natgillin/translations-raw huggingface dataset:
According to the Norwegian authorities, the main reason for proposing a transitional period is that an abolishment of differentiation as from 2004 would raise significant and very serious difficulties, not only for individual firms, but for all firms in zones 3 and 4 (where aid would exceed the de minimis threshold) and thus for the employment situation in the whole area.
Norveški organi oblasti trdijo, da je glavni razlog za predlagano prehodno obdobje to, da bi odprava diferenciacije od leta 2004 povzročila velike in zelo resne težave, ne samo za posamezna podjetja, temveč za vsa podjetja v conah 3 in 4 (kjer bi pomoč prekoračila prag de minimis), in s tem za zaposlenost na celotnem območju.
It is estimated that, if the current system had been prolonged from 2004, the total gross tax relief to the private sector in zones 3 and 4, would be NOK 3030 million (some EUR 370 million).
Po ocenah bi bruto davčne olajšave zasebnemu sektorju v conah 3 in 4, če bi se trenutni sistem podaljšal po letu 2004, skupaj znašale 3030 milijonov NOK (približno 370 milijonov EUR).
Based on a report by a committee of independent experts (Effektutvalget), the Norwegian authorities present inter alia various calculations of possible macroeconomic effects of abolishing the regional differentiation of the tax.
Na podlagi poročila odbora neodvisnih strokovnjakov („Effektutvalget“) so norveški organi oblasti predstavili med drugim različne izračune možnih makroekonomskih učinkov odprave regionalne diferenciacije prispevkov.
Provided that there are no incidence effects on wages and product prices, the estimates indicate an employment reduction in the private sector of 15400 persons in zone 4 and 2900 persons in zone 3, as a direct effect of the increase in total wage costs.
Če ne bo nobenih posledičnih učinkov na plače in cene proizvodov, se bo po ocenah zaposlenost v zasebnem sektorju zmanjšala za 15400 oseb v coni 4 in za 2900 oseb v coni 3, kot neposreden učinek povišanja celotnih stroškov plač.
This would represent an isolated reduction of employment in the private sector in these regions of 15,5 % (13,8 % in zone 3, 15,8 % in zone 4).
To bi pomenilo ločeno zmanjšanje zaposlenosti v zasebnem sektorju v teh regijah v višini 15,5 odstotka (13,8 odstotka v coni 3 in 15,8 odstotka v coni 4).
The corresponding reduction in total employment in these regions would be 7,5 % in zone 3 and 8,5 % in zone 4.
Temu ustrezajoče totalno zmanjšanje zaposlenosti v teh regijah bi bilo za 7,5 odstotka v coni 3 in 8,5 odstotka v coni 4.
The Norwegian authorities also point out that firms have relied on the differentiated system since its establishment in 1975, when deciding their location and investment.
Norveški organi oblasti poudarjajo tudi, da se podjetja pri odločanju o svoji lokaciji in naložbah opirajo na diferenciran sistem že od njegove ustanovitve leta 1975.
The Norwegian authorities furthermore argue that it is reasonable to believe that a regional increase in the social security contributions will, in the short run, only to a very limited extent be shifted through increased product prices or reduced wage costs, because of the delay in adjusting the economic activity to the new situation.
Norveški organi oblasti trdijo tudi, da bo regionalno povečanje prispevkov za socialno varnost kratkoročno verjetno le v zelo omejenem obsegu doseženo z višjimi cenami proizvodov ali zmanjšanimi stroški plač zaradi zaostanka pri prilagajanju gospodarske dejavnosti novim razmeram.
This is supported by the fact that the Norwegian system of wage formation is characterised by a relatively high degree of centralised, collective bargaining, which implies that the wage level will not be adjusted immediately to the increased employer social security contributions.
To potrjuje tudi dejstvo, da je za norveški sistem oblikovanja plač značilna razmeroma visoka stopnja centraliziranega kolektivnega pogajanja, kar pomeni, da raven plač ne bo takoj prilagojena povečanim prispevkom delodajalcev za socialno varnost.
