North Macedonia must collect about €2 billion in Q4 to meet 2026 revenue target
From €6.1bn forecast for 2026, €4.2bn is already collected — nearly a third must be raised in the last three months of the year.
North Macedonia needs roughly €2 billion in the final quarter of the year to reach the government's 2026 revenue target, according to budget figures and tax experts. From the planned €6.1 billion in revenues for 2026, €4.2 billion has been collected so far — leaving nearly one third of the annual target to be raised in the last three months.
Prime Minister Hristijan Mickoski has warned that measures introduced earlier this year — including a reduced VAT rate on diesel and cuts to fuel excise taxes — could leave the state facing a shortfall of "something over 100 million euros" by year-end. Despite that, several tax analysts say the treasury should still be able to meet most of the remaining gap.
Slavko Lazovski, a tax expert, pointed to seasonal patterns in revenue collection and said he expects a substantial boost in the final two months. "Experience shows that in the last two months, November and December, that average revenues are over 30 percent of those in the other months. I expect that we will approach €2 billion collected. If they are not collected in the budget, well, some obligations will not be fulfilled, someone will literally suffer in that situation, but we will see," Lazovski said.
Lazovski also singled out local taxes as the weakest link. "Collection of local taxes is our Achilles' heel in this country, but the main culprit is not good tax regulation. It is one of the worst tax regulations we have. Even neighbouring countries have gone far with their regulation for local taxes, and we are lagging behind here; it is not from 30 years ago, but from 50 years ago," he added.
The expert argued the state has capacity to raise significantly more from taxation if enforcement and the regulatory framework improve, and he reiterated that tackling the large informal economy remains essential for a sustainable increase in revenues.
With three months left in the calendar year and more than €100 million already planned for spending, officials including the minister of finance and the prime minister have signalled that another budget revision is possible. So far, however, no details have been released about a potential reallocation or further cuts.
Photo: Neophyte / Wikimedia Commons (Public domain)
