Tax News, January 2026

NOVELTIES ON MANDATORY PENSION AND DISABILITY INSURANCE – EMPLOYEES OF FOREIGN EMPLOYERS AND MANAGING PERSONS

As of 1 January 2026, the amendment of ZPIZ‑2O entered into force. It supplements and partially restructures the provisions of the Pension and Disability Insurance Act (ZPIZ‑2) concerning mandatory inclusion in pension and disability insurance.

Below we present the changes related to:

(i) persons employed by foreign employers who perform work in Slovenia, and

(ii) shareholders and managing persons (including in cross‑border structures).

Mandatory insurance for Employees of foreign Employers (Article 14)

A new 8th paragraph has been added to Article 14, stipulating that persons employed by an Employer established in a country that is not a member of the EU or EEA and does not have its registered office in the Swiss Confederation must also be mandatorily insured if they perform work for this employer in the Republic of Slovenia, unless an international treaty provides otherwise.

Accordingly, the legislation establishes an insurance basis for posted workers from third countries who perform work in Slovenia and, in the absence of a bilateral social security agreement, are required to be included in the Slovenian social security system.

Shareholders and managing persons (Article 16)

The amendment also modifies Article 16 and more clearly defines the group of persons who must be mandatorily insured:

1. Mandatory insurance applies to persons who are shareholders of companies established in Slovenia or founders of institutes, and who are also managing persons in these companies or institutes.
2. This includes persons who are shareholders or managing persons through controlling companies (indirect ownership/organizational structures).
3. Mandatory insurance also applies to persons who are shareholders and managing persons of companies established in the EU/EEA/Switzerland (or in a country with a bilateral social security agreement), when Slovenian legislation applies to them under EU law or a bilateral agreement.
4. Persons under Article 16 are insured for full insurance time, or up to full insurance time if they are insured on another basis for less than full working/insurance time, unless otherwise provided by law.

The legislator provides commentary on this amendment, stating that the intention is to cover cases where a company is registered in another country but has its center of activity in Slovenia, or where the shareholder (who is also the managing person) has permanent residence in Slovenia. These factors may influence the obligation to be included in insurance under Slovenian law when it applies.

UPDATES TO THE REGULATION ON REIMBURSEMENT OF EXPENSES FOR BUSINESS TRAVEL ABROAD AS OF 1 JANUARY 2026

As of 1 January 2026, the updated Regulation on the Reimbursement of Expenses for Business Travel Abroad enters into force. It primarily regulates the rights of public employees and officials. However, the prescribed maximum non taxable per diem amounts also apply to the private sector.

Accordingly, for the purpose of determining the non taxable per diem amounts for travel abroad in the private sector, the amended per diem rates set by the Government within the Regulation applicable to the public sector must be taken into account.

REVISED RULES AMENDING AND SUPPLEMENTING THE RULES ON THE IMPLEMENTATION OF THE VALUE ADDED TAX ACT.

In Official Gazette of the Republic of Slovenia No. 110/25, the Rules amending and supplementing the Rules on the implementation of the Value Added Tax Act were published and entered into force on 1 January 2026.

The Rules introduce several substantive clarifications and alignments, while part of the amendments is aimed at updating the classification of activities due to the development of healthcare professions and changes to the Standard Classification of Activities (SKD).

In the area of VAT exemption for healthcare and for services of dental technicians and dental prosthetics, the classification of activities is updated through amendments to Articles 60 to 62 and Article 64 of the Rules, which does not affect the scope of VAT exemption. An ambiguity regarding dental activities is removed, as these are now classified under R 86.2 together with outpatient healthcare activities.

With respect to the reduced VAT rate for dwellings and other buildings forming part of social policy, the amendment to Article 54 provides that, in addition to services classified under F Construction, the reduced rate of 9.5 percent may also apply to the organization of construction project delivery under SKD M 68.120 and to cleaning of new buildings immediately after completion of construction works under SKD O 81.220, where such services relate to these types of buildings. This ensures comparable treatment following the transition to SKD 2025, as certain services have been reclassified from the construction section into other sections under the new classification.

The amendment to Article 127.b reflects the same extension in the application of Article 76.a of ZDDV-1 to construction services. This means that the reverse charge mechanism may continue to apply to the two services mentioned above, provided the supply is made between two taxable persons identified for VAT purposes in Slovenia.

