Advertising tax: the 0% rate remains – or does it?

The advertising tax was introduced by Act XXII of 2014 (the “Advertising Tax Act” or “Ratv.”), which gives rise to tax obligations at two levels:

• The primary tax obligation falls on the publisher of the advertisement (media content provider, publisher, outdoor advertising media operator, operator of vehicles, printed materials or real estate used for advertising purposes, and online advertisement publishers). The tax base is the (adjusted) annual net revenue derived from taxable activities, and the applicable tax rate is 7.5% (with an exemption threshold up to HUF 100 million).
• The secondary tax obligation applies to businesses ordering the publication of advertisements, with particular regard to those ordering advertisement publication from foreign service providers (e.g. Meta, Google, TikTok, etc.). These service providers, acting as advertisement publishers, typically do not issue a declaration of tax subject status, and are not listed in the Hungarian tax authority’s (NAV) “compliant advertisement publisher” register either, which would otherwise exempt the advertisers from the tax liability. In their case, the tax rate is 5% of the portion of the consideration for the advertisement publication exceeding HUF 2.5 million per month.

Under the Ratv., the advertising tax rate was 0% from 1 July 2019 to 30 June 2026. In addition, during the suspension period, the Act suspended, inter alia, the declaration and tax advance top-up obligations and, in the absence of a tax base, no tax return filing obligation arose either.

The moratorium would have expired on 30 June 2026, which would have re-activated the tax obligations at both levels: the effective 7.5% tax rate for publishers, and declaration requests, reporting obligations and 5% tax payment obligations for advertisers.

We would, however, like to draw attention to the fact that the extension of the 0% advertising tax rate was not implemented by an amendment to the Act, but through a government decree adopted under emergency powers. The regulation is aligned with the duration of the state of emergency and may be applied exclusively for the duration of its temporal scope.

The state of emergency was most recently extended by the National Assembly on 21 October 2025 by a further 180 days; accordingly, under the current authorisation, it is in effect until 13 May 2026. Thereafter, a further parliamentary decision is required for its extension; in the absence of such decision, the state of emergency will cease, and with it all emergency government decrees will lose effect, including Government Decree No. 87/2026 (IV. 23.) providing for the 0% advertising tax rate. In the meantime, however – at least according to expectations – the (new) National Assembly will amend the advertising tax rules at statutory level as well.

The latter would also be important because the Ratv. in its current form carries several interpretive uncertainties, including the following issues:

• The 2025 tax package eliminated the legal basis for the NAV’s advertisement publisher register, thus raising the question of whether the register will continue to operate in the future. This constitutes a risk for advertisers, as the availability of the exemption built upon the register in practice depends on its continued operation.
• Furthermore, under the regulatory framework of the Ratv., the 2026 advertising tax period would result in a shortened tax year for calendar‑year taxpayers. While the calculation mechanism applicable in such cases is known in principle, interpretive questions have arisen regarding the practical application of the HUF 100 million exemption threshold, particularly in connection with pro rata temporis apportionment.
• The tax advance base – in the case of taxpayers that are not newly established – would be determined on the basis of the preceding tax year’s data; however, the advertising tax has been applied at a 0% rate for several years, meaning that no actual tax liability and no relevant base data existed in practice. This raises the question of which tax base should be considered relevant for determining the advance payment in the event of a potential reintroduction.

Affected taxpayers cannot yet be fully assured; the suspension of the advertising tax currently extends only until 13 May 2026. However, we trust that the above issues will be unambiguously resolved in the near future.

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We trust that our newsletter provides useful guidance in reviewing the changes affecting advertising tax. We continue to monitor legislative developments and will keep our Clients informed of any changes.

Should you have any questions in connection with the above, our advisors remain at your disposal.