M. Majauskas: state-supported companies also bought boats and yachts

 "Companies that suffered from quarantine restrictions and received state support bought not only luxury cars, but also pleasure boats, jet skis, yachts, catamarans, says Mykolas Majauskas, Chairman of the Seimas Budget and Finance Committee. According to M. Majauskas, the value of such purchases amounts to millions of euros, and they were acquired by companies that have nothing to do with water transport or entertainment activities - real estate, construction, tobacco production, cargo transportation companies, law firms. About half of them are recognized as victims of quarantine restrictions. 

 "During the pandemic, legal entities purchased more than 100 pleasure boats, catamarans, jet skis, yachts, sometimes worth millions of euros," Majauskas said at a press conference in the Seimas on Monday. "More than half have been officially recognized as affected by the coronavirus crisis, and most have received support." According to him, such data were provided by the Lithuanian Transport Safety Administration.

 "Why do these companies need such purchases, if it is not related to their direct activities?" The chairman of the Seimas committee discussed. He stressed that the costs of acquiring and maintaining such assets are included in the operating costs of companies, thus recovering value added tax and reducing income tax. These assets are often used for personal needs, but, according to M. Majauskas, the received benefits are not accounted for as income in kind and personal income tax is avoided. 

After M. Majauskas spoke about possible cases of abuse by companies, when they received luxury cars after receiving state support, a list of companies appeared in the media. It includes companies that in 2020-2021 purchased cars of value more than 50,000 Euros for some brands and received some state support. At a press conference on Monday, M. Majauskas pointed out that the published lists have nothing to do with the lists held by the State Tax Inspectorate (STI), which were not made public, but presented several cases. 

For example, a pet food company recognized as a victim of COVID-19 received a grant of more than € 20,000 to save jobs and bought a jet ski worth € 17,000. The sewing services company, also on the list of victims, bought a luxury ship costing hundreds of thousands of euros after receiving a subsidy of EUR 20,000 for downtime and job maintenance. The company, which sells sanitary equipment, received a subsidy of EUR 3,000 for micro-enterprises and purchased a jet ski costing EUR 14,000. "We will ask the State Tax Inspectorate to find out whether the costs of acquiring and maintaining luxury property are not included in operating costs or whether the property is used for private needs or whether the support has not been abused," said the head of the Seimas committee. 

He underlined, among other things, that luxury assets, which have nothing to do with their activities, are purchased by companies in their own name every year. 2019 such acquisitions were 80-90 per year, in 2020 - 109. "Growth of 20% a year," he stressed.