Taxpayers’ arrears keep increasing
Taxpayers’ expired debts to the state grew by 550 million euros in May, according to data released on Monday by the Independent Authority for Public Revenue (IAPR). At the same time the tax mechanism is increasing confiscations of debtors’ assets.
Overdue arrears to the tax authorities and social security funds totaled 101.4 billion euros at end-May, while those created in the first five months of 2018 amounted to 4.1 billion.
An increasing number of taxpayers are facing asset confiscations. IAPR data revealed that in May the number of taxpayers to have suffered forced measures grew by 10,673, or about 400 per working day, to reach a total of 1,128,203.
Overall the tax authorities have imposed forced collection measures on 68.05 percent of taxpayers who are at risk of such action.
On a more positive note, the number of taxpayers with expired debts is showing a declining trend: At end-May they numbered 3,816,475, against 4,107,315 in January. This is mainly thanks to the fact that a large number of citizens with debts are now proceeding to payment settlements through installment plans.