The finance committee of the Assembly of People’s Representatives decided to set aside article 20 of the draft Finance Law 2026, which provided for the extension of the social solidarity contribution at the rate of 0.5% until the end of 2027.
The decision was announced this Tuesday, November 25 by the president of the commission, Abdeljelil El Hani, who justified this rejection by the absence of updated financial data on social funds. However, the government defended the measure as a transitional tool to support social security systems.
The commission refuses the extension for lack of data and justification
According to Abdeljelil El Hani, the deputies did not receive the financial statements of the social funds for 2023 and 2024, documents considered essential to assess the real state of the balances and the need to maintain the contribution. He also indicated that the Ministry of Social Affairs has not provided convincing arguments to justify the continuation of this tax, introduced in 2018 and renewed several times.
The members of the commission denounce the absence of a clear government strategy to reform social funds, recalling that the contribution was created as an exceptional measure but was not accompanied by the structural reforms promised. They also criticize the multiplication of temporary tax levies that have become permanent.
The government defended an extension to stabilize social funds
The deleted article planned to continue to apply the provisions introduced in 2018, relating to profits subject to tax for individuals and companies in order to strengthen social security systems.
On Saturday, November 23, the Minister of Social Affairs, Issam Lahmar, argued during a joint plenary session that the extension of the contribution over two additional years should accompany reforms intended to broaden the base of contributors and improve the financial balances of the funds.
He recalled that the contribution had been reduced from 1% to 0.5% between 2023 and 2025, with exemption for annual incomes below 5,000 dinars, but that it remained a necessary instrument to guarantee the continuity of the system.
Beyond the rejection of the article, the file highlights the persistent impasse in the financing of social systems, faced with demographic aging, an erosion of contributions and increasing pension payments.
The committee believes that the solution can no longer be based on successive temporary contributions without a restructuring plan. The government is pleading for financial continuity to enable reforms to begin.
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