Answers to questions about NTAK

A few weeks ago, we published a questionnaire where any hospitality business owner or manager could ask questions about NTAK. NTAK staff answered those questions, and we are now sharing their responses in full.

If you know someone who might find this information useful, please send them the link or share it on Facebook using the share button at the bottom of the page. Thank you for your help.

IMPORTANT NOTE: Hospitality business owners and managers submitted these questions. We forwarded them to NTAK and published them in this article without changes. NTAK staff wrote the answers directly, and we are also publishing those unchanged.

Questions and answers

• Where can I find general information about NTAK?
• What does a small café or pub need to do about NTAK?

All information on NTAK registration is available at info.ntak.hu, and information about the free VENDÉGEM Vendéglátás software is at info.vendegem.hu. Help with using VENDÉGEM Vendéglátás includes e-learning materials, videos and downloadable guides. If you have further questions after reading this information, the customer service team is available 24/7 on 06 1 550 1855 or by email at turisztika@1818.hu.

• When do mandatory NTAK registration and reporting take effect?

The Hungarian Tourism Agency, MTÜ, has proposed a phased expansion of NTAK to the Government.

The proposal emphasises that the registration requirement introduced on 1 November 2021 remains in force. Every hospitality establishment and tourist attraction with an official registration document must register with NTAK by 1 July 2023 at the latest.

For data reporting, the proposal would require only operators of hospitality establishments and tourist attractions whose 2022 net revenue exceeded HUF 100 million per service location to submit and transmit data to NTAK through their hospitality or ticketing software from 1 July 2023.

From 1 January 2024, the requirement would also apply to the above providers whose 2022 net revenue reached HUF 12 million but did not exceed HUF 100 million.

The proposal calculates net revenue from hospitality-related commercial activity for hospitality establishments. For tourism providers, the relevant revenue is from ticket sales for services associated with the tourist attraction.

For hospitality establishments and tourist attractions with net revenue below HUF 12 million, we propose that NTAK reporting should not be mandatory.

• How much time will we have to set it up?

Hospitality establishments and tourist attractions have been able to register with NTAK since 1 November 2021. MTÜ launched a voluntary reporting period on 1 March 2023 to give providers adequate time to prepare.

• How much does NTAK cost per month?
• Who will set this up? I do not understand IT. How much will the whole thing cost?
• If I have to use NTAK, what equipment should I buy that will not fail after two months because of oil fumes and heat?
• If we have to use it, which software is good and quick to work with? Speed matters at a large event or festival, and of course we should not need to hire another employee just for this!
• Where can I get the software?

Many commercial software providers offer different solutions for reporting to NTAK. More information is available at info.ntak.hu/vendeglatas#szoftverek. We recommend comparing software providers that support NTAK reporting so you can choose the most suitable software for your business.

• Where can I find instructions for using the system?

All information on NTAK registration is available at info.ntak.hu. If you have further questions after reading this information, the customer service team is available 24/7 on 06 1 550 1855 or by email at turisztika@1818.hu.

• How does this help a business?

Hospitality establishments can view up-to-date statistics about their performance. Later, as with accommodation providers through NTAK Iránytű, the data received will be made available to them. Providers will then be able to compare their establishment's performance with similar businesses using aggregated, anonymous data only, and make business and marketing decisions to optimise their operations.

• Are there ways to simplify it?

Digitalising tourism is in our common interest. Our aim is to keep the country's tourism industry competitive. We ask providers to cooperate in improving tourism performance and complying with the law.

• When will information be available about how NTAK works, mandatory registration or the reporting process?

All information about how the system works is available at info.ntak.hu. If you have further questions after reading this information, the customer service team is available 24/7 on 06 1 550 1855 or by email at turisztika@1818.hu.

• Based on the figures and costs, how much revenue can the company operating NTAK expect?

There is no charge to use NTAK. Its government-designated operator, Magyar Turisztikai Ügynökség Zrt., earns no revenue from operating the system.

• How does this help the tourism industry?

Hospitality establishments can view up-to-date statistics about their performance. Later, as with accommodation providers through NTAK Iránytű, the data received will be made available to them. Providers will then be able to compare their establishment's performance with similar businesses using aggregated, anonymous data only, and make business and marketing decisions to optimise their operations.

