Nesti, around 65, with a white apron that occasionally bears red flesh scars, stands leaning against the small counter of his shop where no one ever enters.
Although he has been operating on one of the secondary roads of the New Ring Road for at least 5 years, he is in danger of being unemployed. Because of his negligence, lack of information or because of profit. Nesti is convinced that in his activity he does not see any mistake against the law.
"Taxmen have come to me, they have asked me for VAT invoices and warned me to close the shop with which I have supported my family for 7 years. I take the meat and some dairy that I have to a relative in the village who has no business. He has them for the family. When they overdo it, I take it," says Nesti for Citizens Channel.
For Arben Shkodra, Secretary General of the Union of Albanian Producers' Chambers, the agricultural sector is untaxed to the extent of 90%.
"Agriculture is the most informal sector in the country. The main instrument should be the electronic register. There must be traceability. The law on the Agricultural Community must be applied, so that even the peasant who has one or two cows for family use, if he has a surplus, sends it to the "cooperative" where it undergoes all possible analyses, is registered, goes through the entire chain of traceability and goes to the end user", says Shkodra for Citizens Channel.
While Alban Zusi, head of the "Albanian Food Industry" association, declares that the market is free and anyone can sell and buy livestock products and by-products. According to him, in the case of Nest and his colleagues, the issue is resolved with auto-invoicing. According to Zusi, in this case only the price changes, if the trader receives the product without an invoice from the farmer who has the products for family use. Get them cheaper because you will download the VAT to the buyers. In the case where it would be supplied to a farmer from whom he would receive an invoice, he would receive it with all VAT, so the price would be more expensive.
Artur Papajani, director of the Directorate of Taxpayers Service in the General Directorate of Taxes, elaborates the explanation further for Citizens Channel.
"The whole essence of the scheme is: farmers who are the object of the compensation scheme, must be provided with an identification number (NIPT), issued by the Regional Tax Directorate where the farmer exercises his activity to benefit from this scheme, without being subject to the obligation to declare. "
According to him, this registration and NIPT certificate issued to the farmer is valid only for the purpose of benefiting from the compensation scheme for agricultural producers according to this law.
Any use of the NIPT issued to the farmer by him or by other persons for purposes other than those defined in this instruction is contrary to the purpose of its use. While the buyer of agricultural products according to this instruction (gatherer/processor) is a taxable person registered for VAT and is subject to the normal VAT regime.
"The buyer, a taxable person, for each supply of agricultural products, received from the farmer, in accordance with this instruction, issues a tax invoice with VAT according to the format of invoices approved by the tax authority, in which he identifies the seller, the farmer, as the seller (agricultural producer), the NIPT of the farmer and other data required according to the invoice. The total value of the invoice represents the value of the supply paid by the buyer on account of the farmer seller, including the compensation rate which is 20%. The VAT indicated on the invoice of 20% constitutes the farmer's compensation rate. This VAT is deductible for the collector and this is an advantage for him. At the same time, the taxable value on the invoice, excluding VAT, is recognized as a deductible expense. The agreed compensation is paid to the farmer by the buyer, a taxable person, against the supplies made", explained the director Papajani.
During an observation in the meat trading stores in the capital, there were some eyes similar to Nesti's case. Several other subjects closed by AKU during the last actions.
"I get the meat in Erseke. I take the cattle alive and slaughter them in the Korca slaughterhouse. They have done it very well, with all the conditions. I used to slaughter them at the slaughterhouses in Erseke, but now they have been closed by AKU. The slaughterhouse of Korça is currently the only one for the whole area", Agroni, who runs his business in a shop in front of the former Exhibition, tells Citizens Channel.
Most of the entities we observed took live cattle and slaughtered them in slaughterhouses. Asked about the situation, AKU explained to Citizens Channel that the new law excludes slaughter in meat shops. Only slaughterhouses are recognized by law.
According to the AKU, one of the criteria during the Authority's action in the subjects of meat sales was the VAT invoice. AKU does not prefer to provide statistics for this market segment.
Contraband meat enters Albania
Animals and meat are smuggled into Albania, mainly from Macedonia. It has even been established that dead animals have entered with the group of cattle that were illegally transported to the Albanian territory.
This is confirmed by the Albanian Food Industry. Three weeks ago, a group of 13 cattle entered the Albanian territory from Macedonia, among which one was dead. They were caught transporting them to Korça. While AKU in cooperation with the State Police and SHISH are coordinating the work to avoid the phenomenon of illegal importation of cattle in Albania.
Where are the meat trading subjects currently supplied?
We learn from Abanian Food Industry that the myth of collection points has fallen. It is not that they are currently absent, but they did not exist. Before, butchers used to go through the mountains, where they found cattle to slaughter. Even now, butchers can operate in the same way, but they are forced to go through the registration process.
So, according to the law in force, no butcher can send cattle to slaughterhouses that are not slaughtered. In this way, the slaughters have been disciplined and the slaughterhouses have been empowered, and meat is also being guaranteed for the market either from the domestic market or from the legal import of live animals.
Map of meat importers
Currently, there are seven importers of pork that deal exclusively with the import of the meat of this animal. There are four importers of fat cattle, cattle that are mainly imported from Macedonia and Bulgaria. While frozen meat has about 15 importers, which are the traditional ones that import mainly from the EU, Canada and America.
AKU two weeks ago carried out the procedure of disposal of a quantity of meat over 2 tons, blocked during the inspections of those days, as it turned out to be without a veterinary seal and certificate of origin. The destruction was done in the refrigerators of a company on the Arbanë-Vishnje road, where the meat was stored. The amount of 2 tons was dumped in the Sharra Landfill.
AKU stated that after the inspection and disposal of the meat, 83 entities were closed throughout the country where the uncontrolled product was found.
Author: Sabina Veizaj
