Tax Authorities Reopen Senj Hotel Libra

Tax authorities today closed the Senj Hotel Libra due to the unpaid tax debt of the company Mališa, under which the hotel operates, amounting to approximately 800 thousand kuna.

The legal representative of the company Mališa, which owns the Hotel Libra in Senj, Rijeka lawyer Velimir Došen stated that the hotel was closed again today despite a request for a postponement due to potential damage to tourism.

He emphasizes that the company Mališa is in a difficult position as the Commercial Court prevents it from paying the debt to the Tax Administration due to the initiated bankruptcy proceedings.

The problematic issue, says Došen, is that 45 hotel guests are on an excursion at Plitvice Lakes today and are returning tonight. We tried to obtain permission for the guests to stay overnight in the hotel, but we were not allowed. Guests can only go down the fire escape to retrieve their belongings from their rooms, claims Došen.

The Tax Administration expresses regret that innocent tourists, i.e., hotel guests, have once again suffered in the process of the temporary ban on the operation of Hotel Libra.

“It is true that damage has been inflicted on the reputation of Croatian tourism, the city of Senj, the international Senj summer carnival, and the hotel itself, but this is solely due to the irresponsible, incorrect, negligent, and most importantly, illegal behavior of the hotel owner,” states the announcement published by the Tax Administration on its website.

There are about 50 guests at Hotel Libra, and tax authorities temporarily closed the hotel today as they announced in mid-August.

Namely, the tax authorities sealed the Senj hotel due to tax debt at the beginning of August, sealing it on August 7, and then unsealing it the same day, and in mid-August, the hotel owners were informed that the hotel would be closed today.

A few days ago, Došen requested through a statement from the ministries of tourism and finance that the hotel not be closed during the tourist season, stating that a preliminary procedure for determining the conditions for opening bankruptcy proceedings against the company Mališa was initiated before the Commercial Court in Rijeka at the end of last year.

Due to these circumstances, explains Došen, without the approval of the Rijeka Commercial Court and the bankruptcy trustee, the taxpayer is not allowed to make any payments to creditors, as in that case, it would be committing harmful actions against other creditors, which is contrary to the provisions of the Bankruptcy Act.

In today’s published reaction, the Tax Administration states that the hotel owner is persistently trying to manipulate the public through the media and create a false image of the work of the Ministry of Finance, the Tax Administration, while failing to meet his obligations on time, unlike the vast majority of taxpayers who do so promptly.

“Additionally, the hotel owner consciously refuses to receive notifications from the Tax Administration and thus attempts to influence the final outcome of the proceedings and ignores the Orders for the temporary ban on conducting activities,” state the Tax Administration, which, citing the provisions of the General Tax Act, presents the factual situation regarding the oversight procedures at the company Mališa.

“The obligations of Hotel Libra in the current amount of 797.2 thousand kuna have not been settled, therefore the Ministry of Finance and the Tax Administration can no longer have understanding for the irresponsible actions of the hotel owner, as was the case with the first issuance of the work ban, solely due to the guests who found themselves literally on the street due to the actions of the hotel owner,” states the announcement.

Tax authorities note that the Commercial Court in Rijeka initiated a preliminary procedure for determining the conditions for opening bankruptcy proceedings by a decision dated December 6, 2012, which “has not been concluded to this day and does not affect the proceedings conducted by the Tax Administration.”

“Therefore, the procedure for the temporary ban on operations in the case of Hotel Libra is not illegal, as the bankruptcy proceedings have not even been initiated. We also want to emphasize that the taxpayer does not deposit cash revenue into a bank account, therefore the claim that creditors are settled from that account in order is not accurate,” emphasize the Tax Administration.