On Thursday, 14 October, Minister of Finances Jānis Reirs submitted the state budget for 2022 to the Saeima to commence its review and approval process, as confirmed by the ministry.
The delivery of the budget from the Ministry of Finances to the Saeima is a tradition that started in 1997 by then the Minister of Finances Roberts Zīle. He used his personal portfolio to carry the 1998 budget to the Saeima.
This year Minister of Finances Jānis Reirs carried the budget in a brand new portfolio custom made for this purpose. The portfolio bears a phrase by Reiņis Kaudzīte «Be prudent in misfortune, and even more prudent in fortune».
As previously reported, on Tuesday, 12 October, Latvia’s government passed the legislative draft On the State Budget 2022. In it the state consolidated budget revenue is planned at EUR 10.6 billion and expenditures – at EUR 12.4 billion.
A considerable portion of the 2022 state budget will be allocated to increase wages of medical workers, teachers and people employed in the interior affairs sector. There are also plans to allocate financing towards activities related to state security and state priorities.
One of the government’s main priorities in taxes is the reduction of labour tax burden. In order to continue the reduction of labour tax burden for recipients of low taxes and improve competitiveness among Baltic States, it is necessary to continue increasing the non-taxable minimum for residents, pensioners included.
More on this topic: Latvian government passes 2022 state budget project