no. 011-00-24/2024-02 date: November 21, 2024
MINISTRY OF FINANCE
Siniša Mali, Minister
11000 Belgrade
Kneza Miloša 20
Item: Initiative for exemption of products used for feminine hygiene from VAT payment
Dear Mr. Mali,
The Commissioner for the Protection of Equality, within the competencies prescribed by the Law on Prohibition of Discrimination[1] monitors the implementation of laws and other regulations and initiates the adoption or amendment of regulations to promote equality and protection against discrimination.
In this regard, the Commissioner submitted an initiative to the Ministry of Finance in the previous period to exempt products used for feminine hygiene from paying the value-added tax. Bearing in mind that a new Government was elected in 2024, and the law has not been amended so far, we are once again addressing the Ministry on this occasion.
The Commissioner is of the opinion that reducing or exempting hygiene products for women from paying VAT would contribute significantly to the achievement of several strategic goals that the Government of the Republic of Serbia recognized as very important, such as reducing poverty, improving sexual and reproductive health, as well as equality of women and girls, especially those who are at greater risk of discrimination (those living below the poverty line, women with disabilities, women living in rural, remote, and underdeveloped areas, Roma women, etc.).
The Commissioner reminds that the Provisions of Article 23, paragraph 1 of the Law on Value-Added Tax[2] prescribe that the general value-added tax rate for taxable turnover of goods and services or import of goods is 20%, while the provisions of paragraph 2 of the same article prescribe that certain products and services are taxed at a special value-added tax rate of 10%. On the other hand, the provisions of Art. 24-26 of this law prescribe tax exemptions.
Following the Law on Value Added Tax currently in force and the Rulebook on Value Added Tax[3], feminine hygiene products are not tax-exempt, i.e., they are not subject to a lower tax rate, but the general tax rate of 20% has been determined.
Available data show that more than 500 million women in the world live in menstrual poverty, and the process of solving this problem in the world and Europe has been going on for years. In June 2021, the EU Parliament adopted the Resolution on sexual and reproductive health and rights in the EU, in the frame of women’s health[4]. The Commissioner also pointed to this resolution in their regular annual report on the situation in the field of equality protection for 2022.[5]
Member countries are invited to produce healthy menstrual hygiene products (free from certain toxins used in production) and to eliminate the “tampon tax”, i.e., to exempt these products fully from VAT. After analyzing the financial resources that need to be set aside and their impact on increasing menstrual poverty, some countries in Europe and the region have reduced VAT on these products, and in some countries, it has been abolished. Also, in some countries, these products are free and available in public places. For example, Scotland became the first country in the world to adopt a law that made sanitary pads and tampons free for everyone. They also decided that all educational and public institutions must make these products available publicly. A good example are some faculties in Serbia that provided free sanitary pads for their female students and employees. The availability of products used for feminine hygiene during menstruation, as well as other essential products for maintaining personal hygiene, is much more complex than individual measures. However, reducing the tax rate would undoubtedly result in greater accessibility or availability of these products even to the poorest citizens.
According to the Republic Institute of Statistics (RZS) data[6], the estimated population of the Republic of Serbia in 2022 is 6,664,449. Perceived by gender, 51.4% are women (3,423,627), and 48.6% are men (3,240,822). In more detail: About 14.4% of the total population is under 14 years of age, about 63.6% is between 15-64 years of age, and 22% are people aged 65 or older.[7]. Based on these data, we can conclude that menstruation “affects” more than a third of our society.
The data of the Republic Institute of Statistics also support the necessity of introducing a measure of exemption of hygiene products for women from VAT payment. Namely, in 2023, the rate of risk of poverty was 19.9%, and the rate of risk of poverty and social exclusion was 27.2%.[8] The poverty risk rate represents the percentage of persons whose available equivalent income is lower than the poverty risk threshold, which in 2023 was RSD 29,100 per month on average for a one-person household. This rate does not show how many people are actually poor but rather how many have an income below the poverty risk threshold[9]. The poverty risk threshold for a household with two adults and one child under 14 was RSD 52,380, while for a four-person household with two adults and two children under 14, it was RSD 61,110. Given that feminine hygiene products during menstruation are taxed at a VAT rate of 20%, they, although a basic necessity, become a luxury.[10]
An interesting fact was presented by the organization Gender Knowledge Hub, namely, that last year in October, women in Serbia needed about RSD 8,300 per year for the necessary hygiene products during menstruation, whereby these costs are certainly higher now. Let’s calculate how much money is needed just for these expenses for families with, for example, two teenage daughters and a mother. In a survey conducted by members of the Women’s Initiative association, out of 1,205 female students at the Faculty of Philosophy in Novi Sad, 69 percent answered “bad” when asked “How do you feel about that?” on the issue of the price of menstrual products. This survey showed that products for feminine hygiene during menstruation are not cheap and accessible to everyone. Research conducted in the region also offer similar results, where in some countries, the VAT rate on products for women’s hygiene during menstruation was reduced (in Croatia, 13%, in Slovenia 9.5%). This reduction in VAT was preceded by research that showed that, for example, a third of respondents were forced to save on pads because they were too expensive, more than 10% of female citizens were unable to buy enough pads to change them, and 11.9% of them stated that they could not even afford these products, nor the medicines to relieve menstrual pain[11]. These products are necessary for every woman in a certain period of her life, and when the family has more female members, their purchase additionally and excessively burdens the budget and leaves less money for satisfying other basic needs of household members. Insufficient income and other, always more important costs, make the purchase of these products a financial burden for many women, turning them into an economically vulnerable population. The availability of menstrual products is much more complex than individual measures and should certainly be considered in a broader context, including measures to reduce poverty in general.