It is argued that parts of the increase in costs will be shifted to wage earners and consumers, but that this will only happen in the long run.
Nekateri trdijo, da bo del povišanja stroškov prešel na delavce in potrošnike, vendar bo do tega prišlo šele dolgoročno.
In this respect, reference is made to various economic studies.
Te trditve se opirajo na različne ekonomske študije.
It is also highlighted that profit margins in zones 3 and 4 are low compared to zone 1 and also zone 2.
Poudarjeno je tudi, da so stopnje dobička v conah 3 in 4 nizke v primerjavi s cono 1 in tudi cono 2.
This information is based on companies' annual reports submitted to the official Company Register and calculated by Statistics Norway.
Ta podatek temelji na letnih poročilih podjetij, ki so jih ta predložila uradnem registru družb in ki jih je preračunal statistični urad Norveške.
Secondly, the Norwegian authorities are of the opinion that they received ‘no clear signals’ until late autumn 2002 that the system, as such, had to be abolished.
Norveški organi oblasti tudi menijo, da do pozne jeseni 2002 niso prejeli „nobenih jasnih signalov“, da bi bilo treba sistem kot tak odpraviti.
The Norwegian authorities state that they did not find it professionally or politically advisable to request the undertakings to adapt to a situation with no differentiation (beyond de minimis), before they saw the contours of a new system.
Po njihovem mnenju ni strokovno ali politično primerno od podjetij zahtevati, da se prilagodijo razmeram, v katerih ni diferenciacije (preseganje de minimis), preden se seznanijo z značilnostmi novega sistema.
In this respect the Norwegian authorities refer to informal discussions that took place in the wake of the European Commission’s decision on the Swedish system of reduced social security contributions.
V zvezi s tem se norveški organi oblasti sklicujejo na neformalne razprave, ki so sledile sklepu Evropske komisije o švedskem sistemu znižanih prispevkov za socialno varnost.
By letter dated 16 May 2003, the Authority noted that the notified transition period is three years for zones 3 and 4, and therefore that the relative increases per year are higher in zone 4 than in zone 3.
V pismu z dne 16. maja 2003 je Organ poudaril, da je za coni 3 in 4 priglašeno prehodno obdobje treh let ter da so zato relativna letna povišanja višja v coni 4 kot v coni 3.
The Authority therefore stated that it would appreciate receiving arguments for why enterprises in zone 3 would need the same transition period as those in zone 4, in spite of facing a smaller increase in the tax burden.
Organ je zato navedel, da bi želel prejeti dokaze o tem, zakaj bi podjetja v coni 3 potrebovala enako prehodno obdobje kot podjetja v coni 4, kljub manjšemu povišanju obremenitve prispevkov.
The Authority also indicated that it would appreciate receiving additional comments or calculations demonstrating the effects of transition periods of one and two years, respectively, for each of the zones, and compared to the notified three-year period.
Poleg tega bi želel prejeti tudi dodatne pripombe ali izračune, ki bi pokazali učinke prehodnih obdobij enega in dveh let za vsako cono posebej ter v primerjavi s priglašenim triletnim obdobjem.
By letter dated 5 June 2003, the Ministry of Finance submitted additional comments.
Ministrstvo za finance je s pismom z dne 5. junija 2003 predložilo dodatne pripombe.
The Ministry stated that without a transitional period, the increase in the social security tax corresponded to an immediate increase in the firms’ labour costs of 8,6 and 7,2 % in zones 4 and 3, respectively (as soon as the de minimis threshold is reached).
Navedlo je, da brez prehodnega obdobja povečanje prispevkov za socialno varnost ustreza neposrednemu povišanju stroškov dela za podjetja za 8,6 odstotka v coni 4 in 7,2 odstotka v coni 3 (takoj, ko je dosežen prag de minimis).
Assuming general wage increases as forecast by the authorities, no transition period would imply an increase in labour costs for enterprises in zones 3 and 4 in 2004 almost three times higher than the normally expected increase in such costs (de minimis effect not taken into consideration).
