Monthly Tax Declarations for Businesses in Albania

Monthly tax declarations are the official forms every active business files with the Albanian tax administration each month, reporting its tax obligations — VAT, payroll tax, social and health contributions, withholding tax and other levies.

The legal basis is Law No. 9920/2008 "On Tax Procedures in the Republic of Albania", Articles 67-73, which set out taxpayer obligations for filing declarations within the statutory deadlines. All filing is done electronically through the e-Filing portal of the General Directorate of Taxes (DPT).

Depending on the type of business and its tax regime, monthly declarations may include:

• Form D2 — the VAT return;
• Form E-Sig 025/a — payroll, social and health contributions;
• TAP form — simplified profit tax (for small businesses);
• TAB form — withholding tax;
• Dividend tax return — when dividends are distributed.

Source: Law No. 9920/2008, Articles 67-73. Review date: 9 October 2026.

Businesses in Albania may be required to file several types of monthly declarations, depending on their tax status, number of employees and nature of activity. Below we analyse each one.

Form D2 is the monthly VAT return filed by every business registered as a VAT taxpayer. Under Law No. 92/2014 "On Value Added Tax" (Articles 113-116):

• Who files: Every taxable person registered for VAT — businesses with annual turnover above ALL 10,000,000 (mandatory registration threshold) or those voluntarily registered;
• Deadline: By the 14th of the following month;
• Contents: VAT collected on sales, deductible VAT on purchases, the difference payable or refundable;
• Basis: Purchase and sales ledgers, closed by the 10th (or automatically on the 11th);
• Filing: Electronically via e-Filing.

Read more about VAT declaration — a dedicated page covering Form D2, deductible VAT and the refund procedure.

Source: Law 92/2014, Articles 113-116; Law 9920/2008, Article 67.

Every business with employees (including the administrator receiving a salary) files the monthly payroll form, declaring:

• Gross salaries for each employee;
• Social insurance contributions — currently 24.5% of gross salary (employee 9.5%, employer 15%);
• Health insurance contributions — currently 3.4% (employee 1.7%, employer 1.7%);
• Personal income tax (TAP) — progressive scale: 0% up to ALL 40,000, 13% for ALL 40,001-50,000, 23% above ALL 50,000/month.

Filing deadline: By the 20th of the following month.
Payment deadline: By the 20th of the following month.

Read more about payroll declarations — details on the form, tax scale and contribution calculations.

Source: Law 9136/2003 (social insurance); Law 10383/2011 (health insurance); Law 29/2023 (TAP). Review date: 9 October 2026.

Small businesses that are not subject to corporate income tax may be liable for the simplified profit tax:

• Who: Sole traders with annual turnover 0 to ALL 10,000,000 — currently exempt from profit tax (0% rate);
• Sole traders with turnover ALL 10,000,001-14,000,000 — rate of 5% on profit;
• Businesses with turnover above ALL 14,000,000 — subject to the standard corporate income tax of 15%.

Small businesses at the 0% rate have no monthly filing obligation but must maintain accounting records and file an annual return.

Source: Law 29/2023 (replacing Law 8438/1998 from January 2024). Review date: 9 October 2026.

Withholding tax is deducted from certain payments a business makes to third parties. Under Law 29/2023 (replacing Law 8438/1998 from January 2024), the business withholds tax on:

• Dividends — 8% (final);
• Interest — 15%;
• Rent — 15%;
• Fees / consulting services — 15% (where the payer is an exempt sole trader);
• Royalties — 15%;
• Payments to non-residents — rate per applicable double-taxation treaties.

Deadline: Tax withheld is due by the 20th of the following month, together with the return.

Failure to withhold tax incurs a penalty of 50% of the un-withheld amount, plus late-payment interest (Law 9920/2008, Article 117).

Source: Law 29/2023; Law 9920/2008, Article 117. Review date: 9 October 2026.

Below is the full monthly tax-deadline calendar for businesses in Albania:

| Deadline | Declaration / Action |
|----------|---------------------|
| 10th | Voluntary closing of purchase and sales ledgers |
| 11th | Automatic closing of ledgers |
| 14th | Filing of the VAT return (Form D2) |
| 14th | Payment of VAT |
| 20th | Filing of payroll returns (E-Sig 025/a) |
| 20th | Payment of social and health contributions |
| 20th | Payment of personal income tax on salaries |
| 20th | Payment of withholding tax |

When a deadline falls on a weekend or public holiday it is moved to the next working day. We nevertheless recommend filing 2-3 days before the deadline to avoid technical issues on the e-Filing platform.

Source: Law 9920/2008, Articles 67-73; Law 92/2014, Article 116. Review date: 9 October 2026.

