procedure ("Official Gazette of the Republic of Montenegro ", No. 036/05 dated 16.06.2005, 073/05 dated 05.12.2005, 033/06 dated 25.05.2006)
• Rules on the tax bookkeeping ("Official Gazette of Montenegro", No. 081/06 dated 29.12.2006)
• Law on Inspection Audit ("Official Gazette of the Republic of Montenegro", No. 039/03 dated 30.06.2003, “Official Gazette of Montenegro", No. 076/09 dated 18.11.2009, 057/11 dated 30.11.2011, 018/14 dated 11.04.2014, 011/15 dated 12.03.2015, 052/16 dated 09.08.2016)
• Law on Enforced Collection Procedure ("Official Gazette of Montenegro", No. 036/11 dated 27.07.2011, 028/14 dated 04.07.2014, 020/15 dated 24.04.2015, 022/17 dated 03.04.2017, 076/17 dated 17.11.2017)

Structure of Tax Administration

Taxation refers to compulsory or coercive money collection by a levying authority, usually a government. The term "taxation" applies to all types of involuntary levies, from income to capital gains to estate taxes.

In broader sense, in terms of activities of assessment, collection and audit of taxes and customs the Tax Administration refer to:

• Ministry of Finance, the administrative and political body to which Department of Public Revenues (the Tax Administration in narrow sense) and Customs Administration are subordinated;
• The Department of Public Revenues;
• The Customs Administration.

It should be noted that all municipalities have organized on local level tax administration, being responsible for assessment, collection and audit of taxes on local level.

Competences of the Tax Administration

Self-assessment taxation is the basic principle in the procedure of assessment and collection of taxes and other charges.

Assessment principle of determination of tax liability is established as authorization and obligation of tax authority in the situations when calculation of tax is not done or is incorrectly done according to self-assessment principle, as well as in some cases when it is stipulated by law (when assessing tax on immovable property, tax on turnover of immovable property).

The activities of assessment, collection and audit of taxes are performed by the Department of Public Revenues (i.e. Tax Administration of Montenegro, on the state level) and local tax administrations (on the municipality level).

In discharging competencies prescribed by the law, the tax administrations does have the following authorization to:

• Perform inspection supervision, undertake collection measures, other actions and activities within its competence;
• Decide on the rights of taxpayers;
• Carry out registration of business organizations and taxpayers and maintain a registry of business organizations and a tax registry;
• Assess tax in the manner and in accordance with the procedure determined by law;
• Require that taxpayers and other legal entities submit documentation and provide other information necessary for assessment of tax liability;
• Summon the persons to participate in the tax procedure;
• Enter and inspect the business premises where business books and records or other objects necessary for application of tax regulations are located or may be located;
• Exempt business books and records and other objects necessary for application of tax regulations;
• Impose penalties for tax violations prescribed by this or other tax regulations;
• Use services of experts and expert witnesses, natural and legal persons, in the procedure of assessing tax liabilities when the expertise is necessary;
• Initiate and conduct a first-instance administrative and misdemeanor procedure;
• Maintain tax bookkeeping;
• Notify taxpayers of the course of inspection audit and their rights and obligations in that procedure; provide expert help to taxpayers in application of tax regulations;
• Provide the taxpayers with a copy of tax return free of charge;
• Keep tax secrets; bring criminal charges, economic offence charges or request for initiation of misdemeanor procedure;
• Forward the information, including also the tax secrets revealed in the course of criminal investigation or during gathering other information in cases when there is a reasonable doubt of a misdemeanor or criminal action, to the authorities in charge of law enforcement;
• Apply international treaties and agreements on double taxation avoidance and other conveniences in the payment of taxes;
• Cooperate with other bodies and organizations in the country and abroad regarding the issues of tax crimes, in accordance with international treaties or agreements;
• Control and publish financial statements of business organizations;
• Perform other activities prescribed by law and other regulations.

Law on Tax Administration