K. Hatzidakis announced increases in the thresholds for acquiring houses in five areas in the context of the granting of the Golden Visa
Them changes in relation to its acquisition Golden Visawhich they will have power from them March 31the Minister of National Economy and Finance announced on Thursday, Kostis Hatzidakis.
He announced during a press conference that changes the acquisition limit Golden Visa, by purchase real estate for citizens of third countries reaching them 800,000 euros in five areas. Specifically, the prices change on Regions of Attica, Thessaloniki, Mykonos, Santorini as well as in Islands with more from 3,100 permanent residents.
At other areas of the country value for the acquisition of real estate under the Golden Visa amounts to 400,000 eurosfrom the 250,000 euros that apply today.
Exceptions are conservation properties the acquisition of which, in the context of the granting of a Golden Visa, reach 250,000 euros.
According with what was stated by Kostis Hatzidakis is subject to a ban on exploitation of real estate via digital platformslike Airbnb and is establishing itself minimum limit of 120 square meters per property.
“We are moving towards a balanced arrangement for the Golden Visa, which primarily takes into account the housing needs of households, while not forgetting the need to attract investment to the country. We introduce incentives to convert buildings into homes, we take care to save listed buildings that are part of our cultural heritage and we explicitly prohibit Golden Visa properties from being made available for short-term rentals. These arrangements are part of the government’s overall housing policy, which aims, in cooperation with the private sector, to ensure affordable and quality housing for all citizens, taking into account the need to continue investments on more balanced terms” said Minister Kostis Hatzidakis.
Himself regarding bill for Tax Procedure Code announced that this included “settings for the reduction her bureaucracythe facility of taxpayersthe utilization of modern technology in communication with her AADE and enhancement her transparency».
“The bill for the Tax Procedure Code serves the goals of transparency, reduction of bureaucracy, better service to the citizen and utilization of digital tools by AADE. Procedures that until now were done by exchanging documents, resulting in delays or, in some cases, such as the issuance of tax information, causing injustice to the citizen, will now be done digitally, quickly and securely. In addition, we are creating the framework for hundreds of thousands of citizens to be exempted from the obligation to submit a tax return as long as their incomes are known in advance to the tax authorities” emphasized the Minister of Finance.
In detail, the basic provisions included in the bill according to the Ministry of Finance:
“Pre-filled tax returns
The process of drawing up and submitting tax returns is practically abolished for taxpayers who have incomes exclusively from wages and pensions (calculated in 1 million citizens). The tax return is automatically pre-filled by the AADE and is also automatically finalized if the taxpayer does not raise objections within the deadline for submitting the tax returns. Currently, only the prefilling of income from wages and pensions is applied, but the automatic finalization of the declaration does not apply.
Abolition of the obligation to present books
Taxpayers who keep books based on the simple accounting system (mainly self-employed and small businesses) are exempted from the obligation to submit their accounting records to the tax administration, as long as all relevant data (income – expenses) are transmitted to the myDATA platform.
The previous regime foresees a fine of 2,500 euros for not presenting the books. Furthermore, the deadline for providing the information, which AADE requests from taxpayers, increases from 5 to 10 days.
Digitization of procedures – Abolition of correspondence from and to AADE
– The tax administration’s communication with taxpayers will be done exclusively by digital means. Paper correspondence, which has been applied to a large extent until today, is being abolished. All documents will be shared by posting them to the account that every natural or legal person has in the AADE information system. The taxpayer will receive a notification in his e-mail and will enter the information system with his codes to take notice of the document.
It is noted that this procedure is already applied for a series of notifications from AADE to the taxpayer (e.g. when an installment of income tax is paid, AADE sends an email to the taxpayer notifying him to enter the information system to “download” the proof of installment payment). Communication with the “classic” methods (letters, performances, etc.) will only be done exceptionally, in very special cases.
The main benefit from digitizing processes, beyond speeding them up, is their accurate recording, resulting in that the time, form and content of the communication cannot be challenged in court, relieving the Courts at the same time.
– The maintenance of all the records of the Tax Administration should also be done digitally, while the paper file of the AADE, which includes the documents it issues and receives, is digitized at the same time.
