New tax bill improving transactions, reducing fines tabled in parliament

It upgrades the Greek taxation system utilizing new technologies, improves technical issues related to payment of debts and rationalizing the process' rules, and foresees up to a 50% reduction in fines if the taxpayer does not contest the result of audits and accept the additional tax levelled.

In addition, it also includes the exclusion of 1 million taxpayers from submitting annual tax returns if their income is derived exclusively from wages and pensions. In this case, the Independent Authority for Public Revenue (AADE) will autofill the annual return and the taxpayer will have the opportunity to object before the tax deadline.

Commenting on the bill, National Economy and Economics Minister Kostis Hatzidakis said the new Code of Taxation Process will "resolve decades-long outstanding issues  and allow us to make significant process toward enforcing transparency in terms of the contact and transactions a taxpayer has with tax authorities."