Stamp duty to end for many
An Economy and Finance Ministry bill provides for the abolition of stamp duty on some 600 types of transactions and its replacement by the the online transaction fee for 29 transactions. The abolition of the stamp duty will benefit citizens by 32 million euros per year, from the €386 million the state collects in this way.
Most of that stamp duty money concerns the levy imposed on commercial property leasing, amounting to some €190 million per annum.
As Minister Kostis Hatzidakis explained, “this reform concerns the modernization and simplification of a legislative framework that has largely been in force since 1931, its complete digitization and its abolition – where required – while it is a commitment of the country and a milestone in the Recovery and Resilience Plan.”
With the new framework, the fee is imposed on transactions where at least one of the parties is a tax resident of Greece or has a permanent establishment in Greece, regardless of the transaction type and location. The change comes as many businesses signed loan agreements with each other abroad to avoid paying stamp duty. Now, regardless of where the loan contracts will be made, a transaction fee with a maximum limit of €150,000 will be due.