Faster issuance of tax information
Interoperability between the State bodies is adopted so that the AADE is informed about the existence or not of overdue debts of the citizen and accordingly grants or not the tax awareness certificate. In practice, with this regulation mainly the OTAs but also other public bodies will communicate with the AADE only electronically (instead of the letters they exchange today), either for the prohibition of providing information or for the lifting of this prohibition. Thus, cases are treated e.g. that the taxpayer has paid debts to the Municipality but cannot get tax information because AADE has not been informed about the payment.
Specific time frame for tax audits
A maximum time limit is set for the completion of the tax audit, in principle one year from the notification of the audit order with the possibility of extension for 6 months if the audit has started in the meantime and another 6 months provided that during this time it is possible the completion of the audit. Today there is no provision for the maximum duration of the audit, which is determined by the officials who carry it out.
The concepts of partial, full, on-site or remote control are also clarified.
Finally, the possibility of interim tax determination is established, in cases where there is a combination of criteria from which there is a direct and imminent risk of tax evasion (e.g. seasonal newly established businesses, or when there are specific indications that the taxpayer intends to leave the country). Today, there is a relevant provision in force for the preventive determination of the tax, which, however, is not practically applied, as it only concerns cases where there is evidence of flight from the country. Now, the provision becomes more specific and effective in its application. The possibility of interim tax determination was deemed necessary by AADE as it is often observed that seasonal newly established businesses operate for a short period of time and close overnight without paying a single euro of tax.
Limitation
The notification of the tax determination act must be made within the five years provided for the statute of limitations. Until now, it was sufficient within the five-year period that only the issuance of the deed had been done, while from now on it must also have been notified to the taxpayer.
Golden Visa
The arrangements aim to increase the supply of long-term rental housing and address the impact of the Golden Visa on housing costs, while maintaining incentives to bring investment capital into the country and develop the property market.
For the granting of a 5-year residence permit to citizens of third countries (Golden Visa), from March 31, 2024, the following conditions will apply:
In the Region of Attica, the Regional Units of Thessaloniki, Mykonos and Santorini and on the islands with a population of over 3,100 inhabitants, the value of the real estate that the interested party must own increases to 800,000 euros. In the rest of the country, the value of real estate is 400,000 euros. In any case, the investment must be made in one property (not in several properties of lesser value) with an area of at least 120 sq.m. It is allowed to purchase a percentage of a property in undivided co-ownership, the minimum value of which is respectively 800,000 and 400,000 euros.
For buildings that currently have a different use and are converted into residences, the minimum investment amount is 250,000 euros. The conversion of use must be completed before submitting the request for the residence permit.
The limit is also set at 250,000 euros if it is an investment in a listed building that is to be restored.
Residence permits can be renewed for the same period of time (five years) as long as the real estate remains in the ownership of the investor. If it is an investment in a preserved building, an additional condition for the renewal of the residence permit is that the restoration of the building has been completed. If the investor sells the property then his residence permit is revoked and the buyer becomes entitled to obtain a residence permit.
Investors can rent out the buildings they acquire, but they are not allowed to be made available through short-term leases, while in cases of conversion to a residence, their use as a company headquarters or branch is also prohibited. In case of violation, the residence permit is revoked and a fine of 50,000 euros is imposed.
In addition to the purchase of real estate, citizens of third countries also obtain a residence permit by concluding a long-term complex tourist accommodation contract or a tourist accommodation timeshare contract, corresponding to the value per region (800,000 euros in Attica, etc., 400,000 euros in the rest of the country, etc. .).
In order for the new system to be implemented smoothly and not to disrupt the operation of the market, a transition period is foreseen with the following conditions:
Third-country nationals who will pay the price or pay a 10% advance, or sign a pre-contract or private purchase agreement, proving the relevant credits by September 30, 2024 can complete their investment by December 31, 2024 with the conditions that applied until now .
In these cases, if the purchase of the property is not completed, the buyer can complete his investment in another property always under the conditions that applied until now, but in any case not after April 30, 2025.
With other provisions included in the amendment:
The exemption from the pretense fee for regular farmers and fishermen with boats up to 12 meters is made permanent.
The income tax for the 2023 income, which will be paid this year, is expected to be paid in 8 monthly installments.
Property owners in the areas of Crete affected by the earthquakes of July 24 and September 27, 2021 are exempted from the 2024 ENFIA.
