Slovenia

Business Environment

Business Practices

General information: A brief overview by Kwintessential on culture, customs and etiquette
Closed hours and days: Bank branches have a very varied working hours but majority do have a lunch break. They are mostly open Monday to Friday from around 8 AM to around noon and from around 2 PM to around 5 PM.
Public administrations are opened Monday to Friday from 8 AM to noon and from 1 PM to 3 PM. On the other hand, private and international offices are open from 8 AM to 4 PM and especially in bigger cities also from 9 AM to 5 PM.
Most shops are open Monday to Friday from 8 AM to 8 PM, on Saturdays from 8 AM to noon. Some big hypermarkets in major cities are open Monday to Saturday from 9 AM to 9 PM and on Sundays from 9 AM to 3 PM.

Public holidays

New Year	1st and 2nd January
Slovene Cultural Day	8th February
Easter (Sunday and Monday)	Movable feast
Day of Uprising against (WW-II) Occupation	27th April
International Labour Day	1st and 2nd May
Statehood Day	25th June
Assumption Day	15th August
Reformation Day	31st October
All Saints Day	1st November
Christmas	25th December
Independence and Unity Day	26th December

Periods when companies usually close

New Year	1 week between Christmas and New Year
1st May	1 week from 27th April to 2nd May

Accounting Rules

Tax year: January 1st to December 31st.
Accounting standards: The accounting in Slovenia should be in line with the law (Accountancy Act - in Slovenian only) and the international financial reporting standards (IFRS) as valid for the EU member states.
Accounting regulation bodies: Slovenian Institute of Auditors (in Slovenian only)
Court of Audit
Government Budget Supervision Office
Accounting reports: The New Slovenian accounting system was finalized in accordance with international accounting standards and general accounting principles accepted in the EU. Business books are kept on a double-entry bookkeeping bases except for small entrepreneurs.
Annual reports of entrepreneurs and personal companies should comprise at least the balance sheet and income statement.
Annual reports of small share capital companies whose shares are not listed on the stock exchange should as a minimum containt balance sheet, income statement and annexes with an explanation of the reports stipulated by law.
Annual reports produced by large and medium-sized capital companies, dual companies and small companies whose shares are listed on the stock exchange should contain balance sheet, income statement, cash flow statements, statement on changes in equity and explanatory annexes as stipulated by law.
Publication requirements: Companies should publish an annual financial report which must be disclosed within a period of 3 months after the end of the fiscal year to the agency called AJPES. Audit reports are compulsory for large and medium-sized companies and small companies with securities traded on an organized market. Audits must be carried out within 6 months. Annual reports accompanied with the auditor's report shall be submitted to the AJPES agency within 8 months.
Professional accountancy bodies: Association of Accountant Services
Section of accountants
Certification and auditing: The standards of accounting, auditing and assesment are set by the Slovenian Institute of Auditors (in Slovenian only). It also defines the education and runs the exams for all authorized auditors and assessors in the country and runs their list.

The highest body for supervising state accounts, the state budget and public spending is the Court of Audit. It may audit any act of public fund users.
Accounting news: Accountancy web portal (in Slovene only)
Government agency gathering annual reports of all companies, offering also financial analyses, and credit ratings
International accountancy publishing house website (in Slovene only)

Tax Rates

Consumption taxes

Nature of the tax: Value added tax or (in Slovene): davek na dodano vrednost (DDV).
Tax rate: 20%
Reduced tax rate: 8.5%
Other consumption taxes: Products for which excise duty is paid are alcohol and alcoholic beverages, tobacco products, mineral oils and natural gas, electricity, coal and coke.

Corporate taxes

Tax rate

Corporate income tax

21% in 2009, 20% in 2010.

