 [1] | Slovenská komora danových poradcov (SKDP)
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About the organisation
President: Milan CHOVAN, Nitra
Slovenská komora daňových poradcov (SKDP) - the Slovak Chamber of Tax Advisers - is a professional non-profit, non-governmental organisation of registered tax advisers listed in the Chamber under a special Act 78/1992 Coll. as amended. This Act defines the Chamber’s position and its power to issue licences to provide tax consulting services to both individuals and legal persons. As amended by Acts 249/1994 Coll., 101/1995 Coll., 378/1996 Coll., 68/2005 Coll. and 136/2010 Coll., the Act sets out the basic obligations the Chamber and its members have toward each other. Under the terms set out by law, only the Chamber can register a tax adviser if the tax adviser meets certain terms and conditions. These include passing a comprehensive examination covering the candidate’s professional knowledge, ethics and long-term professional experience in the tax area.
The Chamber protects the interests of its members and creates conditions for continuing their professional growth through independent educational programmes. These programmes provide members access to up-to-date information on the tax law and its latest changes. The Tax Advisers’ Code of Ethics sets out the basic principles of the tax adviser’s work and conduct, as well as his relationship with the client, the authorities and among the advisers themselves. Through its disciplinary board, the Chamber makes sure members follow its rules and the Tax Advisers' Code of Ethics.
In addition to joining together tax advisers who are licensed to provide tax consulting services in the Slovak Republic, the Chamber provides professional protection to tax advisers and assistant tax advisers. It provides for them to receive regular training and access to professional information relevant to providing tax consulting services.
The Slovak Chamber of Tax Advisers began its activities immediately after its founding General Meeting in 1992, when the first 88 tax advisers started their professional service. Since then, this number has increased to 815. Currently, the register includes 88 legal entities licensed to provide tax consulting services.
The Slovak Chamber of Tax Advisers’ internal structure is based on regional divisions. Regional Chambers have been established to improve educational and informational services for Chamber members, as well as provide better communication between tax advisers and businesses. The regional Chambers in Bratislava, Banská Bystrica and Košice provide information about the Chamber’s activities and the services its tax advisers provide to clients. The complete list of tax advisers is available at regional Chambers. The Chamber’s main activities include educating new tax advisers according to the existing economic needs. The Chamber’s subsidiary, Akadémia dañových poradcov, s.r.o. – the Academy of Tax Advisers – has its seat in Bratislava and provides educational and training programmes. The Slovak Chamber of Tax Advisers established the Academy in 1995 as a 100% subsidiary. The Academy’s core activities include educational and editorial activities, not only for Chamber members, but for other professional groups and entrepreneurs as well.
In addition to these activities, the Chamber has set up a new internal information system, which members can access by modem. The Chamber or its regional offices enter the information into the system. This solution is unusual even in developed European countries. It ranks among the most advanced solutions for accessing information relevant to tax advisers.
The Chamber’s other priorities include:
- working with the Slovak Ministry of Finance to improve tax law and the educational process of all participants in the Slovak tax environment;
- working with the European international organisation joining national organisations (chambers) in CFE Brussels. Slovakia became a member country of this organisation in January 2001. Before that, Slovakia had been an observing member since 1995;
- interpreting changes in the quality of the tax environment in its overall context; and
- improving professional awareness of economic needs in the field of tax consulting services by developing regional offices that will address market needs more efficiently.
In addition to its membership in CFE, the Chamber is a member of an International Committee established by the German and Austrian Chambers of Tax Advisers. The Presidium of the Slovak Chamber of Tax Advisers has appointed delegates to work on the Committee. This Committee addresses benchmarking analyses in the field of accounting, taxation of individuals and legal entities, as well as regulating taxes in different countries. Individual work groups deal with specific issues. The findings will then be made available in the individual countries. The Slovak Chamber is preparing a multi-lingual version of the reports. In addition, the Chamber also works with other tax chambers, particularly in Austria and the Czech Republic. The Slovak Chamber of Tax Advisers is the only organisation that can join tax advisers in a group and issue licences for providing tax consulting services in Slovakia.