• What are the monthly costs or fees for commercially available hospitality software that supports NTAK reporting?

Many commercial software providers offer different solutions for meeting NTAK reporting obligations. More information is available at info.ntak.hu/vendeglatas#szoftverek. Contact the relevant software developer for detailed information about an individual product.

• How do NTAK reporting and access to the reported data benefit me?

Hospitality establishments can view up-to-date statistics about their performance. Later, as with accommodation providers through NTAK Iránytű, the data received will be made available to them. Providers will then be able to compare their establishment's performance with similar businesses using aggregated, anonymous data only, and make business and marketing decisions to optimise their operations.

• Does a school snack bar also have to use the software?
• Does a mobile food van have to report data?
• I also have a mobile catering permit. Do I still have to use NTAK?
• Is NTAK registration mandatory for a catering trailer at fairs and events?
• Does a mobile catering trailer also need to use this reporting software? TEÁOR code: 561008
• I run a lángos stall at a fixed location. Do small snack bars also need to use NTAK?
• Which TEÁOR codes are NOT subject to mandatory software use from July?
• Do market snack bars and seasonal hospitality establishments need it?
• Does the way I operate mean that I need to use the system too? I open at home at weekends and occasionally attend events. I bake flatbreads, and my home business has low sales and modest income. My age and illness mean I can only attend a few outside events.
• As a mobile café, we do not use a cash register because we qualify under the rules. Will we have an online reporting obligation to NTAK, or do we only need to register without reporting data?
• I am a retired sole trader running a small pub on my own. Is the system mandatory for me too?
  We are a seasonal ice cream shop, not really a pastry shop, and sell to the street! Is the system mandatory here too?
• Hello! I have counters registered as mobile shops that only attend events and weddings, where I serve drinks. I have no permanent establishment at all. That means NTAK reporting does not apply to me, right? Thank you!
• I run a one-person lángos business, opening at 5:30 a.m. and closing at 10 a.m. If I also have to submit an itemised report of products sold, that could take up to 10 minutes per customer. Who will wait for that? My customers are not tourists but people going to work, and everyone has to arrive on time! I cannot afford to hire an employee to operate this system! I have worked alone for more than 30 years! Will I have to close my lángos stall?
• A butcher's shop added hospitality to its activities so it can cook meat on site. There is no eating on the premises, and food retail is its main activity, not hospitality. Does it have to report data in this case?
• A company providing training serves lunch to participants only on training days. It does not cook on site. It added hospitality to its activities to run a snack bar, which also serves only participants on training days. Its main activity is education. Does it have to report data?
• I still cannot imagine handling this alone in a 6 m² space full of cooking fumes, especially as I do not understand it. Serving customers and handling money is enough. I am 60 and feel I will not be able to use it. I also run a seasonal business, and this adds many costs. Until now I have not even needed internet access. I will probably decide to close if this becomes mandatory!!

The Hungarian Tourism Agency, MTÜ, has proposed a phased expansion of NTAK to the Government.

The proposal emphasises that the registration requirement introduced on 1 November 2021 remains in force. Every hospitality establishment and tourist attraction with an official registration document must register with NTAK by 1 July 2023 at the latest.

For data reporting, the proposal would require only operators of hospitality establishments and tourist attractions whose 2022 net revenue exceeded HUF 100 million per service location to submit and transmit data to NTAK through their hospitality or ticketing software from 1 July 2023.

From 1 January 2024, the requirement would also apply to the above providers whose 2022 net revenue reached HUF 12 million but did not exceed HUF 100 million.

The proposal calculates net revenue from hospitality-related commercial activity for hospitality establishments. For tourism providers, the relevant revenue is from ticket sales for services associated with the tourist attraction.

For hospitality establishments and tourist attractions with net revenue below HUF 12 million, we propose that NTAK reporting should not be mandatory.

