Draft Amendment to Act No. 370/2019 coll. on Financial Support for the Activities of Churches and Religious Societies

Churches in Slovakia have long been supported by the state. This has to do with the nationalisation of their property in the past and the only partial return of church property after the fall of the communist regime. Five years after its creation, and in a changed economic environment, the 2019 Act on Support for the Activities of Churches needs to be amended. The Ministry of Culture has submitted a draft Act that would modify the way churches are funded. It is proposed to link the calculation of the amount of the state contribution to the growth rate of the minimum wage. The proposal also includes a one-off increase in the contribution in 2025, reflecting the sharp increase in the minimum wage compared to the increase in the state contribution from 2019. We note the development to date and the method of the new calculation of the state contribution to the activities of churches and religious communities.