Capital gains taxation: Capital gains, dividends and interests are taxed from 0-20%, depending on a holding period.
Main allowable deductions and tax credit: Apart from depreciation allowance and company loss that can be carried forward for the following seven years, several tax reliefs are in place:

20% for investment in development

up to 70% for employing disabled persons

up to 20% (of the average monthly salary in Slovenia) for carrying out traineeship

0.3% for donations

for voluntary supplementary pension insurance

for hiring of unemployed people

For investment funds, pension funds, insurance companies and other venture capital companies the special tax rate of 0% may be used.
Other corporate taxes

Individual taxes

Tax rate

National Personal Income Tax scale	Rate varies between 16 and 41% according to the amount of the income:
From 0 to 7,187.60 EUR	16%
From 7,187.60 to 14,375.20 EUR	1,150,02 EUR + 27% of the income above 7,187.60 EUR
From 14,375.20 EUR and above	3,090,67 EUR + 41% of above 14,375.20 EUR

Allowable deductions and tax credit: General individual tax deduction valid for every taxpayer is based on the amount of the yearly income (in 2008):

for income up to 8,300 EUR = 4,959.60 EUR of deduction

between 8,300 EUR and 9,600 EUR = 3,959.60 EUR of deduction

above 9,600 EUR = 2,959.60 EUR of deduction

There are also some further individual tax deductions for disabled persons, for seniors, for students and for dependent children or other dependent family member.

Double taxation treaties

Countries with whom a double taxation treaty have been signed: See the list of the conventions signed
Whithholding taxes: Dividends: 15%, Interest: 15%, Royalties: 15%

Sources of fiscal information

Tax Authorities: Tax Administration office website
Ministry of Finance website
Other domestic resources: Customs Administration office website
Guide to Slovene Tax legislation

Intellectual Property

National organizations: The body responsible for industrial property is Slovenian Intellectual Property Office (SIPO).
Regional organizations: Member of European Patent Organisation (EPO) and member of Office for Harmonization in the Internal Market of the EU (OHIM).

National regulation and international agreements

Type of property and law	Validity	International agreements signed
Patent Industrial Property Act	20 years
Trademark Industrial Property Act	10 years (renewable indefinitely)	Trademark law treaty Nice agreement Protocol relating to the Madrid Agreement
Design Industrial Property Act	5 years (renewable, for a maximum of total 25 years)
Copyright Copyright and related rights Act	70 years after author's death	WIPO copyright treaty

Legal Framework

Independence of justice: Judiciary in Slovenia is largely independent, though it is overburdened with cases which may take long time to close.
Equal treatment of nationals and foreigners: Yes, the discrimation based on nationality, race, sex, language, religion, political or other beliefs, financial wealth, social status, education or any other personal characteristic is prohibited by the constitution.
The language of justice: The judicial language used in the country is Slovenian.
Having recourse to an interpreter: Having an interpreter is possible.
Sources of the law and legal similarities: The main source of the law is the constitution of 1991 and - being a member of the EU - the conditions of the Community legislation.
Checking national laws online: Official Slovenian Gazzette website where all the laws are published (in Slovene only)
National Assembly website on legislation
English translation of legislation on data protection
French, German and English translation of the Constitution of Slovenia
English translation of the constitution and law on courts

Standards

National standards organizations: Slovenian Institute for Standardisation
Slovenian Metrology Institute
Integration in the international standards network: The rules of accreditation, testing, certification and quality control are in line with European standards SIST EN 45000 and international standards ISO 17000 according to the rules and guidelines of EA, ILAC and IAF of which Slovenian accreditation agency is a member. Slovenian institute for standardization is a full member of CEN, ISO, IEC, CENELEC and ETSI.
Classification of standards: SIST + 4-digit number. When an international, European or other national standard is transposed as a Slovenian standard, the SIST acronym shall be prefixed to the designation of the source standard, for example: SIST ISO 710-6, SIST EN 1080, SIST DIN 1995-1.
Online consultation of standards: Catalogue of Slovenian Standards (SIST)
Certification organizations: Slovenian Institute for Standardisation
Slovenian accreditation agency (in Slovene only).