The tax administration applies specific penalties for non-filing or late filing:

Penalty for failure to file on time (Law 9920/2008, Article 113):
- ALL 10,000 — per late declaration, for corporate-income-tax payers;
- ALL 5,000 — per late declaration, for other taxpayers.

Late-payment interest (Article 73):
- 0.06% of the unpaid tax amount per day of delay;
- This equates to roughly 21.9% per year — a very high cost.

Penalty for failure to withhold tax (Article 117):
- 50% of the un-withheld tax, plus late-payment interest.

Penalty for errors in a declaration:
- If a business files a declaration with errors that lead to under-reporting, a penalty of up to 100% of the difference may apply, plus interest.

Accurate, timely declarations are the best protection against these penalties. Every day of delay accrues interest automatically.

Source: Law 9920/2008, Articles 73, 80 and 116/1. Review date: 9 October 2026.

Not all businesses have the same monthly obligations. Here is a guide by business type:

Sole trader without employees, not VAT-registered (turnover < ALL 10M/year):
- Minimal monthly obligations — only bookkeeping;
- Annual return (not monthly).

Sole trader, VAT-registered (turnover >= ALL 10M/year):
- Monthly VAT (D2) — by the 14th;
- Payroll if there are employees — by the 20th;
- Full monthly bookkeeping.

LLC (SHPK) or JSC (SHA):
- Monthly VAT — by the 14th;
- Payroll — by the 20th (even if only for the administrator);
- Withholding tax when applicable;
- Dividend tax when distributed;
- Monthly bookkeeping and preparation for the annual balance sheet.

Businesses with foreign employees:
- Same obligations, plus work-permit verification — social contributions remain the same.

All tax declarations are filed electronically through the e-Filing platform of the DPT (efiling.tatime.gov.al). The process:

1. Access — the business must have an active NIPT (tax identification number) and an e-Filing account (created at the local tax office);
2. Digital certificate — an electronic-signature certificate (e-Signature) from AKSHI or AKCESK is required;
3. Completion — forms are filled in online or uploaded as XML files;
4. Submission — the return is digitally signed and submitted;
5. Confirmation — the system issues a protocol number as confirmation.

Common issues:
- The system may experience technical problems close to deadlines — another reason to file early;
- The digital certificate has an expiry date — it must be renewed before it expires;
- Correcting filed returns requires a specific procedure.

Source: DCM No. 99/2015 (e-Filing); www.tatime.gov.al.

To prepare monthly declarations accurately, the following documents are needed:

For VAT (D2):
- Sales invoices — all fiscalised invoices issued;
- Purchase invoices — with serial number, supplier NIPT and date;
- Debit/credit notes;
- Customs documents (for imports).

For payroll:
- Active employee list (with personal identification numbers);
- Gross salary for each employee;
- Employment contracts (for new hires);
- Staff changes (hirings, departures, salary changes).

For withholding tax:
- Service invoices subject to withholding;
- Lease agreements;
- Shareholders meeting minutes on dividend distributions.

Organisation: We collect your documents weekly or monthly — according to your preference — and organise them into digital folders for each tax period.

From our experience with hundreds of businesses, the most frequent mistakes are:

1. Purchase invoices with wrong NIPT — VAT is not accepted as deductible if the supplier NIPT does not match the NBC (QKB) register;
2. Late closing of ledgers — if ledgers close automatically (the 11th), the business loses the chance to make corrections;
3. Undeclared employees — informal employment carries penalties of ALL 200,000 per employee (VAT/profit taxpayers) or ALL 50,000 (others) under Law 9920/2008, Article 119;
4. Outdated minimum wage — the minimum wage changes periodically (currently ALL 40,000/month) — declaring a salary below the minimum triggers reassessment;
5. Unjustified credit notes — increases in credit without supporting documentation attract audit attention;
6. Forgetting withholding tax — businesses often overlook TAB on rent or consulting payments;
7. Errors in personal ID numbers — the employee cannot claim social-insurance benefits if the ID number is wrong.

Each mistake can be corrected through an amended return, but the amendment does not eliminate penalties already accrued for the erroneous period.

Delegating tax declarations to a professional outsourced accountant offers concrete advantages:

• Penalty avoidance — filing on time, every time;
• Accuracy — correct calculation of VAT, contributions and withholding tax;
• Time savings — you focus on business, not tax forms;
• Legal expertise — legislative changes are applied immediately, with no need to track them yourself;
• Audit readiness — records are always up to date;
• Tax optimisation — the professional identifies every lawful deduction;
• Monthly reporting — you receive financial information every month.

The cost of outsourcing is far lower than the penalties accumulated from errors or late filing.