Short-term rentals in focus
Cross-checking of platforms, revenues, bank data and even social media postings of offerings
Tax authorities are increasingly focusing on property owners who avoid declaring revenues from short-term rentals to the tax office, as well as those who have not declared their properties on the electronic platform of the Independent Authority for Public Revenue (AADE) to receive a registration number.
The audit mechanism is launching electronic checks and cross-checking on the tax returns of the owners, with the data received from the Airbnb and Booking.com platforms, but also from the banks (credit cards and bank accounts) in order to establish whether their total income of the previous year has been declared.
At the same time, inspectors are checking social media, mainly Facebook and Instagram, using special algorithms. In the past they found that many bookings were made without the income being declared in the tax return or in the bank. Essentially, what AADE inspectors are looking for is landlords who have posted their short-term rental property on social media. They will check whether any bookings have been made and of course whether the price paid has been declared to the tax office. If it is found that they are not complying with their tax obligations, they will have to pay both the corresponding taxes and the related fines.
The Finance Ministry has said that the owners and managers of Airbnb-type properties who have not declared their property registration number (AMA) on the online short-term rental platforms where the property reservations are made, or have declared incorrect information about their properties, will also be checked.
In cases where it is established that the properties have either not been declared in the Short-Term Property Registry or were posted on digital platforms without a clear indication of the AMA number, the special operation mark or the unique notification number, then the details of the properties and managers are sent to their tax office, which will impose fines on all of them after asking them to comply with the regulations.
