The Parliamentary Finance and Budget Committee met today, Monday, 11 April 2022, and discussed the following matters:
1.The Income Tax (Amendment) (No. 5) Act, 2021.
(File No. 23.01.062.088-2021)
The Committee continued the clause-by-clause discussion of the above bill. The purpose of the bill is to amend the relevant legislation to introduce regulations regarding the imposition of an annual guarantee fee on a credit union that has benefited from a deferred tax asset created by tax losses. In addition, it is provided that the guarantee fee to be paid annually by the credit institution to the State will be determined by the Minister of Finance, with a minimum and a maximum limit.
During the discussion, a second revised draft bill was examined, in which the proposed provisions are more correctly formulated, following consultation with the Legal Service of the Republic.
The revised text of the bill was agreed to by all stakeholders.
The Committee decided to review the matter at its next meeting.
2.a. The Open-ended Collective Investment Schemes (Amendment) (No. 2) Act, 2021
(Fak. No. 23.01.062.165-2021)
b. The Alternative Investment Organizations (Amendment) Act, 2021.
(File No. 23.01.062.166-2021)
The committee continued its discussion of the above bills by considering them article by article. The bills under consideration seek to amend the respective basic laws to allow the Cyprus Securities and Exchange Commission (CySEC) to extend deadlines in cases where conditions prevailing in the Republic affect the ability of CySEC supervised entities to comply with any of the deadlines set forth in the respective basic laws.
During the discussion, revised draft bills were considered, which provide that the granting of an extension of the deadlines set forth under the
In addition, the extension would be granted for a period of six months, renewable for up to six additional months.
The committee decided that the debate on the bills has been completed and the issues will be referred to the full house for a final decision.
3.The Credit Institutions Operations (Amendment) (No. 2) Act, 2021
(Fak. No. 23.01.062.097-2021)
The committee continued the discussion of the above bill with its clause-by-clause consideration. The Bill seeks to enable the Central Bank of Cyprus (CBC) to require legal entities that apply for a credit institution licence to pay to the CBC the costs associated with the examination of their application.
The representatives of the CBC provided information on the level of the corresponding fees charged in other member states.
The committee decided that the debate on the bill is now closed and the matter will be referred to the plenary for a final decision.
4.The Real Property (Possession, Registration and Valuation) (Amendment) Act, 2022.
(File No. 23.02.063.041-2022)
The Committee began debate on the above Bill, which was tabled by Hon. Christiana Erotokritou on behalf of the Parliamentary Group of the Democratic Party and Stavros Papadouris on behalf of the Movement of Ecologists-Civic Co-operation and aims to introduce regulations to assist debt restructuring procedures in cases of properties that are encumbered with the registration of encumbrances.
During the discussion, representatives of the Department of Cadastre and Land Surveying of the Ministry of Interior and the Association of Cyprus Banks expressed reservations regarding the proposed regulations and made suggestions for their rewording.
The Committee decided to continue the discussion of the proposed law at its next meeting.
Decommitments and Exemptions from the Ban on Filling Vacancies
The Committee, in the course of its meeting, considered a number of requests for decommitments and exemptions from the ban on filling vacancies.
The releases of funds concern:
a. the Ministry of Agriculture, Rural Development and Environment,
b. the Cyprus Fire Service,
c. the Cooperative Societies Service,
d. the Deputy Ministry of Social Welfare,
e. the Legal Service of the Republic,
f. the Ministry of Education, Culture, Sports and Youth,
g. the Ministry of the Interior.
Exceptions to the prohibition on filling vacancies relate to:
a. the Ministry of Labour and Social Insurance,
b. the Ministry of Education, Culture, Sports and Youth,
c. the Human Resources Development Authority,
d. the Ministry of Interior.
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Secretariat of the Parliamentary Committee on Finance and Budget
Email: parliamentary-committees@parliament.cy
(SX)
Contents of this article including associated images are owned by PIO
Views & opinions expressed are those of the author and/or PIO
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