Following deliberate and malicious articles recently published in the media regarding FFBIH VAT numbers, conducted by the Indirect Taxation Authority of Bosnia and Herzegovina, we would like to inform the public on the following facts:
The VAT control was carried out for a period of Aug. 1st 2011 to Sept. 30th 2015 and it was found that pre-tax amounted to 839,186.00 BAM, of which 322,404.92 BAM belonged to year 2015, during which the control was performed and completed.
First of all, we believe there's no basis for FFBIH to pay the VAT for the invitations and free tickets because they are free, and also because the previous tax control didn't take them into account, indicating the possibility of different interpretations of legal regulations. Then, there are different interpretations regarding the VAT for funds received from FIFA and UEFA aimed at equipping the training center in Zenica, a profit-free training ground for all national teams. Also, there are differing opinions about the obligation to pay taxes for dedicated funds FFBIH distributed through FIFA/UEFA infrastructural projects for football clubs affected by catastrophic 2014 floods.
However, regardless of the above comments, FFBIH met its obligations and paid the amount of 839,186.00 BAM to the Indirect Taxation Authority's bank account. It should be noted that even though there were some slight procedural errors during billing and VAT miscalculation with certain FFBIH sponsors, there was no abuse, illegal or criminal acts, and no deliberate tax-evation tendencies. Mistakes are the result of different legal interpretations, key administration members' unavailability, and other control bodies' busy schedule in the same period.
So far, FFBIH has paid a total of 3,130,426.58 BAM (direct) and 1,369,648.58 BAM (indirect) in taxes (not counting disability and pension plans, health insurance, natural disasters, floods, etc.), which confirms that all legal obligations towards the state are transparent and taken care of.
It's evident that FFBIH is open for a transparent and legal business, confirmed via earlier legal proceedings conducted on the basis of anonymous reports. Even though we don't get any financial help from the state authorities, huge losses incurred prior to 2010 are successfully remedied, and following FIFA and UEFA's suspension in 2011, FFBIH has managed to operate positively each fiscal year since then, and through a number of projects secured the substantial financial resources for our country from abroad. Besides the ongoing financial consolidation, an organizational consolidation was conducted and in the meantime we have succesfuly qualified for the 2014 World Cup in Brazil.
It's obvious this is a continuation of the campaign against FFBIH, as dissatisfied individuals within are trying to negate our success with lies and stand in the way of our work and development.
