Crisis Averted: Navigating Fiscal Policy Instruments in Member States on the Example of the Covid-19 Pandemic
Purpose: The primary objective of this paper is to assest the impact of the applied anti-crisis fiscal policy instruments (on the example of the Covid 19 pandemic) on the budgetary policy of selected Member States. Design/methodology/approach: A critical analysis of the literature and a quantitative method were used. Statistical data for the period 2012-2021 were used, affecting the adopted anti-crisis solutions on the tax policy of Austria, Belgium, the Czech Republic, Lithuania, Germany, Slovakia, Italy and Poland. Findings: It was shown that the applied tax intervention was ad hoc and did not affect the tax policy of the surveyed countries. The main objective of the introduced solutions was to defer tax burdens, which had no long-term impact on both the level of tax burdens and the economic structure of taxation (capital, labour, consumption). It has been proven that the taxes most suitable for the implementation of the anti-crisis tax policy are direct taxes. Practical implications: The added value of the article are the conclusions that can be used by governments in developing more flexible and effective tax policies to minimize the negative effects of subsequent crises. Originality/value: The article can also be a starting point for a discussion on different approaches to pandemic crisis management, help to understand different perspectives and develop solutions for the future.