Poverty and discrimination are always connected and most often correlated, the poorer a person is, the greater the chance of being discriminated against. Therefore, not only products used for hygiene during menstruation but all basic products for maintaining personal hygiene – soap, washing powder, toothpaste, toilet paper… should be recognized as products that affect the position of poor citizens and being of strategic importance for ensuring a dignified life for everyone, regardless of the individual’s or their families’ financial situation.
In Serbia, comprehensive research on the prevalence of menstrual poverty has not yet been conducted, nor has the legal and social aspect of menstrual justice, i.e. injustice from the perspective of realizing basic human rights, been comprehensively studied. Despite the lack of targeted research, it is by all means indisputable that menstrual poverty is associated with the stigmatization and taboo of menstruation, which is culturally gender conditioned and indicates the exclusion, invisibility, and unrecognizability of women’s needs and experiences. The fact is being overlooked that during the days of menstruation, women have increased hygiene needs – not only do they need access to menstrual products, which they often cannot afford, but also hot water, hygienic living conditions, soap – which is unavailable to some women and girls. If we consider the entire position of women, starting from work and employment, unpaid and unrecognized work in the household, the glass ceiling and the wage gap, the disparity between private and business life, and exposure to violence, we will understand that women are still unequal in many ways in comparison to men.
The Public health strategy in the Republic of Serbia for the period 2018-2026 supports the improvement of health, disease prevention, and prolongation of the quality of life of the population, and it provides, as a specific goal, among other things, the implementation and monitoring of the National Program for the preservation and improvement of the sexual and reproductive health of the citizens of the Republic of Serbia, adopted in 2017. Family planning, pregnancy maintenance, and other health care services are critical to the entire society, and safe pregnancies and births depend on functioning health systems and the availability of health and other relevant services. In particular, when it comes to younger generations, educational programs related to the early development of children and youth are of great importance, and maintenance of menstrual hygiene must be available to every girl from the moment she gets her period, as well as comprehensive and complete information in this regard.
Bearing in mind the importance of comprehensive action to promote equality and reduce poverty, as well as to improve the public health of the population in the Republic of Serbia, based on Article 33, Paragraph 1, Item 9 of the Law on Prohibition of Discrimination, the Commissioner sends the Ministry of Finance the initiative for VAT payment exemption on products used for women’s hygiene or at least a reduction of the established tax rate, as these products are necessary for every woman in a certain period of life and, especially in a situation where the family has more female members, additionally and excessively burden the budget and leave less money for satisfaction other elementary needs. Menstrual hygiene must be available to every girl from the moment she gets her period, as well as comprehensive and complete information about it, while access to healthy menstrual products positively affects health promotion, disease prevention, family planning, safe pregnancy, childbirth, and overall reproductive health.
The Ministry needs to inform us about its actions regarding this initiative.
[1] “Official Gazette of RS”, nos. 22/09 and 52/21, Art. 33, paragraph 1, item 7, in relation to item 5.
[2] “Official Gazette of RS”, no. 84/04, 86/04 – corr., 61/05, 61/07, 93/12, 108/13, 6/14 – harmonized din. am., 68/14 – other law, 142/14, 5/15 – harmonized din. am., 83/15, 5/16 – harmonized din. am., 108/16, 7/17 – harmonized din. am., 113/17, 13/18 – harmonized din. am., 30/18, 4/19 – harmonized din. am., 72/19, 8/20 – harmonized din. am., 153/20 and 138/22
[3] “Official Gazette of RS”, no. 37 of April 14, 2021, 64 of June 25, 2021, 127 of December 24, 2021, 49 of April 21, 2022, 59 of May 20, 2022, 7 of January 31, 2023, 15 of February 24, 2023, 60 of July 21, 2023.
[4](2020/2215(INI) https://www.europarl.europa.eu/doceo/document/TA-9-2021-0314_EN.html
[5] https://ravnopravnost.gov.rs/rs/izvestaji/
[6] https://publikacije.stat.gov.rs/G2023/Html/G20231179.html
[7] https://publikacije.stat.gov.rs/G2023/Pdf/G202327012.pdf
[8] https://www.stat.gov.rs/sr-latn/oblasti/potrosnja-prihodi-i-uslovi-zivota/prihodi-i-uslovi-zivota/
[9] https://www.stat.gov.rs/sr-latn/vesti/statisticalrelease/?p=15328&a=01&s=0102?s=0102
[10] https://www.bbc.com/serbian/lat/srbija-63654490
[11] https://pariter.hr/objavljeno-je-prvo-istrazivanje-o-menstrualnom-siromastvu-u-hrvatskoj/
COMMISSIONER FOR THE PROTECTION OF EQUALITY
Brankica Janković
