TAP certificate weighing down property transactions
Frustration continues to grow among thousands of property owners over the requirement that they must be issued a so-called TAP certificate, which proves they do not owe property tax to the local municipality before they can complete a real estate transaction.
The need for the TAP certificate has been derided as a convenient way for municipalities to collect revenue, which however is causing delays in transactions.
Municipal levies on property are based on its area. If at the time of a real estate transaction, a property’s size turns out to be more that which is officially declared, the municipality will demand the owner pays an additional levy in order to issue a TAP certificate.
The requirement has been denounced by citizens as unnecessary bureaucracy and a way for authorities to milk them of cash. Last November, Athens Mayor Kostas Bakoyannis requested its abolition, given the recent digitization of public administration procedures.
