January set a consumption record - How did tourism affect it? 65 million euros more from domestic VAT
This year has been accompanied by a significant increase in consumption by Albanian citizens but also by foreign tourists visiting our country.
Indicators of this are the revenues collected from Value Added Tax by the tax administration, which shows the circulation of products and services within the country through fiscal invoices and the 20% paid by consumers.
During the January-July period, taxes collected from domestic VAT amounted to approximately 39.2 billion lek, or 392 million euros.
Compared to the same period a year ago, where 327 million euros were collected from this item, there is an increase of 65 million euros, which for the Albanian economy is not small.
But how has consumption spread by month? If we refer to the VAT data collected for each month during 2025, it is noted that the record of revenues is recorded in January, with approximately 113 million euros entering the budget. This figure is considered surprising, given that January is usually the month when consumers are limited due to high spending during the December holidays. During the months of February-May, revenues range from 40-50 million euros per month, while June has a significant decrease, where only 27 million euros were collected, the lowest figure of the entire year. While in the month of July, which is also considered the peak of the season, 60 million euros were collected from VAT.
Compared to 2024, VAT decreased only in February and June. Tourism experts have argued that this year the summer season started later than expected, making June lukewarm.
Among the factors that have influenced this performance is the trend towards year-round tourism, where now, in addition to the interest in coastal areas, foreigners have had an increased interest in historical and mountainous areas. Given that the weather conditions have been favorable, mobility has been significantly encouraged by both foreigners and locals, producing high consumption. Daily food consumption for a tourist reaches an average of 2-2.5 times more than the per capita consumption of a local resident in the same areas (based on HORECA market analysis, Gastronomy Association, 2024).
Another factor that has influenced this positive revenue performance has been the salary reform in the administration, where from July 1, 2024, salaries were increased again for a number of categories paid from the state budget, thus giving citizens many opportunities to spend. This reform has also put the private sector in motion by indirectly encouraging wage movements, which has also led to increased consumption.
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