Development and Trends of Depreciation Policy in Slovak Republic

Abstract

Research background: Depreciation as such represents a significant component of business costs. It is known that in the current legislation in the Slovak Republic there was no depreciation in the depreciation group with a depreciation period of 2 years. As part of increasing the motivation of the business sector to procure low-emission or emission-free transport, an amendment to the Income Tax Act was adopted with effect from the beginning of 2020, which introduces a new depreciation group 0 and favours the depreciation of electric vehicles. The newly introduced depreciation group zero has a strong ecological subtext. Purpose of the article: The article deals with the development of depreciation policy in the conditions of the Slovak Republic, compares the current situation with the situation in the Czech Republic and on the example of practical calculations of depreciation. The aim of the paper is to compare current trends in depreciation policies in the context of supporting the greening of transport. Methods: We used methods of analysis and comparing. Findings & Value added: Based on an extensive analysis, the article maps the most significant changes in the depreciation policy. Within the historical development of today’s tax depreciation, several trends are manifesting that are favourable for the business environment. The depreciation policy in the Czech Republic has not undergone such extensive changes as in Slovakia, where the most recent change in the recent period is the introduction of a depreciation group with a depreciation period of 2 years.