No changes to deadlines for tax returns

The Ministry of Finance has said there will be no extension to the deadline for submitting this year’s tax returns, emphasizing that the current pace of submissions is satisfactory.

The ministry said that 84 percent of tax returns had already been received and that extensions had been granted for existing cases.

Greece’s tax collection system has been the subject of intense scrutiny as part of the country’s new bailout program. A wave of new taxes are in the pipeline for later this year which aim to bring tax revenues in the second half of 2015 to 25 billion euros in order to meet this year’s fiscal targets.

Despite acknowledging the problems that were created for citizens and especially accounts by the omissions and legislative delays that occurred while new initiatives were passed, the deadlines for submission remain unchanged. Thursday is the last day that legal entities can submit their tax returns while individuals have until August 26.

The ministry also stressed that late submission would result in penalties for taxpayers, such as a fine of 100 euros in the case of inadequate bookkeeping and a surcharge tax of 0.73 percent of the payable tax amount for every month submission is delayed.