While Greek citizens and small and medium sized business strain under the burden of ever-increasing taxes in light of the fiscal crisis, the government appears unwilling to implement its own decisions when it comes to levying additional taxes on the affluent shipping sector, according to reporting by the Efimerida Ton Syntakton (link in Greek).
In December 2013 parliament passed a measure that would see shipping companies in Greece facing an additional ‘emergency tax; for the three year period beginning in 2014. However five months later, the necessary ministerial decisions required to actual implement the tax have not been signed, nor does it appear that any such an action is imminent.
In short, for all the government’s big pronouncements on passing the law in December, that all would be called upon to contribute to the national effort to balance the country’s finances, in practice the shipping sector has been so far given a free pass.
Effectively the tax would require Greek shipping companies or shipping companies based in Greece to pay twice the regular tax on each of their ships. It is estimated that approximately 400 million euros in additional revenue would be collected over the entire three year period the tax would be in effect. Overall 450 shipping companies would be called upon to pay the additional tax on 2,8000 ships. That, at least, is the theory.
However important deadlines have already been missed casting doubt on the ministry’s claim. According to EfSyn, the relevant tax declarations for 2014 were to be submitted by the shipping companies by the end of February, together with 50% of the amount owed, with the other half paid by the end of July. Yet with the relevant encyclicals remain still buried in ministerial desk drawers, it appears unlikely that anything will change at least until after the European elections at the end of May.
In response to the article by EfSyn, the ministry has rejected charges of foot-dragging, issuing a statement maintaining that the tax would be collected as soon as possible, once ‘technical difficulties’ were overcome, particularly regarding digital systems.