Galery

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“We ease the business (in the country) of the past,” the Greek Prime Minister George Papandreou announced tax amnesty. Ministry of Finance in turn published its final proposal of the draft through which the government aims to collect between two and three billion euros the next year and a half.

All enterprises of € 20 million turnover that were not subject to tax inspection for the period 2000-2009 are entitled to tax amnesty. The amount that should be paid to close the cases of this period is calculated through multiplying the declared income for the respective year/years by a rate consistent with the gross income of the relevant company. The rate for most of the small and large companies is 2%, excluding the wholesalers and retailers of fuel and tobacco – the rate for them is 7%. The minimum contribution of the company is estimated to vary between 400 euros and 1000 euros depending on the volume of turnover.

The debtor should submit 25 % of  the estimated tax amnesty amount not later than November 12, 2010. Sole proprietors or companies are allowed to pay the rest in installments. If the calculated amount does not exceed five thousand euros, the obligation should be paid in equal installments not less than 500 euros per month after paying the downpayment. If the amount due is between five thousand euros and twenty thousand euros the installments are allowed to be allocated for six months. All companies and sole proprietors of tax amnesty amount over € 20,000 will be eligible to defer the balance payment for 12 months after paying the first 25 %. Willing to gain more funds as quickly as possible, the Ministry of Finance stipulated a 10% discount even for the first installment of the debtor if the accrued amount is paid at once.

All the companies that missed the initial deadline lose their right to benefit from the tax amnesty. They will have to pay the full amount of tax due or, according to unconfirmed information, will be subject to tax audit. Following the publication of the draft text of the tax amnesty law there will be a series of meetings with representatives of business organizations in the country to discuss the last details before the bill goes to parliamentary vote.

And while the government is trying to bring fresh revenue into the Treasury through tax amnesty, it became clear that the state has gained € 390 billion after the bid of government bonds with 13 weeks maturity and interest of 3.975%. The Public Debt Management Agency said the deal is successful because the interest levels compared with the previous bid of this type of securities on 20 July this year was 4.05 percent. The deal was made through primary dealers and, according to information provided by the agency, non-competitive bids reached € 90 billion. They will be accepted until midnight on September 23, 2010. Petros Hristodoulou – president of the Public Debt Management Agency – told Reuters that foreign investors purchased 72% of the sold securities.