Targeted measures for summer
The next package of government interventions to prop up the economy will include targeted support measures depending on the damage each enterprise has suffered, as the Finance Ministry seeks to focus the limited public resources on those that need them most.
Sources say that this was the message Deputy Minister Thodoros Skylakakis sent to representatives of the food service industry in a conference call, adding that even tax measures will be personalized per enterprise.
Kathimerini understands that approach will also concern the reduction of the income tax deposit currently being discussed for corporations. The reduction will not be horizontal but will depend on the extent of losses. As a ministry source says, the law already allows taxpayers to ask for a reduction in the deposit if they can prove they have suffered a major loss in the current year. As losses in financial results will be the rule this year, “a more general clause with a personalized dimension will be sought,” the same source said.
The measures for the June-September period, likely to be announced on Wednesday, will constitute a bridge program between the outbreak of the pandemic and the economic restart phase.
Minister Christos Staikouras stated in Monday in an interview that the measures will be based on three main pillars: the support of the workforce, mainly via the SURE program of the European Union; the strengthening of corporate liquidity, partly through the increased amount of the “Deposit To Be Returned”; and initiatives of a limited duration for specific sectors.
Regarding the reduction of rents, Staikouras said that the general cut of 40% for all sectors will expire at the end of May, but there may be some extension for any businesses that open late this month or early next month.
Nevertheless, he noted, the economy will need to regain its balance, so landlords and tenants will need to review their lease contracts and find a solution between them. Even so, the minister reiterated that the state will undertake part of the burden that has fallen on property owners’ shoulders, and that will apply through the end of the year.
