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On 6 October 2026, the Hungarian Government published a draft law on its wealth tax, introducing a new annual net wealth tax on individuals and certain asset-holding structures whose net wealth exceeds 1 billion forints (HUF; approx. EUR 2,736,877 based on the same-day exchange rate used by the Hungarian National Bank). The law is intended to enter into force on 15 December 2026, with the first tax liability assessed on wealth held as of 31 December 2026 and due by 31 August 2027.
As it had announced during the election campaign, the Government introduced the wealth tax to ensure that those with significant financial resources help to shoulder the public burden. The new tax applies to resident and non-resident individuals as well as to "wealth management taxpayers" (vagyonkezelési adóalany) – trusts, private foundations, and comparable foreign structures – which are taxed separately from the wealth of their settlors, trustees, founders, joiners and beneficiaries. A structure is treated as domestic, and therefore fully taxable, if its place of effective management is in Hungary, even if it was formally established abroad.
The tax applies to net wealth above HUF 1 billion and is charged at 1 % on the portion between HUF 1 billion and HUF 100 billion and at 1.5 % above HUF 100 billion. Resident taxpayers are taxed on their worldwide assets, non-residents only on Hungarian real estate, related rights and interests in Hungarian companies (including via foreign holding structures with exposure to Hungarian real estate). Spouses' assets are assessed separately, each benefiting from their own HUF 1 billion threshold, while a minor child's assets are generally attributed to the parent exercising parental custody. The draft law also contains anti-avoidance rules, including a general anti-abuse test and a rule preventing the HUF 1 billion threshold from being multiplied through multiple trust structures linked to the same settlor. Debts that genuinely exist and have been properly substantiated, in particular loans taken out to acquire, create or improve a taxable asset, may be deducted from the tax base. The tax is self-assessed: the taxpayer is responsible for determining, declaring and paying it.
High-net-worth individuals (resident and non-resident) who hold real estate, companies, securities, cash, crypto-assets or other qualifying assets in or connected to Hungary; settlors, trustees, founders and beneficiaries of trusts and private foundations, whether Hungarian or foreign, where the effective management is based in Hungary; and family offices and advisers structuring wealth-holding vehicles with Hungarian links.
The draft remains subject to change before formal submission and enactment. Entities and individuals with exposure to Hungarian wealth should monitor the legislative process, review valuation obligations for real estate, company interests and financial assets, and assess their exposure as at the first valuation date of 31 December 2026.
Gabor
Kulcsar
Associate
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