Chancellor of Justice Ülle Madise, responding to a petition from the chairman of the Centre Party, Mihhail Kõlvart, came to the conclusion that there is no reason to consider the Vehicle Tax Act unconstitutional. Traffic jams in Tallinn. Photo: Konstantin Sednev
Chancellor of Justice Ülle Madise, responding to a petition from the chairman of the Centre Party, Mihhail Kõlvart, came to the conclusion that there is no reason to consider the Vehicle Tax Act unconstitutional.
Kõlvart asked the Chancellor of Justice to assess the constitutionality of the Vehicle Tax Act, arguing that the law may be unconstitutional because it does not provide for benefits for disabled people, large families and residents of rural areas.
In her response, the Chancellor of Justice stressed that she would not interfere with the tax and social policy of the Riigikogu if it does not contradict the constitution.
"The Riigikogu has the right to decide on the amount of taxes, as well as on the methods of supporting the disabled, large families and rural residents. You are right that the Constitution does not allow them to be left to their own devices. However, the Constitution does not require that assistance be provided in the form of tax breaks or tax exemptions. It is probably necessary to assess the adequacy of financial and other assistance to these members of society," Madise explained.
She noted that the car tax is designed in such a way that older and cheaper vehicles are taxed at a lower rate. Based on current data, there is also no reason to believe that the car tax does not take into account the population's ability to pay or that it is so high that car owners are forced to give up their cars.
"Reasonable property taxes are constitutionally permissible. Property taxes should not be confiscatory, i.e., they should not force a person to give up a car, a house or other property that is important to him. However, if in some cases a car tax turns out to be confiscatory, the taxpayer can challenge the tax notice in court and ask the court to assess the constitutionality of the tax on the basis of a specific case. At present, the Chancellor of Justice is not aware of any such case," he added.
Therefore, Madise believes that, based on the facts presented by Kõlvart, there are no grounds for declaring the Vehicle Tax Act unconstitutional. However, the Chancellor of Justice will continue to analyse the constitutionality of taxing old vehicles and the issue of compensation for registration fees in the event of damage.
Kõlvart also asked for an assessment of the formal constitutionality of the law, but the Chancellor of Justice considered that asking the Riigikogu to review the tax law in this case was incorrect and ineffective.