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According to the principles described in the Atomic Energy Act radioactive waste management may not impose unreasonable burden on future generations. In order to fulfil this requirement, the costs of radioactive waste disposal and the decommissioning of nuclear facilities shall be covered by the generation, that benefits from nuclear electricity production and radioisotope application. Therefore, as of 1st. of January, 1998 the Atomic Energy Act established the Central Nuclear Financial Fund (KNPA), a designated state fund for financing the final disposal of radioactive waste; the interim storage of spent nuclear fuel and the closing of the fuel cycle; as well as the decommissioning of nuclear facilities.

The minister presiding over the Hungarian Atomic Energy Authority disposes over the Fund, which is managed by the ministry appointed by the presiding minister (currently the Ministry of Energy).

The KNPA managing organisation evaluates, and upon approval together with the preliminary resolution of the KNPA specialized committee submits to the presiding minister the medium- and long-term plans regarding the activities to be financed from the Central Nuclear Financial Fund, including recommendations by PURAM on payments to the Fund. The submission must also contain the professional evaluation of the HAEA.

Paks Nuclear Power Plant provides for the final disposal of its radioactive waste; the interim storage of its spent fuel; the closing of the nuclear fuel cycle; the decommissioning of nuclear facilities; as well as the incentives for the Controlling and Information Associations by regular payments to the Central Nuclear Financial Fund. The nuclear power plant also covers those costs related to the final disposal of radioactive waste and to the safety enhancements and operation of nuclear storage and disposal facilities which are not covered by the payments of individual waste deliveries.

The annual payment obligations for the nuclear power plant are determined by the applicable legislation based on the above considerations. The monthly instalment of the annual fee must be paid to the Central Nuclear Financial Fund by the 15th. day of the given month.

For the Budapest Research Reactor of the Hungarian Academy of Sciences, and for the training reactor of the Institute of Nuclear Techniques (NTI) of the Budapest University of Technology and Economics (BME) the costs of the installation and operation of an interim storage facility, the closing of the nuclear fuel cycle, as well as the decommissioning and dismantling of the nuclear facilities, including the final disposal of radioactive waste generated during these activities must be paid to the Fund when these costs arise. The funding for these payments to the Central Nuclear Financial Fund are provided by the annual central state budget in the annual budget of the relevant operating facilities. Other nuclear applications are obliged to contribute to the Fund - as specified in Annex 1 of the Atomic Energy Act - when their radioactive waste is transported to the radioactive waste repository.

In order to ensure that the Central Nuclear Financial Fund maintains its value, the Fund receives a central budget subsidy calculated based on the average treasury and the average central interest rate of the previous year. This practice was suspended in 2001 and 2002, however it was reinstituted in 2003.

Medium- and long-term plans (that include the decommissioning of nuclear facilities) as well as annual work programs are prepared on the use of the Fund, which are prepared by PURAM. The medium- and long-term plans must be reviewed every year and updated as necessary, in order to ensure that The Fund can provide real coverage even for expenditures incurred in the far future. Therefore, the principle already mentioned in the foreword - that those generations shall cover the costs of nuclear application, which reap its benefits, thus not leaving unmanageable burden on future generations - is fulfilled.