Hungary Publishes Wealth Tax Draft: 1% Above 1 Billion Forint, 1.5% Above 100 Billion
Hungary's Finance Ministry has published the draft text of a wealth tax law. According to Reuters and IMI Daily, net wealth above 1 billion forints (about $3.08 million) would be taxed at 1% a year, and the portion above 100 billion forints (about $308 million) at 1.5%. The tax base covers real estate, investments, company holdings and assets held outside Hungary, with loans deductible.
Prime Minister Peter Magyar presented the plan in a Facebook video on October 6, delivering on a campaign promise of his Tisza party, which defeated Viktor Orban's Fidesz party in April's election after 16 years in power. The new government faces a budget deficit projected at about 7.5% of GDP.
If passed, the law would take effect on December 15, with the first bill assessed on wealth held on December 31, 2026, and returns and payment due by August 31, 2027. People living abroad would also owe the tax on Hungarian property and company stakes, and Hungarian citizens count as resident until they have lived outside the country for ten years. The draft's explanatory memorandum repeatedly notes that the government has not discussed the proposal and the text cannot be taken as the government's position. Public consultation closed on October 14; no date for a parliamentary vote has been announced.
Source: GSM · USA (original Chinese edition)
Photo: 图：布达佩斯匈牙利国会大厦。来源：Wikimedia Commons，CC0 / Photo: The Hungarian Parliament Building in Budapest. Source: Wikimedia Commons, CC0
