Hungary will not cut the value-added tax on vegetables and fruit in 2027, Finance Minister András Kármán said on Wednesday, citing the budget deficit. The current 27 percent rate would therefore stay in place next year, he told ATV. Kármán said the measure had not been abandoned and remained in the government’s plans, but was not affordable for now.
Budget arithmetic
The Tisza government had hoped the cut could take effect as early as 2026. Agriculture minister Bóna Szabolcs and Prime Minister Magyar Péter had also expressed support for it. Under the proposal, the reduced rate would be 5 percent.
Raskó György estimated the revenue loss at 160 billion forints a year, equal to 3 per mille of the total budget. He put the additional revenue from reducing the shadow economy at 40 billion forints. The government will submit the 2027 budget to parliament in late October, with a vote expected in December.
Producers and prices
Apáti Ferenc, chairman of the FruitVeb vegetable and fruit product council, called the decision extremely disappointing. FruitVeb estimated the cut could have lowered shop prices by 20 percent. It also said domestic consumption of vegetables and fruit had fallen 15 percent over the past two to three years as purchasing power weakened.
Prices have continued to climb. According to KSH, cucumbers rose 17 percent year on year, tomatoes 12 percent and carrots 7 percent. Austria, Croatia and France apply reduced rates of roughly 5 percent to these goods, against Hungary’s 27 percent.
