A summer tax tornado as 29.2 billion euros due by year’s end
Greece’s 8 million individual taxpayers and companies will have to hand over some 14.8 billion euros in taxes between now and the end of the year, on the basis of their revenues, property and other assets. When indirect taxes are added, the total comes to some 29.2 billion euros, with the bulk of it due in the summer months.
This year’s income taxes are especially harsh on people earning more than 35,000 euros per year, as they are expected to pay an average of 40 percent more than they did last year. If we add the rise in higher social security dues, the increase comes to 70 percent. This is likely to lead to even more people being unable to pay taxes and social security contributions. It is worth noting that tax arrears increase by about 1 billion euros each month, whereas total outstanding social security dues stood at 23.3 billion euros at the end of June.
A total of 2.5 million taxpayers are called on to pay 3.7 billion euros in income tax through the year. The deadline for the first installment passed Monday. The next two payments are due at the end of September and the end of November. Some 230,000 more people than last year were called on to pay additional taxes, with 41.58 percent of the total number of taxpayers having to pay additional taxes, while 15.58 percent of the total will have money returned.
The amount that people will have to pay for the ENFIA property ownership tax will be posted on the Internet at the end of August, with the first tranche to be paid at the end of September and the last at the end of February. The total amount due will be about 3.4 billion euros. However, many people are unable to pay, so it is more likely that about 2.65 billion euros will be collected. Some 1.1 billion euros in vehicle road taxes are due by the end of December.
People who are in arrears and are participating in a multi-installment program are expected to pay some 800 million euros by year-end. Consumption taxes will contribute toward the 29.2 billion euros that individuals and companies will have to pay by the end of the year.
