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Caplovic: Tax Allowances for Investments into Research Should Be Tried
Wednesday 23 December 2009 Zoom in | Print page
Bratislava, December 23 (TASR) - State should consider tax allowances for companies investing into research and development, TASR was told by Deputy Premier Dusan Caplovic on Wednesday.
He said that legislation would have to change, as the flat tax now doesn't enable such allowances. Companies then could decide for themselves what areas they would invest in for innovations as nobody can better evaluate their sources than the private sector.
Caplovic said that the EU requests that 2 percent of GDP be channelled into research and development (R&D), while it is only 0.5 percent in Slovakia currently, and almost entirely in the public sector. Possible tax allowances for private companies would also bring a significant economic and social growth.
In Slovakia, there are now 45 centres of excellence, while it is planned there will be another 15. The existing ones are financed from EU sources. Caplovic said this is a good direction, but it is necessary to prepare for the post-2013 period when there will be less money coming from the EU and funds will have to be provided by the public and private sources.
Slovakia spent 0.46 percent of GDP (€282.6 million) in 2007 for science and technology, and the report on R&D status in Slovakia said it's too little. The EU average was 1.83 percent of GDP in 2007.
R&D expenditures have actually been decreasing as a percentage of GDP in the past couple of years, reports the Education Ministry. The consequence of low investments into R&D is poor technological equipment throughout all R&D sectors. This situation should be improved via the EU's Operational Programme Research and Development.
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