Glede na splošna povišanja plač, kot jih predvidevajo organi oblasti, bi se brez prehodnega obdobja stroški dela za podjetja v conah 3 in 4 v letu 2004 povišali skoraj za trikrat več od navadno pričakovanega povišanja takih stroškov (če ne upoštevamo učinka de minimis).
It was maintained that, due to documented rigidities in nominal wages, a possible regional wage response to a significant reduction in firms' profitability can safely be considered very limited in the short run.
Zaradi zabeležene togosti nominalnih plač je mogoče z verjetnostjo pričakovati kratkoročno zelo omejen regionalni odziv plač na precejšnje znižanje donosnosti podjetij.
It was pointed out that, without any transition period, a full carry-over of the higher wage costs would imply a significant reduction in nominal wages which is considered to be unrealistic.
Brez prehodnega obdobja bi popoln prenos višjih stroškov plač pomenil precejšnje znižanje nominalnih plač, kar pa se dejansko ne zdi mogoče.
In relation to the low profitability margins in zones 3 and 4, it was observed that a full tax increase would have constituted a significant part of current operating profits.
Glede na nizke stopnje donosnosti v conah 3 in 4 pa bi polno povečanje prispevkov zajemalo večji del trenutnih dobičkov iz poslovanja.
A transitional period of three years would, according to the Ministry, allow for a higher degree of wage adjustment to take place before the full rate is applied, postpone the rise in costs to firms and reduce the number of closures and jobs lost as a consequence of the increase in the tax rate.
Prehodno obdobje treh let bi po mnenju ministrstva omogočilo večjo prilagoditev plač pred uvedbo polne stopnje, odložilo povišanje stroškov za podjetja ter zmanjšalo število zaprtij in izgub delovnih mest kot posledic povišanja prispevne stopnje.
As to why enterprises in zone 3 need the same transitional period as enterprises in zone 4, the Ministry stated that three years is a very short period in both zones, that the relative differences in the increases between the zones are very small and that it would be unfortunate with a differentiation in the transitional period.
Glede vprašanja, zakaj podjetja v coni 3 potrebujejo enako prehodno obdobje kot podjetja v coni 4, pa je ministrstvo izjavilo, da so tri leta za obe coni zelo kratko obdobje, da so relativne razlike v povišanjih med conama razmeroma majhne in da ne bi bilo primerno razlikovati prehodno obdobje.
Eligible sectors/activities
Upravičeni sektorji/dejavnosti
The notified aid applies to all undertakings having employees resident in zones 3 and 4, with two main exceptions.
Priglašena pomoč velja za vsa podjetja, ki imajo zaposlene s stalnim prebivališčem v conah 3 in 4, pri čemer veljata dve glavni izjemi.
The first exception is undertakings falling outside the scope of the EEA Agreement, while the other exception is undertakings in certain sectors where the full rate applies irrespective of location.
Prva izjema so podjetja, ki ne spadajo v področje Sporazuma EGP, druga izjema pa so podjetja v nekaterih sektorjih, kjer velja polna stopnja ne glede na lokacijo.
Employers’ contributions for employees in the central government administration are also subject to 14,1 % tax, irrespective of where the employee is living.
Tudi za prispevke delodajalcev za zaposlene v centralni državni upravi velja 14,1-odstotna prispevna stopnja, ne glede na to, kje zaposleni prebiva.
Salaries more than 16 times the basic amount of the National Insurance Scheme are subject to an additional contribution of 12,5 % on the excess amount.
Za plače, ki so več kot 16-krat višje od osnovnega zneska v okviru nacionalnega sistema zavarovanja, se plačuje dodaten prispevek v višini 12,5 odstotka od prekoračenega zneska.
This additional contribution applies irrespective of where the employee lives or type of business.
Ta dodatni prispevek se obračunava ne glede na to, kje zaposleni prebiva ali za kakšno vrsto poslovne dejavnosti gre.