The hospitality establishment types defined in Annex 4 to Government Decree 210/2009 (IX. 29.) on the conditions for commercial activities are those in which hospitality activities under Section 2, point 30 of Act CLXIV of 2005 on Trade may take place. A hospitality establishment can only register with NTAK under one of the establishment types specified in Government Decree 210/2009 (IX. 29.), namely:

-restaurant, TEÁOR '08: 5610, restaurants and mobile food service activities;
-snack bar, TEÁOR '08: 5610, restaurants and mobile food service activities;
-pastry shop, TEÁOR '08: 5610, restaurants and mobile food service activities;
-café or establishment specialising in non-alcoholic drinks, TEÁOR '08: 5630, beverage serving activities;
-drinks establishment or bar, TEÁOR '08: 5630, beverage serving activities;
-music and dance venue, TEÁOR '08: 5630, beverage serving activities;
-workplace or institutional catering establishment, TEÁOR '08: 5629, other food service activities;
-fast-food restaurant, TEÁOR '08: 5610, restaurants and mobile food service activities;
-event catering, TEÁOR '08: 5621, event catering activities;
-temporary hospitality establishment, TEÁOR '08: 5610, restaurants and mobile food service activities;
-mobile hospitality establishment, TEÁOR '08: 5610, restaurants and mobile food service activities.

If you did not reclassify your hospitality establishment by 31 March 2021, contact the competent local municipal clerk immediately. All hospitality establishments must register and, except those classified as workplace or institutional catering, event catering or mobile hospitality establishments, must also report data. After NTAK registration, the operator must transmit the required data electronically for each establishment subject to reporting, using hospitality software capable of sending data to NTAK. Further information is available at https://info.ntak.hu/vendeglatas#altalanos-informaciok.

A hospitality establishment is required to register with NTAK and/or report data if the competent local municipality has entered it in its register, meaning it has an official registration permit for one of the hospitality establishment types listed above. If your business's activities include one of these TEÁOR codes but it has no such registration permit, NTAK registration and reporting are not relevant to you.

• A grocery shop added hospitality to its activities to sell hot food, specifically Fornetti pastries baked on site. There is no eating on the premises! Its main activity is food retail rather than hospitality. Does it have to report data in this case?

If the competent local municipality registered it as a hospitality establishment defined in Annex 4 to Government Decree 210/2009 (IX. 29.) on the conditions for commercial activities, it must register. The NTAK registration obligation depends on whether the municipality registered the retail unit as a hospitality establishment, not on whether customers can eat on site.

• Why is there no minimum sales threshold for mandatory NTAK reporting? A small village hospitality venue has no bearing on tourism; it is just a social meeting place in a remote village. Owners and staff in their sixties will not learn this now.
• Why are one-person businesses run simply to make a living not given a separate category and an exemption?
• How will this be feasible in a 6 m² lángos and burger hut operated by one person? I am turning 60. This is outrageous and impossible.

The Hungarian Tourism Agency, MTÜ, has proposed a phased expansion of NTAK to the Government.

The proposal emphasises that the registration requirement introduced on 1 November 2021 remains in force. Every hospitality establishment and tourist attraction with an official registration document must register with NTAK.

For data reporting, the proposal would require only operators of hospitality establishments and tourist attractions whose 2022 net revenue exceeded HUF 100 million per service location to submit and transmit data to NTAK through their hospitality or ticketing software from 1 July 2023.

From 1 January 2024, the requirement would also apply to the above providers whose 2022 net revenue reached HUF 12 million but did not exceed HUF 100 million.

The proposal calculates net revenue from hospitality-related commercial activity for hospitality establishments. For tourism providers, the relevant revenue is from ticket sales for services associated with the tourist attraction.

For hospitality establishments and tourist attractions with net revenue below HUF 12 million, we propose that NTAK reporting should not be mandatory.

• Do goods received and stock data have to be sent to NTAK?
• Do expenses also have to be entered and sent to NTAK?

No. According to the information also available at info.ntak.hu/vendeglatas#bekuldendo-adatok, two types of data must be submitted: order summary data and daily closing reports. Data must be sent to NTAK through hospitality software.

• Exactly what must be sent to NTAK?
• Exactly when and what data does the free software transmit?
• What data must be sent?

According to the information at info.ntak.hu/vendeglatas#bekuldendo-adatok, hospitality software automatically sends two types of messages to NTAK: order summary data through event-triggered reporting, and daily closing reports.

