As the tax authority will be part of the economy ministry, a state secretary and four deputy state secretaries from the ministry will take over the responsibilities of NAV’s chief.

András Tállai, economy ministry state secretary in charge of the restructuring, told a press conference after the vote that there had been broad consensus among the authority’s staff on the need to streamline the tax authority to eliminate fragmentation and parallel operations.

The changes also serve to ensure the uniform application of laws and eliminate delays in communication up to the level of decision-makers within the tax authority.

Tállai said that the new structure of managing tax affairs is not unusual, and he cited similar arrangements in Austria, Estonia, Poland and the Netherlands as examples.

The opposition Együtt party said the move would merely strengthen the government’s hand in controlling tax affairs while undermining transparency and boosting corruption. Under the government’s roof, the authority will be able to act as a proxy for political blackmail against anyone opposed to oligarchs close to the ruling Fidesz party, Együtt lawmaker Zsuzsanna Szelényi said.

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