In his interview, Gramegna stated that he definitely rules out the possibility of a tax reform prior to 2023.
Although the country can expect the pandemic to come to an end in autumn 2021, Gramegna stressed that it is important not to jump the gun on anything, despite the fact that Luxembourg had come out of the crisis "better than initially feared".
As Minister of Finance, Gramegna explained, he must remain "reasonably cautious".
When asked about the situation of single parents, bachelors, and widows, the Minister stated that these inequalities have been a burden on the country "for the past 30, 40, 50 years".
Gramegna also pointed out that the effects of the 2017 tax reform, which introduced "just tax breaks", has only started to become apparent recently.
In addition, this reform also introduced optional individualisation. However, according to Gramegna, taxes are not the answer to everything, with the Minister instead pointing out the variety of social measures passed over the past years as well as the recent decision to index child support once again as of 1 January 2022.
The Luxembourg Socialist Workers' Party (LSAP) demands the introduction of a "coronavirus tax" on those individuals and businesses that have benefitted financially from the pandemic.
Regarding this demand, the Minister stated that while he could understand the reasoning behind it, the issue of "from which profit margin on should one pay X amount of taxes" shows how difficult such a measure would be to implement.
In addition, Gramegna pointed out, companies who made a profit over the past year already have to pay taxes on it, while those who made a loss are naturally not taxed.
The Minister stressed that the purpose of taxes is not to "punish" but to be "fair".
Especially regarding digital economy, there is room for improvement, Gramegna added. If the US is "setting the bar high", then Luxembourg would "follow suit", Gramegna stated, adding that the main goal is to ensure that the country remains "reasonably attractive".
Regarding corporate tax, Gramegna thinks it is best to settle the matter, ruling out both increases and tax breaks for the coming years.
While compared to other countries, Luxembourg does not offer a "dream rate", the government has steadily decreased it from 21% to the current 17% (15% for small and medium-sized enterprises).
Since the municipalities charge their own business tax, the overall rate is about 25%, which is very much the average, Gramegna stated.
On the other hand, changes are coming regarding property tax. The Minister confirmed that all the necessary figures and material had been collected and that the only thing left to do is for the three majority parties to agree on a rate.
The only thing that is for certain, Gramegna revealed, is that a person's primary residence will benefit from "preferential treatment".LIVESTREAM: RTL Radio Lëtzebuerg live lauschteren.