Event-triggered reporting

‍After an order is closed, the order summary comprises all items purchased or consumed by one party at a table or one guest.
The hospitality software sends the following statistical information from order summaries, with no personal data:

a. Business date
b. Order start and end
c. NTAK main category and subcategory, with useful information here
d. Payment information
e. Ordered items:
f. Name
g. Gross price
h. Item count
i. Quantity
j. Unit of measurement
k. VAT category

Data sent with the daily closing report

‍After registration, the hospitality software automatically submits the following daily reporting data for the business date, without personal data, once a day after closing:

-business date being closed;
-classification of the business date;
-opening and closing dates and times;
-total tips.

If reporting fails because of a malfunction or outage, the data must be submitted on the day after the malfunction or outage ends.

• We operate seasonally. Do we have to measure consumption of kitchen ingredients every day, such as flour, oil and chips in decagrams?

According to the information at info.ntak.hu/vendeglatas#bekuldendo-adatok, hospitality software automatically sends two types of messages to NTAK: order summary data through event-triggered reporting, and daily closing reports.

Event-triggered reporting

‍After an order is closed, the order summary comprises all items purchased or consumed by one party at a table or one guest.
The hospitality software sends the following statistical information from order summaries, with no personal data:

a. Business date
b. Order start and end
c. NTAK main category and subcategory, with useful information here
d. Payment information
e. Ordered items:
f. Name
g. Gross price
h. Item count
i. Quantity
j. Unit of measurement
k. VAT category

Data sent with the daily closing report

‍After registration, the hospitality software automatically submits the following daily reporting data for the business date, without personal data, once a day after closing:

-business date being closed;
-classification of the business date;
-opening and closing dates and times;
-total tips.

If reporting fails because of a malfunction or outage, the data must be submitted on the day after the malfunction or outage ends.

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• How do we record an event package?
  How do we record a wedding package?

The info.ntak.hu website provides a categorisation guide to help providers assign products to NTAK main categories and subcategories. The categorisation guide is only a recommendation to help providers group their products; each hospitality establishment classifies products according to its own business policy. In this case, a food package sold at an event can be assigned to the food main category and food package subcategory.

• What does it mean that no table can remain open at closing?

The daily closing report is a final summary data file that must be sent to NTAK for checking when the establishment's business day ends, or at least once every 24 hours. In VENDÉGEM Vendéglátás, the daily closing report can only be submitted if there are no open orders or tables, meaning every order started in the software has been closed.

• How should a changing daily menu be reported to NTAK?

The info.ntak.hu website provides a categorisation guide to help providers assign products to NTAK main categories and subcategories. The categorisation guide is only a recommendation to help providers group their products; each hospitality establishment classifies products according to its own business policy.

• How can the system handle someone who eats throughout the week and wants to pay at the weekend?

We recommend that the establishment does not offer deferred payment. There are two options consistent with proper business practice: enter each item at the time of actual consumption, or require payment in advance. If the guest pays a lump sum in advance, first create a new product under the other main category and non-hospitality subcategory. Then select the appropriate payment method, such as cash or bank card, and settle the order. When the guest actually consumes the items, record them in the hospitality software and select the other/voucher payment method.

• How should we handle delivery or takeaway products for which a receipt has already been printed if the guest does not collect them or cannot be found?

Since the sale took place, it must be recorded in the software.

• If I am closed for two weeks, for example, do I still have to report every day?

If the hospitality establishment is closed, the temporary closure must be marked in NTAK. Daily closing reports must still be sent through the hospitality software for closed days; they may be submitted together afterwards. Closure data cannot be changed after submission.

• What if my restaurant is seasonal? Do I have any extra tasks while it is closed?

If the hospitality establishment is closed, the temporary closure must be marked in NTAK. Daily closing reports must still be sent through the hospitality software for closed days; they may be submitted together afterwards. Closure data cannot be changed after submission.

• Where must I report a temporary closure lasting one or two days, or a few weeks?

