A/HRC/44/42/Add.1 “immigration in a positive light”. Potential sanctions for failure to comply with this tax obligation include a fine of up to 200 per cent of the amount of tax that has not been paid (Act CL of 2017 on the rules of taxation, art. 215) and from 3 months’ up to 10 years’ imprisonment for tax fraud (Criminal Code, art. 396,), the duration of the imprisonment being dependent on the amount of the fraud. The Special Rapporteur understood that the special tax must be self-levied. That means that organizations conducting taxable activities must obtain a certificate from their donors indicating that the donor has paid the tax for such activities. If the certificate is not provided, regardless of the reasons for non-provision, the organization must pay the tax instead, on a monthly basis. According to media reports, at the time of the visit no organization had yet paid any tax based on self-assessment of the scope of the special tax. However, the concern is that should the tax authorities decide to launch a tax investigation into any civil society organization and find a taxable activity with the tax unpaid, then the provisions cited above would be applicable. The overly broad description of the activities mentioned in the relevant provisions generates speculation. The possibility of having to pay a 25 per cent tax on donations creates uncertainty and a chilling effect on both organizations and their donors. 58. In the meantime, several organizations that used to receive funding from the European Union Asylum, Migration and Integration Fund through the Ministry of the Interior for projects providing humanitarian or integration support to migrants, asylum seekers and refugees, no longer receive any funds. At the beginning of 2018, the Ministry of the Interior withdrew all calls for tenders under the Fund. Consequently, by 30 June 2018 all activities through programmes that relied on the Fund to provide integration support had had to cease.21 Many organizations had had to terminate their activities and those services that had been terminated were not then provided by the Government. The interruption or termination of services provided by civil society organizations has had a negative impact on the realization of the rights of migrants, asylum seekers and refugees. The Special Rapporteur was particularly worried by the fact that in May 2016, Hungary had reduced the period of free accommodation provided to those who were granted international protection to 30 days and drastically reduced integration assistance through Act XXXIX of 2016 on Amending Certain Acts Relating to Migration and Further Related Acts. The lack of integration support had made it very difficult for foreigners who did not speak Hungarian to find a job and secure a stable income in a short period, which partly explained why some refugees had ended up in homeless shelters. 59. In addition to financial constraints, restrictions on access to clients or the scope of work had been imposed on some organizations, including some intergovernmental ones. In that regard, the Special Rapporteur was particularly concerned that civil society organizations did not have access to the transit zones for monitoring activities. As for the provision of legal aid, the attorneys of civil society organizations, who had passed the bar exam, could access the transit zones in their personal capacity to meet existing clients or to take power of attorney for people who had specifically requested their personal assistance. The fact that legal assistance providers from civil society are not present and that it is mandatory to know the specific name of an attorney in advance of requesting assistance has added one more challenge for asylum seekers to navigate. VI. Migrant workers 60. The increasing numbers of Hungarians emigrating has led to demographic challenges and a labour shortage in the country. Migrant workers could contribute to filling the labour gaps in the market and Hungary has indeed facilitated the arrival of an increasing number of migrant workers from other countries. In 2018, nearly 50,000 migrants received work visas in Hungary, including more than 16,000 Ukrainians and a considerable number from Serbia and China. Similarly, in the first 10 months of 2019, 64,779 applicants requested residence permits for employment purposes and 47,232 permits were granted. 61. The Hungarian authorities have also put in place a scholarship programme, which has attracted an increasing number of international students from countries, including the Islamic Republic of Iran, Iraq and the Syrian Arab Republic. In the academic year 2019/20, 21 14 See Asylum Information Database, Country Report: Hungary, 2018 update (March 2019).

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