Montenegro’s tax administration collected almost €1.2 billion in gross revenue in the first eight months of 2026 and is preparing tighter digital controls over private accommodation, including direct data exchange with platforms such as Booking and Airbnb.
Revenue increased by about €98 million from the same period of 2025, while value-added tax collections approached €380 million, around €19 million higher year on year.
The stronger collection comes as authorities shift their focus from conventional inspections toward automated access to commercial data generated by digital platforms.
That could materially change enforcement in Montenegro’s tourism economy.
Private apartments, houses and rooms account for a large part of the country’s accommodation capacity, particularly along the Adriatic coast.
But a portion of that activity remains outside full tax reporting, creating a persistent gap between registered tourism activity and the much larger market visible on online booking platforms.
The Tax Administration is now preparing mechanisms that would allow it to compare platform data with taxpayer registrations and reported income.
The goal is to establish automatic data exchange with major booking platforms, potentially from the next tourism season.
Such access could give tax authorities information on hosts, accommodation listings, booking activity and prices.
That would make undeclared accommodation income significantly easier to identify.
At present, authorities often depend on physical inspections, municipal registration systems and taxpayer declarations.
Digital platform data would give them a much broader enforcement tool.
For legitimate accommodation operators, the change could reduce the competitive advantage of hosts operating partly or entirely outside the formal system.
For unregistered landlords, it would increase the probability that rental activity can be traced without a physical inspection.
The measure could therefore have implications for thousands of small property owners, not only hotels and professional tourism companies.
Montenegro has spent years trying to reduce the grey economy, with tourism, construction, retail and hospitality among the sectors most exposed to informal transactions.
The rapid expansion of online booking has made traditional enforcement increasingly ineffective.
A property may be marketed internationally, receive foreign guests and generate substantial annual revenue while leaving limited information in the domestic tax system.
Automatic exchange would narrow that gap.
The Tax Administration is also preparing a wider digitalisation programme, including electronic invoicing, electronic dispatch notes and new digital registers.
Part of that modernisation is being supported through financing linked to a World Bank loan.
The combined effect could be more important than any single tax measure.
Electronic records make it easier to compare sales, purchases, inventory movements, taxpayer declarations and bank information.
That can shift tax supervision from periodic inspection toward continuous data analysis.
For companies, the transition means tax compliance will increasingly depend on the consistency of digital records across different systems.
Businesses that previously treated invoicing, stock records and tax reporting as separate processes may need more integrated accounting and ERP systems.
That creates costs, particularly for smaller companies.
But it can also reduce administrative work where reporting becomes automated.
The private-accommodation sector faces a different adjustment.
Many landlords operate on a small scale and may not have formal accounting systems.
If platform data becomes visible directly to the Tax Administration, registration and reporting will become harder to avoid.
That could increase tax revenue from tourism without raising statutory rates.
It may also improve tourism statistics.
Official overnight-stay figures often understate activity where private accommodation is not fully registered.
Platform reporting could provide authorities with a clearer picture of the actual size of the tourism economy.
There are wider public-finance implications.
Montenegro is preparing a substantial wage and tax reform for 2027 while simultaneously financing large infrastructure and EU-accession requirements.
That increases the importance of stronger tax collection.
Closing compliance gaps can provide additional fiscal space without relying exclusively on higher tax rates.
The first eight months of 2026 already show a stronger revenue base.
Nearly €1.2 billion in gross tax collection represents an increase of roughly 9% from the comparable period a year earlier.
VAT remains particularly important because consumption and tourism generate a large share of Montenegro’s tax revenue.
The additional €19 million in VAT receipts suggests continued strength in domestic spending and taxable economic activity.
But stronger headline collections do not mean the grey economy has been resolved.
The authorities’ interest in Booking and Airbnb data shows that significant parts of the market remain difficult to monitor.
The main challenge will be implementation.
Any automated data exchange will need a clear legal basis, appropriate privacy safeguards and technical compatibility between international platforms and domestic tax systems.
Authorities will also need procedures for distinguishing occasional household rentals from professional activity and for resolving differences between platform records and taxpayer declarations.
For taxpayers, the practical change could nevertheless be substantial.
Montenegro’s grey-economy enforcement has traditionally depended heavily on inspectors.
The next phase is likely to depend more on data.
If platform information, electronic invoices and digital registers are successfully integrated, the Tax Administration will be able to identify discrepancies before an inspector reaches the premises.
That would make compliance increasingly difficult to separate from the digital systems through which business is already conducted.
For Montenegro’s tourism sector, the implication is straightforward: online visibility may soon mean tax visibility as well.
