Taxes are said to be one of the two things that are unavoidable in life, but that did not stop several Bulgarian clubs from trying. Dogged by the taxman for possible unpaid taxes, eight football clubs have come up with the perfect solution to avoid any future unpleasantness – stop paying taxes altogether.

The request was made just months after the National Revenue Agency (NRA) began auditing football clubs’ and, later football players’, accounts to check whether any taxes went unpaid.

The request was apparently filed with Parliament’s committee on conflict of interests and fighting corruption, since it was its chairperson Dimo Gyaourov that made the request public knowledge on February 4.

The committee forwarded the petition to the NRA, as well as the finance, interior and sport ministries, Gyaourov said. The committee would await their responses before issuing its reply.

Instead of paying the 10 per cent corporate tax, the clubs asked to keep the money, for reinvestment in their sport facilities. Furthermore, the clubs asked for all their expenses to be tax-deductible, which means that future spending would count against existing debt.

Defending champions Levski Sofia went even further, asking that the club was spared the fee that it pays the police for providing security during football matches.
The other clubs to sign the petition include the rest of the richer teams in the top division – league-topping Litex Lovech, Slavia Sofia, Chernomorets Bourgas and Cherno More Varna – along with minnows Sportist Svoge, Minyor Pernik and Pirin Blagoevgrad.

The one notable absence from the list is perennial title contender CSKA Sofia, which holds the record for the most Bulgarian titles.

It was not clear whether the eight clubs asked for such exemptions to be made for all clubs registered in the country or only for themselves. Either way, the chances that their request would be granted were nonexistent, Dnevnik daily said, quoting an unnamed source from Parliament’s committee.

NRA started its high-profile investigation into possible tax evasion by clubs in September 2009, at which point the agency’s head Krassimir Stefanov said that eight clubs were being investigated for evading taxes worth a total 7.8 million leva.

A month later, four of those clubs were said to be the target of investigations by the prosecutor’s office, but no indictments have been issued yet. Separately, at least 261 football players in the top division have been investigated by NRA. The names of the clubs have not been officially disclosed.

Football clubs allegedly dodged taxes and mandatory social security payments on player contracts by declaring small salaries in the contracts themselves and high bonuses in annexes to the contracts, which are seldom submitted to tax authorities.

At the best of times, Bulgarian football was under-funded, with clubs reluctant to invest in their stadiums and training grounds unless given ownership of the facilities and the land, which usually is either state or municipal property.

Despite extensive lobbying, state bodies have resisted such appeals, wary that granting clubs either ownership or long-term leases and construction permits would result in property redevelopment at a time when rising real estate prices made such endeavours very appealing.

Already dogged by allegations of rampant match-fixing, all Bulgarian football clubs have seen gate numbers declining over the years, but the latest attempt to improve their financial standing is unlikely to win them any public support.