Today, the Riigikogu passed the Act that changes the date of termination of the validity of the data on residence in cases where the residence of the person is indicated only to the accuracy of the city, city district or rural municipality in the population register at the reasoned request of the owner of the space. As a result of the amendment, the term for the revocation of the data on residence is 2 January 2019.

The amendment concerns people who have not updated the data on their residence after moving, and in the case of whom the owner of their previous apartment or house has requested that they terminate their registration at that residence. As a result of that, the residence of a person is indicated to the accuracy of the city or rural municipality – for example, the city of Viljandi, with no indication of a street name or house number, for example. Upon the entry into force of the new Population Register Act on 1 January 2019, the validity of such data on residence will terminate.

As the amendment will affect to a significant extent the accrual of income tax of local governments and the accrual of the equalisation fund (as the data of the population register as at 1 January are used to calculate the income tax and the equalisation fund), the term for the revocation of the data on residence is postponed by one day, that is, to 2 January 2019.

The amendment will prevent the negative impact on the local government budget for 2019 and will give local governments additional time to give notice to the people whose data on their residence is expiring.

In addition, the Act provides for the possibility to simplify the records management, and for that purpose, the residences indicated to the accuracy of local government (e.g. Tallinn, Kristiine District), registered for the Riigikogu elections, will be in force for four months instead of the current 30 days. This way, people will also be able to use the same data when voting in the European Parliament elections.

64 members of the Riigikogu voted in favour of the Act on Amendments to the Population Register Act and Amendments to Other Associated Acts (724 SE), initiated by the Government.

Two Bills passed the second reading in the Riigikogu:

Under the Bill on Amendments to the European Parliament Election Act (696 SE), initiated by the Constitutional Committee, the number of members of the European Parliament elected in Estonia will be omitted from the Act, because the number of seats allocated to Estonia in the European Parliament derives from EU legislation and it may change. Therefore the Bill sets out that the number of members of the European Parliament elected in Estonia are provided for in European Union legislation.

Under the current Act, six members of the European Parliament are elected in Estonia. Under the European Council Decision of 28 June, the number of representatives in the European Parliament elected in Estonia in the European Parliament elections in 2019 will be seven. In the event that the United Kingdom’s withdrawal from the European Union will not yet have become legally effective at the beginning of the parliamentary term, six members from Estonia will take up seats in the European Parliament on the basis of the election results, and the seventh member elected will take up his or her seat when the United Kingdom’s withdrawal from the European Union will have become legally effective.

The Bill also provides that the number of candidates on the list of a political party may exceed twice the number of members of the European Parliament elected in Estonia. Thus up to nine people may stand as candidates for the European Parliament on the lists of political parties next year. At present, the list of a political party may include up to 12 candidates, which is double the number of members of the European Parliament elected in Estonia so far.

The Bill on Amendments to the Income Tax Act (705 SE), initiated by the Government, will transpose a general anti-abuse rule, exit taxation and controlled foreign company rules, and regulate the taxation of exceeding borrowing costs.

Verbatim record of the sitting (in Estonian) http://stenogrammid.riigikogu.ee/en/201812061000.

Video recordings of the sittings of the Riigikogu can be viewed at https://www.youtube.com/riigikogu (NB! The recording will be uploaded with a delay.)

Riigikogu Press Service
Marie Kukk
+372 631 6456; +372 5821 3309
[email protected]
Questions: [email protected]