Sectors falling outside the scope of the State aid provisions of the EEA Agreement
Sektorji, ki ne spadajo v področje določb o državni pomoči Sporazuma EGP
The major part of the primary industries (agriculture/forestry and fisheries sectors) falls outside the scope of the EEA Agreement or outside the scope of the Authority’s competence to review State aid, cf. Article 8(3) and Protocols 3 and 9 to the EEA Agreement.
Glavni del primarnih dejavnosti (kmetijstvo/gozdarstvo in ribištvo) ne spada v področje Sporazuma EGP ali v področje pristojnosti Organa za presojo državne pomoči, glej člen 8(3) in protokola 3 in 9 k Sporazumu EGP.
The Norwegian Government has decided to maintain the current system of differentiated rates of social security contributions in these sectors.
Norveška vlada se je odločila v teh sektorjih ohraniti sedanji sistem diferenciranih prispevnih stopenj za socialno varnost.
The Norwegian authorities have stated in the notification that they will ensure full compliance with the EEA Agreement, in order to avoid that undertakings not belonging to these sectors, would benefit from the current system.
Norveški organi oblasti so v priglasitvi navedli, da bodo zagotovili popolno uskladitev s Sporazumom EGP, zato da ne bi podjetja, ki ne spadajo v te sektorje, imela koristi od sedanjega sistema.
Sectors subject to full rate irrespective of location
Sektorji, za katere velja polna stopnja ne glede na lokacijo
The highest tax rate of 14,1 % shall apply to the following enterprises, irrespective of the municipality in which the employee lives:
Najvišja prispevna stopnja v višini 14,1 odstotka velja za naslednja podjetja, ne glede na občino, v kateri prebivajo zaposleni:
enterprises producing electricity from hydropower,
podjetja, ki proizvajajo električno energijo iz vodne energije,
enterprises involved in extraction of crude oil or natural gas,
podjetja, ki se ukvarjajo s pridobivanjem surove nafte ali zemeljskega plina,
enterprises providing one of more of the following services associated with oil or gas exploitation:
podjetja, ki izvajajo eno ali več naslednjih storitev, povezanih s pridobivanjem nafte ali plina:
test or production drilling on contract,
testna ali proizvodna vrtanja po pogodbi,
service activities in connection with oil and gas exploitation,
storitvene dejavnosti v povezavi s pridobivanjem nafte in plina,
drilling or well service on contract.
vrtanje ali dela v jaških po pogodbi.
enterprises excavating metal ore, except iron ore and iron ore containing manganese,
podjetja, ki kopljejo rude, razen železove rude in železove rude z vsebnostjo mangana,
enterprises excavating the industrial minerals nepheline cyenite and olivine,
podjetja, ki kopljejo industrijske minerale nefelin sienit in olivin,
enterprises that build or repair self-propelled, ocean-going commercial vessels.
podjetja, ki gradijo ali popravljajo morska komercialna plovila na lasten pogon.
These vessels are defined as follows:
Ta plovila so:
vessels of at least 100 GRT for transporting passengers or cargo,
plovila z vsaj 100 bruto tonami za prevoz potnikov ali tovora,
vessels of at least 100 GRT for special purposes,
plovila z vsaj 100 bruto tonami za posebne namene,
tugs of at least 365 kW,
vlačilci z močjo najmanj 365 kW,
fishing vessels of at least 100 GRT intended for export to countries outside the EEA area,
ribiška plovila z najmanj 100 bruto tonami, namenjena izvozu v države zunaj območja EGP,
floating and movable unfinished hulls of the above vessels.
nedokončani trupi navedenih plovil, ki plavajo in so premični.
