System overload
The Finance Ministry is proud of the Greek people. After our swift embrace of the euro currency, we have once again expressed our inquisitive character, rushing en masse to use TaxisNet – the online service for submitting our income tax returns. But now that our love of progress and our enthusiasm for the new have been demonstrated in an indisputable fashion, there is no need to continue. Why do something when you have proved you can do it? No one is trying to be funny here. In a statement yesterday, the Finance Ministry thanked tax payers for their response, stressing the striking increase in the number of people who used the online tax services over the past 12 months, and informed us that this is enough. As regards income tax returns, no more people will be allowed to sign on to the system. Those who haven’t already, will have to submit their returns in the conventional manner – and, therefore, lose the additional discount (2.5 percent) given to the Internet users. Concerning VAT declarations, the law, which mandated the use of the online service, to be be valid as of July 1, is suspended without it clarifying whether the online system will be available at all. The reasons for this electronic logjam vary, according to the Finance Ministry. In the case of income tax returns, the cessation of services is due to the need to maintain «the quality of the system services.» In the case of VAT declarations, it is attributed to demands from businesses to postpone the compulsory implementation of the measure, without explaining why these demands, even if genuine, were now suddenly considered after the measure had already been announced. The genuine reason, according to unofficial comments made by responsible officials, is much simpler. The system simply became overloaded and froze. The ministry, which hoped to receive 300,000 electronic income tax returns, knew that the number would be much higher; but it also knew that it could not even handle the 300,000 users. In the case of VAT declarations, the trial run a couple of weeks ago with companies which have Category C account books was disastrous. As a result, the responsible officials were intimidated by the prospect of receiving the entire load of returns via the Internet in July. This is the information society a la grecque. Kathimerini has often pointed out that the fruits of political and business entanglements – TaxisNet is one of these – are costly and problematic. The Taxis system and its various applications have proved to be sorely lacking. They are costly and ineffective. The example of the online income tax service is indicative of this. We need no further evidence to understand that corruption harms the country and its citizens.
