If we do not consider the “reactivation” of the “dormant” advertising tax, then this year the budget continues to draw revenue from the same number of tax types as last year – namely 52. Behind this unchanged big picture, however, both structural trends and rather amusing curiosities can still be identified.

Condominium developments, industrial park projects and solar power plant projects are just some examples of developments that, in many cases, cannot be implemented without the inclusion of agricultural land into the inner area of a municipality and, where applicable, its withdrawal from agricultural cultivation. While the conditions for inclusion into the inner area used to be relatively well-defined and predictable, a new element has recently been introduced into the process over which developers have no real control. For the time being, legal practitioners are still considering how this new risk can best be managed.

Inflation is a natural element of economic life: what cost 100 units last year may already cost 105 this year. We examined whether inflation has a similar effect on tax rates as well. The results are remarkably diverse. There are taxes that steadily and consistently follow inflation. At the same time, the legal system still contains several “relic” that have remained unchanged for 10, 20 or even 30 years and appear unaffected by the passage of time.

The Pay Transparency Directive celebrates its 3rd anniversary on 10 May, and there is now hardly any company that has not encountered the topic in some form. Although one year remains until the reporting obligation comes into effect, there are already employer obligations that must comply with even if the local rules for applying the Directive in Hungary are still unknown.

The world of corporate financing has undergone a significant transformation in recent years. While traditional bank lending remains a dominant external source of funding for businesses, alternative, capital market-based financing channels are playing an increasingly important role. This trend is further reinforced by the introduction of a new market participant from April 2026: the loan originating investment fund, which provides access to funding for companies that would not be able to obtain financing in the traditional banking market.

It is well known that inheritance between direct relatives is tax-free in Hungary, meaning that no public charges have to be paid when inheriting from one’s parents. However, the situation becomes more complicated when there is an international element to the inheritance: either the children live abroad or part of the estate is located abroad. In such cases, careful planning is required to ensure that a death does not result in unpleasant tax consequences in addition to its emotional strain.

At the end of September, the European Commission carried out a dawn raid at Sanofi, which is also active in the vaccine market. The inspection was accompanied by representatives of national competition authorities. The raid fits into the increasingly hard-line enforcement policy pursued by European competition authorities in the pharmaceutical sector in recent years — a trend that may also be followed by the Hungarian Competition Authority (GVH).