enterprises that carry out major alterations to vessels such as those referred to above, if the vessel is above 1000 GRT,
podjetja, ki izvajajo večje predelave navedenih plovil, če plovila presegajo 1000 bruto ton,
enterprises producing ECSC steel,
podjetja, ki proizvajajo jeklo ESPJ,
financial enterprises (as mentioned in section 1-4 of the Financial Institutions Act or section 7-1, see section 1-2, first paragraph, of the Securities Trading Act) if the enterprise has branches, is involved in cross-border activities or has established subsidiaries carrying out similar activities in other states within the EEA area,
finančna podjetja (kot so navedena v oddelku 1-4 Zakona o finančnih ustanovah ali oddelku 7-1, glej oddelek 1-2, prvi odstavek, Zakona o poslovanju z vrednostnimi papirji), če ima podjetje podružnice, se ukvarja s čezmejnimi dejavnostmi ali ima ustanovljena hčerinska podjetja, ki opravljajo podobne dejavnosti v drugih državah na območju EGP,
enterprises providing goods transport by road, and employing more than what correspond to 50 man-years,
podjetja, ki se ukvarjajo s cestnim prevozom blaga in zaposlujejo več kot 50 ljudi/leto,
enterprises producing telecommunications services.
podjetja, ki se ukvarjajo s telekomunikacijskimi storitvami.
The enterprises described above that cannot benefit from the regionally differentiated social security tax, may receive de minimis aid as described below.
Navedena podjetja, ki ne morejo imeti koristi od regionalno diferenciranih prispevkov za socialno varnost, lahko prejemajo pomoč de minimis, kot je opisano spodaj.
De minimis arrangement
Ureditev de minimis
The increased rates in zones 2 to 4 from 2004 onwards described in table 2 above will apply only to aid exceeding the de minimis amount.
Povišane stopnje v conah 2-4 od leta 2004 naprej, ki so opisane v tabeli 2 zgoraj, bodo veljale le za pomoč, ki presega znesek de minimis.
Employers’ social security contributions will be based on the existing rates for zones 2, 3 and 4 in 2003, as long as the difference between the social security contributions based on the highest rate (14,1 %) and the social security contributions based on the existing lower rates, do not exceed NOK 270000 for one year (EUR 100000 over a three-year period).
Prispevki delodajalcev za socialno varnost bodo temeljili na obstoječih stopnjah za cone 2, 3 in 4 v letu 2003, če razlika med prispevki za socialno varnost, ki temeljijo na najvišji stopnji (14,1 %), in prispevki za socialno varnost, ki temeljijo na obstoječih nižjih stopnjah, ne presega 270000 NOK za eno leto (100000 EUR v triletnem obdobju).
When this limit is exceeded, the social security contributions will have to be based on the rates otherwise applicable, see table 2 above.
Ko bo ta omejitev prekoračena, pa bodo morali prispevki za socialno varnost temeljiti na drugače veljavnih stopnjah (glej tabelo 2 zgoraj).
This provision does not apply to undertakings in the transport sector.
Ta določba ne velja za podjetja v transportnemu sektorju.
Enterprises subject to the full rate irrespective of location will also benefit from the de minimis scheme.
Podjetja, za katera velja polna stopnja, bodo, ne glede na lokacijo, tudi upravičena do sistema de minimis.
Other de minimis aid can be granted together with de minimis aid under the social security tax system only as long as total de minimis aid does not exceed NOK 270000 on an annual basis.
Druga pomoč de minimis se lahko dodeli skupaj s pomočjo de minimis v okviru sistema prispevkov za socialno varnost, če skupna letna pomoč de minimis ne presega 270000 NOK.
The Norwegian authorities have calculated that the reduction in social security contributions due to the reduced rates in 2004 is NOK 997 million in zones 3 and 4 (NOK 896 million in zone 4 and NOK 101 million in zone 3), NOK 674 million in 2005 (NOK 606 million in zone 4 and NOK 68 million in zone 3) and NOK 352 million in 2006 (NOK 317 million in zone 4 and NOK 35 million in zone 3), i.e. NOK 2022 million (some EUR 247 million) for the whole three-year period.
Norveški organi oblasti so izračunali, da je zmanjšanje prispevkov za socialno varnost zaradi zmanjšanih stopenj znašalo 997 milijonov NOK v conah 3 in 4 v letu 2004 (896 milijonov NOK v coni 4 in 101 milijon NOK v coni 3), 674 milijonov NOK v letu 2005 (606 milijonov NOK v coni 4 in 68 milijonov NOK v coni 3) ter 352 milijonov NOK v letu 2006 (317 milijonov NOK v coni 4 in 35 milijonov NOK v coni 3), to je 2022 milijonov NOK (približno 247 milijonov EUR) za celotno triletno obdobje.