Under Government Decree 210/2009 (IX. 29.) on the conditions for commercial activities, once an operating permit has been issued, the trader must immediately notify the municipal clerk of changes to the information specified in Annex 1, point B. Changes to opening hours lasting at least one week must be reported within the preceding eight days. There is no reporting obligation for changes lasting less than a week. A change lasting less than a week may only shorten the registered opening hours. The trader must inform customers of such shorter-term changes by displaying the opening hours.

If NTAK's operator learns, through official reporting or notification from an establishment's operator, that data recorded in NTAK about a reporting establishment or its operator has changed, it may amend the data in NTAK if the establishment's operator does not update it within eight days.

• I have a hospitality establishment and a snack bar in the courtyard at the same location, both under the same business name. How many reporting systems will I need? The snack bar only opens at weekends.

If several hospitality establishments belonging to the same provider are at one service location, you can record them during NTAK registration by clicking 'New hospitality establishment'. Further details are available here.

• My mother is 78 and helps in our café for two hours a day. She definitely will not be able to operate the system. Can we enter the quantities she sold afterwards, later on the same day?

No. Event-triggered data must be submitted after the relevant order is closed. The hospitality software automatically sends daily closing data for the business date once a day after closing.

• The serving counter and cash register are far apart. A family of six comes in and orders food, and the counter attendant hands over the meals. One guest then sits down, so the cashier sees only five meals because of the queue in front of them! Six slips were issued, but the seated guest kept theirs, so that meal only gets entered into the cash register later. How do we solve this? I have countless other questions! I am 53!

Continue entering items into the cash register as you have done until now.

• Can NTAK be connected to the cash register to avoid separate administration there too?

NTAK cannot and need not be connected to the cash register, because providers only need to register in NTAK itself. NTAK reporting always takes place through software. Some hospitality software that supports NTAK reporting can connect to an online cash register; the relevant software developer can provide details. Only hospitality software that can communicate with NTAK and has a certificate issued by MTÜ may be used for reporting. The list of commercial software is available here: https://info.ntak.hu/vendeglatas#szoftverek.

• How often must data be reported, and how many times must I register?

NTAK registration is required once and takes around 15 minutes. Data reporting happens automatically after every closed order, and you must also close the day at the end of the day.

• I have no internet and do not understand smartphones either! Can I enter items afterwards at the end of the shift, even from my home computer?

No. Event-triggered data must be submitted after the relevant order is closed. The hospitality software automatically sends daily closing data for the business date once a day after closing.

• Where can I request the free software?

The application can only be used if, when registering your establishment, you selected the free VENDÉGEM Vendéglátás software for the relevant service location on the software selection page in NTAK's Hospitality module and completed the necessary settings. All information on requesting and using VENDÉGEM Vendéglátás is available at info.vendegem.hu/vendeglatas. If you have further questions after reading this information, the customer service team is available 24/7 on 06 1 550 1855 or by email at turisztika@1818.hu.

• Is there a video demonstration of the free Vendégem hospitality software?

Help with using VENDÉGEM Vendéglátás includes e-learning materials, videos and downloadable guides. All information on requesting and using VENDÉGEM Vendéglátás is available at info.vendegem.hu/vendeglatas.

• Why is an NTAK number needed, and who needs it?

The NTAK registration number identifies the hospitality establishment. The commercial authority acting as the supervisory body, the municipal clerk, uses it to identify the provider.

• Why do you need my Ügyfélkapu login and password for reporting? Saying it is a condition of registration is not enough! Why is it needed?

NTAK automatically checks users' authority to represent a business against official registers. This ensures that only authenticated, identified users can use NTAK and that only users with verifiable authority may act on behalf of registered providers. The privacy notice can be downloaded here.

• Who owns NTAK? Which company?

Government Decree 235/2019 (X. 15.) sets out the rules for accommodation providers, hospitality establishment operators and tourist attraction operators in Hungary to connect to the National Tourism Data Supply Centre. It also governs the centre's operation, handling, processing and transfer of incoming data, the data-processing relationship between accommodation providers and the hosting provider, and the operation of the hosting service. The Government designated Magyar Turisztikai Ügynökség Zártkörűen Működő Részvénytársaság, the Hungarian Tourism Agency, as the operator and hosting provider of the National Tourism Data Supply Centre.

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