The amendment to Article 150.b, which serves as an explanatory provision, provides that the output VAT records and input VAT deduction records are not considered submitted if they are not compliant with the applicable technical specifications published on the website of the Financial Administration of the Republic of Slovenia (FURS).

Regarding the special scheme for small taxable persons, Article 161.a is amended, according to which, if a taxable person does not use the VAT exemption in a Member State that applies different thresholds by sector of activity, the taxable person does not need to provide separate information on the value of annual turnover by individual sectors of activity. In the prior notification, the taxable person reports the total turnover for the current, previous and/or pre-previous year.

New explanatory Articles 161.f and 161.g are introduced, which clarify reporting and the consequences of failure to meet obligations in connection with the cross-border exemption and the EX number. Namely, where a taxable person receives an EX number in the current quarter on the basis of a prior notification submitted to the tax authority in the previous calendar quarter, the taxable person reports only the data for the current quarter in the current quarterly report, while missing data for the previous quarter (which was not included in the prior notification) is reported separately in a special quarterly report for the previous calendar quarter (which covers data from the date of submission of the prior notification until the end of the calendar quarter).

New Article 161.g sets out the consequences of non-compliance with reporting obligations where Slovenia is the Member State of exemption. Namely, if a foreign taxable person with an EX number (issued in another Member State) has not submitted quarterly reports for the last two quarters, or has submitted them with a delay of more than 30 days, the taxable person must account for VAT in Slovenia. If, despite a request, the taxable person does not submit the VAT return and does not submit the missing reports, the tax authority informs the Member State of establishment, which deactivates the EX number for Slovenia. If the taxable person wishes to continue making taxable supplies in Slovenia, the taxable person would therefore need to register for VAT purposes in Slovenia.

A new provision is also added in the ninth paragraph of Article 130 concerning the determination of annual turnover upon leaving a VAT group. According to this provision, annual turnover for VAT identification purposes is determined by taking into account the aggregate value (excluding VAT) of that part of supplies of goods and services of the VAT group that the taxable person, as a member of the VAT group, made to persons who were not part of the VAT group, and the value of supplies made to other members of the VAT group.

The remaining amendments are editorial in nature.

INTRASTAT 2026: THRESHOLDS AND REPORTING

In accordance with the notice of the Statistical Office of the Republic of Slovenia dated 6 January 2026, revised Intrastat inclusion thresholds apply from 1 January 2026: EUR 300,000 for goods arrivals and EUR 280,000 for goods dispatches.

Reporting is carried out in accordance with Regulation (EU) 2019/2152 on European business statistics and Commission Implementing Regulation (EU) 2020/1197, which set the technical requirements and data elements. In Slovenia, Intrastat is implemented pursuant to the National Statistics Act (ZDSta) and within the framework of the Annual Programme of Statistical Surveys for 2026.

The reporting obligation arises when the cumulative value of dispatches or arrivals exceeds the relevant inclusion threshold.

REPORTING OF DIGITAL PLATFORM OPERATORS IN SLOVENIA

Digital platform operators in Slovenia, through which providers sell goods or services to third parties, must submit to the Financial Administration of the Republic of Slovenia (FURS), no later than 31 January 2026, data on sales and/or activities carried out in 2025. This reporting obligation stems from Council Directive (EU) 2021/514 (DAC7), which was transposed into Slovenian legislation in December 2022 by an amendment to the Tax Procedure Act (ZDavP-2N) and is regulated in Chapter III.Č of Part Four of the Tax Procedure Act (ZDavP-2).

In Slovenia, the reporting entity is the platform operator that enables other sellers, via the platform, to offer users certain services or goods for consideration (personal services, rental of immovable property, rental of any means of transport, or the sale of goods). The obligation applies to a platform operator that is a tax resident in Slovenia, or is incorporated, managed, or has a permanent establishment in Slovenia, and is not a qualified platform operator outside the European Union (EU). If a platform operator meets the reporting conditions in more than one EU Member State, it may choose the Member State in which it will report; however, it must inform all Member States in which it meets the conditions of its choice.

To date, the automatic exchange of data under DAC7 has taken place between EU Member States; as of 1 January 2026, this automatic exchange will also be extended to Canada, New Zealand, and the United Kingdom. To help platform operators determine whether they are required to report in Slovenia, a Self-Assessment Questionnaire is available.

