Debtors’ lives made easier
The Finance Ministry has tabled a set of amendments in Parliament providing for the arrangement of debts created during the spring lockdown and for the suspension of the solidarity levy in the private sector next year.
The amendment submitted on Tuesday to the House allows for those hurt by the health crisis to pay their dues to the tax authorities from the time of the quarantine in tranches. It also allows for those who have forfeited on their payment plan obligations to be reinstated in their arrangement and for the creation of a new 120-installment payment plan for the repayment of dues coming from state-guaranteed loans. According to sources, the sum of the loans with state collateral that have been forfeited comes to about 2 billion euros or some 1.1% of gross domestic product.
Furthermore, those who have missed their debt repayment tranches since November 1, 2019 – regardless of whether they have been classified as hurt by the pandemic – and were left out of any new arrangements will now get the chance to enter the Finance Ministry’s standard payment plan of 24 to 48 installments.
The amendment also provides for the tranches from all repayment plans that were frozen during the spring lockdown to be added to the sum of tranches after the last one due.
More than 1.2 million salaried workers in the private sector, freelance professionals and landlords with income from rent are also being relieved of the solidarity levy in 2021, according to the legislation submitted on Tuesday in Parliament.
As of January 1, the deductions from the monthly salaries in the private sector will stop, while for the freelancers and those with incomes from rents and dividends the benefit will concern the year 2020, that will become evident at the processing of next year’s tax declarations.
The solidarity levy is being kept for civil servants and pensioners, although they will not have to pay the levy if they also have income from other sources, such as rent.
