When taxation speaks language: Latvia’s VAT policy and linguistic equality

At the beginning of this year, Latvia introduced a fiscal reform that quietly reshaped the environment of printed media taxation. From 1 January 2026, the reduced value-added tax rate of 5 per cent, previously applied to all printed publications regardless of language, was restructured. Under the new regime, the reduced rate applies only to books and printed media in Latvian, Latgalian, Liv and the official languages of the European Union, the European Economic Area, the Swiss Confederation, certain candidate countries and organisations such as the OECD. Publications in several minority languages, including Russian, Belarusian and Romani, are instead subject to the standard 21 per cent VAT rate. This legislative change was introduced through an amendment to the Latvian VAT law that entered into force (https: //www. europarl. europa. eu/doceo/document/E-10-2026-000568EN. html) on 1 January 2026.