Income tax

Greeks displayed a significant improvement in tax compliance last year, partly thanks to the increase in electronic payments that are immediately recorded by the state, leading to tax revenues outperforming in 2023.

New exceptions, after those announced 15 days ago, are being introduced to the presumptive way of determining incomes for the self-employed and for small enterprises. They were added by the Finance Ministry to the draft law put up for public consultation on Tuesday.

Personal and corporate income taxes and value-added tax are the main contributors to the overperformance of tax revenues against the state budget target, as Wednesday's final execution data for January-September showed.

With the final deadline for submission of income tax statements at 3 p.m. Thursday, tax authorities announced that additional tax payments - beyond tax withheld at source, mostly for salaried employees and pensioners - was 12.5% higher than last year.

Rough estimates of tax evasion put it at between €8-10 billion. But recent data show that tax compliance is increasing, which accounts for higher than expected revenue in the first seven months of the year.

Data also show that compliance is higher among businesses than among individuals.

The Single Property Tax (ENFIA) pay slips for over 7 million property and business owners have been posted on the myAADE digital portal for the financial year 2023.

The Finance Ministry and the tax administration are looking for solutions so that professionals stop hiding their actual incomes - i.e. taxable material - through fictitious expenses. 

A new, favorable tax regime with lower rates has attracted more than 4,500 workers from abroad to work in Greece, many of whom are Greeks who left during the financial crisis in the previous decade. 

Freelancers representatives stated that their members are dissatisfied with the adopted legal solutions that are meant to resolve their status, although the state adopted the regulations in the agreement already made with freelancers after years of negotiations, causing aggravation and condemnation of regular taxpayers.

There are more than 1,000 persons from abroad, who transferred their tax residence to Greece after the provision of tax incentives that provide for the payment of half income tax and half solidarity contribution for 7 years.