The decision to open an investigation
Sklep o začetku preiskave
In its decision to open an investigation, the Authority expressed two doubts in respect of the three-year transition period in zones 3 and 4 for the regionally differentiated social security contributions.
Organ je v svojem sklepu o začetku preiskave izrazil dva pomisleka o triletnem prehodnem obdobju v conah 3 in 4 za regionalno diferencirane prispevke za socialno varnost.
The main consideration expressed by the Authority was that the Norwegian authorities had not submitted calculations demonstrating the effects of transition periods of one and two years, respectively, for each of the zones, and compared to the notified three-year period.
Njegov glavni pomislek je bil, da norveški organi oblasti niso predložili izračunov, ki bi pokazali učinke prehodnih obdobij enega in dveh let za vsako cono posebej in v primerjavi s priglašenim triletnim obdobjem.
The Norwegian authorities had only submitted comparisons between a transition period of three years and no transition period at all while stating that: ‘a transition period of less than three years would be too short’.
Norveški organi oblasti so predložili samo primerjave med triletnim prehodnim obdobjem in nikakršnim prehodnim obdobjem, pri tem pa navedli, da: „bi bilo prehodno obdobje, krajše od treh let, prekratko“.
The Authority also requested arguments as to why enterprises in zone 3 needed the same transition period as those in zone 4, in spite of facing a smaller increase in the tax burden.
Organ je zahteval tudi argumente o tem, zakaj podjetja v coni 3 potrebujejo enako prehodno obdobje kot podjetja v coni 4 kljub manjšemu povišanju obremenitve prispevkov.
Secondly, the Authority disputed the relevance of the argument from the Norwegian authorities that they received ‘no clear signals’ until late autumn 2002 that the system as such had to be abolished, as a Government could not claim a misunderstanding of EEA rules as an excuse for not fulfilling its obligations under the Agreement.
Poleg tega je Organ izpodbijal argument norveških organov oblasti, da niso prejeli „nobenih jasnih signalov“ do pozne jeseni 2002, da bi bilo treba odpraviti sistem kot tak, saj vlada ne more uporabiti nerazumevanja predpisov EGP kot izgovor za neizpolnitev svojih obveznosti po Sporazumu.
The comments from Norway
Pripombe Norveške
By letter dated 17 September 2003 from the Ministry of Finance, the Norwegian authorities submitted comments on the Authority’s decision to open an investigation.
Norveške oblasti so s pismom Ministrstva za finance z dne 17. septembra 2003 predložile pripombe glede sklepa Organa o začetku preiskave.
The Ministry maintained the previous considerations expressed in the letters dated 25 March 2003 and 5 June 2003, and submitted additional comments regarding the effects of transitional periods of one and two years, respectively, for each of the zones and compared with the notified three-year period.
Ministrstvo je vztrajalo pri svojih prejšnjih pripombah, ki jih je izrazilo v pismih z dne 25. marca in 5. junija 2003, in predložilo dodatne pripombe o učinkih prehodnih obdobij enega in dveh let za vsako cono posebej in v primerjavi s priglašenim triletnim obdobjem.
The Ministry also submitted additional comments as to why enterprises in zone 3 needed the same transitional period as those in zone 4.
Ministrstvo je predložilo tudi dodatne argumente o tem, zakaj podjetja v coni 3 potrebujejo enako prehodno obdobje kot podjetja v coni 4.
Economic effects of transitional periods of one and two years
Gospodarski učinki prehodnih obdobij enega in dveh let
The Ministry of Finance submitted the following table showing the effects of the annual increase in labour costs and tax burden, depending on the duration of the transitional period.
Ministrstvo za finance je predložilo naslednjo tabelo, ki prikazuje učinke letnega povišanja stroškov dela in prispevne obremenitve, odvisno od trajanja prehodnega obdobja.