Press release, 03.06.2024.

Another professional consultation between the HCSO and the National Association of Hungarian Accountants

Reducing the burden on data providers remains a priority

Representatives of the Hungarian Central Statistical Office (HCSO) and the National Association of Hungarian Accountants (NAHA) met for the second time for a professional consultation. During the meeting, the parties discussed the results achieved since the previous consultation, outlined further plans and tasks, and agreed to continue cooperation between the two organisations in order to ensure the accuracy and continuity of statistical data provision and to reduce the burden on respondents.

The Hungarian Central Statistical Office attaches great importance to cooperation with the representatives of the parties involved in data provision, to reconciling interests and expectations, to simplifying data provision in a reasonable and professionally acceptable way and to reducing the burden on respondents. For this reason, in January this year, the HCSO initiated cooperation with professional associations of accountants, including the National Association of Hungarian Accountants.

At the meeting, the Office stressed that the HCSO's priority strategic objective is to reduce administrative burdens, which it intends to achieve by involving new alternative data sources, simplifying processes and cooperating with professional organisations of accountants and auditors. The Deputy President of the HCSO reported on the recent steps taken and the encouraging results, and presented the Office's further plans to reduce the burden on respondents and to modernise the questionnaire filling process. As he said, the annual collection of performance statistics from organisations with less than five employees, the collection of statistics from commercial accommodation establishments and the annual labour statistics report have been discontinued by the HCSO. In addition, in the course of 2025, the Office is preparing to implement the collection of statistics on external trade in goods involving fewer respondents. Furthermore, it will review all its data collections, taking into account the data utility and the burden generated on respondents, and will make any justified and technically acceptable simplifications in the preparation of next year's data collection plan.

The National Association of Hungarian Accountants welcomed the progress made on several of their previous requests and expressed optimism about the future plans of the HCSO, and then presented the current comments of the accountants represented for discussion and consideration.

The event concluded with the representatives of both organisations reaffirming their commitment to maintain cooperation and dialogue.

Hungarian Central Statistical Office

H-1024 Budapest, Keleti Károly u. 5-7. Tel./Phone: (+36-1) 345-6000
Postacím/Postal address: P.O.Box 51 Budapest H-1525
http://www.ksh.hu