"HOME PC" INITIATIVE OF BAIT
The Bulgarian Association of Information Technologies,
Having regard of:
- The Strategy, adopted by the
European Council in Lisbon in 2000, to make the European Union the most
dynamically developing region in the world on the basis of the
development of information and communication technology (ICT) by 2010;
- The official documents (Final
Declaration and Action Plan), adopted in Geneva on 12 December 2003
during the First World Summit on the Information Society by
representatives of over 180 states, which envisage that by 2015 even
the smallest African village should be connected to the Internet;
- The strong institutional,
expert, organizational and information support that BAIT receives from
the biggest European Association EICTA (European Information and
Communications Technology Industry Association);
- The “Strategy and Action Plan on
Bulgaria’s Competitiveness on the Global ICT Markets”, adopted jointly
by the Government of the Republic of Bulgaria and the business in the
country in January 2004;
- The Strategy of the Republic of Bulgaria for Transition to the Information Society, approved by the Government;
- The Bulgarian E-Government Strategy, approved by the Government;
- The elevation of the information
and communication technology sector to a priority sector on a national
level due to its key significance for the development of the industry
and of the social relations as a whole;
- The centuries long deep respect of the Bulgarian society and family for education in particular;
- The results of the first
specialized statistical research on the use of information technologies
in the households in Bulgaria, consistent with the methodological
requirements of Eurostat and conducted by the Regional Statistical
Office, according to which as of 1st July 2003 Bulgaria
occupied one of the last positions in Europe with 6,8% of the
population having a desktop personal computer at home and 5,2% of it
having Internet access from their homes;
- The political will expressed
repeatedly by all Bulgarian governments, including the one currently in
office, to stimulate and boost the creative energy of the nation with
the aim of joining in the achievements of the other peoples and
cultures in a befitting manner;
Whereas:
- the consequences of the growing
process of globalization on a world scale, inevitably affecting each
society and manifested, in particular, in the elimination of many
barriers and boundaries, that have existed so far, and in the free
movement of persons, goods, ideas, capitals, and, parallel with that,
the increased significance of the adequate information and good
education for each individual;
- the pressing need for an
accelerated introduction of high-tech solutions for the purpose of
attaining a higher degree of internal organization of society and
enhancing its competitiveness in the situation of the emerging new
division of labour on the world market;
- the extremely low percentage of
transactions involving computer systems for domestic use in the
country, for which invoices are issued and VAT is accrued;
- the ammassed experience of the EU
member-states and the acceding countries in successfully creating
powerful incentives for the development of the information and
communication infrastructure, as well as of highly educated specialists
in the ICT area;
In its desire:
- to see every Bulgarian household equipped with a
computer that is owned and used by it and provided with Internet access;
- to support the successful implementation of the national
strategies and plans for a transition to an information society and the
maximum speed at which the e-government is introduced in the public
relations in the country;
- to be a generator of specific ideas of public
significance, which are sector-related, yet beneficial for a large
portion of the society and contributing to its development;
- to shoulder its responsibility as the biggest and most
influential association in the ICT sector in the country, in
coordination with the government and the other partners involved in the
implementation of this large-scale project, to help create real
conditions, prior to Bulgaria’s accession to EU membership, for the
predominant part of the Bulgarian population to use the internet and
the e-services by conducting specific initiatives that are conceptually
related to the project and supported by resources;
- to contribute to the creation of conditions for the
elimination of unfair competition in the information and communication
technology sector.
MAKES the following PROPOSALS
for stepping up the process of purchasing and using personal computers,
internet and e-services by the households in the country:
The state should take over the leading role in supporting the
“Computer at Home” programme, which can be implemented by granting tax breaks to individuals, who have purchased and have been using:
1. a computer system (a computer, a display, a keyboard unit, a scanner, a mouse, a modem, a printer, software),
2. internet, and
3. electronic signature.
BAIT suggests that the tax reliefs should consist in deducting the
price of the purchased computer system and of the used internet and
electronic signature services from the taxable income of all tax liable
individuals up to a certain amount during the respective year, before
income taxation. The deduction should take place after producing an
invoice including VAT and a document that a payment has been made.
Such tax reliefs will result in a multifaceted effect:
1. The state will receive a considerable part of the value of the
tax relief, which will be used by the buyer (VAT, profit tax, customs
levies, social and health insurance contributions that have not been
obtained so far).
2. The issuance of tax invoices has to do with regular account
keeping, which entails the necessity that the trader should also be
able to prove the origin of the goods sold. This presupposes duly
completed customs declarations for the commodities and payment of the
customs levies due into the State Budget.
3. The straight and impeccable conduct of the traders in the
information technology sector is encouraged and statutory prerequisites
are created for surmounting the unfair competition.
4. The tax relief will act as an incentive for traders registered
for VAT to buy computer systems. This is so because due to the tax
break in reality the buyer will be able to gat back an amount larger
than the VAT paid by him.
5. The buyer can rely that he has legally purchased quality goods with ensured warranty and post warranty support.
6. Incentives and conditions are provided for easier use (from
one’s home) of a maximum number of administrative and business
e-services, for obtaining the required information and for establishing
and maintaining contacts with individuals and with central government
and municipal institutions.
7. E-learning will become accessible to all, the range of topics
will be extended, there will be no spatial, temporal or age
limitations.