Data must be submitted electronically via the ZBS B2B channel, and submission of the report will be possible until the end of January 2026.

OECD ANNOUNCES NEW SAFE HARBOUR PACKAGE UNDER PILLAR TWO

On 5 January 2026, the OECD released a significant update to the Pillar Two global minimum tax framework, introducing a comprehensive “Side by Side (SbS) Package” aimed at simplifying compliance obligations and increasing flexibility for multinational enterprise (MNE) groups. The package was issued in the form of Administrative Guidance and represents a supplement to the existing OECD rules. In Slovenia, the OECD rules have been implemented through the Minimum Tax Act and, in accordance with the Act, apply as of the day following their publication, i.e. from 6 January 2026.

A key feature of the package is the introduction of the Simplified Effective Tax Rate (ETR) Safe Harbour, which will apply from 2027 (or from 2026 in jurisdictions that opt for early adoption). This safe harbour allows companies to determine the effective tax rate (ETR) for a jurisdiction based on a simplified calculation, relying primarily on data from consolidated financial statements. Where the simplified ETR reaches the 15% threshold, no top-up tax arises, thereby eliminating the need for full GloBE calculations.

The OECD also agreed to a one-year extension of the Transitional CbCR Safe Harbour (TCSH), which will now apply to fiscal years up to and including 2027. During this overlap period, in-scope groups may choose whether to apply the Simplified ETR Safe Harbour or the TCSH, depending on which option provides greater practical relief.

To support jurisdictions that rely on investment-linked tax incentives, the package introduces the Substance-based Tax Incentive (SBTI) Safe Harbour. From 2026 onwards, MNE groups may treat certain qualifying tax incentives as an increase to covered taxes, provided that such incentives are linked to genuine economic substance, such as payroll costs or tangible assets.

The OECD has also finalized the “side-by-side” (SbS) Safe Harbour and the “ultimate parent entity” (UPE) Safe Harbour for groups headquartered in jurisdictions with eligible domestic and international tax regimes. Under the SbS Safe Harbour, qualifying MNE groups may elect not to apply the Income Inclusion Rule (IIR) and the Undertaxed Profits Rule (UTPR), while remaining subject to any applicable Qualified Domestic Top-up Tax (QDMTT). More detailed guidance on how the adoption of the SbS Package will affect the calculation of the minimum tax in Slovenia for 2026 and subsequent years is not yet available.

OECD 2025 MODEL TAX CONVENTION UPDATE: KEY CHANGES FOR PERMANENT ESTABLISHMENTS AND TAX COOPERATION

On 19 November 2025, the Organization for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD) published the 2025 Update to the OECD Model Tax Convention and its Commentary, the first comprehensive revision since 2017. The Update adds a new paragraph to Article 25 (Mutual Agreement Procedure) and makes substantive revisions to the Commentary with respect to multiple articles. It also reflects changes to the observations and reservations of OECD member countries and the positions of non-member economies with respect to the OECD Model Tax Convention and its Commentary.

The most detailed changes relate to Article 5 (Permanent Establishment). The revised Commentary introduces an analytical framework that clarifies when use of a home or other relevant place, such as a second home (a holiday rental or the home of a friend or relative) in another country to carry out activities related to the business of an enterprise can amount to a fixed place of business permanent establishment of the enterprise. Under the framework, a “50% of total working time“ reference point is used as a general benchmark. The framework focuses on whether the location is used regularly and substantially rather than intermittently, whether the individual's presence serves a business purpose such as servicing local customers or suppliers rather than personal convenience, and whether the enterprise in practice carries on business from the location even if it does not formally own or lease the premises.

Other notable revisions in the 2025 Update include an optional time-based permanent establishment provision for extractive activities that contains model anti-contract-splitting language and a capital gains paragraph, as well as optional drafting approaches to extend source taxing rights over employment income tied to extractive activities.

The OECD describes the revisions to the Commentary on Article 9 (Associated Enterprises) as clarifying the application of Article 9, especially as it relates to domestic laws on interest deductibility; these changes have potential implications that extend beyond interest deductions.

In addition, revisions to the Commentary on Article 26 (Exchange of Information) to provide clarifications regarding permitted use and limited disclosure of exchanged information, including the treatment of material that is not taxpayer specific.