Practice Areas

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“Permanent establishment” of foreign undertakings in Greece

According to Article 6 of the Income Taxation Code (hereinafter: "ITC" - Law 4172/2013), as in force, "Permanent establishment" means a specific place of business through which an undertaking carries out all or part of its operations. Moreover, according to the Explanatory Memorandum of the same Law, the concept of "permanent establishment" is used primarily to determine the jurisdiction entitled to impose taxation on the profits of an undertaking according to Articles 3 and 4 ITC, in line with the OECD (Organisation for Economic Cooperation and Development) model Conventions for the Avoidance of Double Taxation and all related guidelines. In particular, "permanent...

29 Jul 2015

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Procedure for VAT exemption for the delivery of goods

(Ministerial Circular POL 1167/2013) In accordance with Article 788 of Regulation (EEC) No 2454/93 laying down the provisions for the implementation of the Community Customs Code, the ‘exporter’ shall be considered to be the person on whose behalf the export declaration is made and who is the owner of the goods or has a similar right of disposal over them at the time when the declaration is accepted. The aforementioned “similar right of disposal over the goods” and consequently the completion of export formalities can be exercised and carried out by the seller established in Greece, provided there is sufficient evidence (contract,...

08 Jul 2015

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Update on tax administration and policy in Greece, July 2015

Quite surprisingly, after its election in January, the government did not seek to replace the General Secretary of Public Revenue, Mrs. Aikaterini Savvaidou, a reputable technocrat whose professional career is very distant from its philosophy. However, the fact that she stayed in office may not be a voluntary political decision; it is also due to the commitment of the previous government to establish a rigid political independency for this Secretariat, which for decades in the past had been subject to political intervention. A major (albeit anticipated) change was the appointment of a new deputy minister of finance, Mrs. Nadia Valavani...

26 Jun 2015

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Taxation of benefits in kind under Greek law

Applicable legal provisions A. New Greek Income Tax Code (Law 4172/2013, hereinafter the “ITC”)  Article 12 defines the meaning of the gross income received from salaried work and pensions and clarifies the income cases included.  Article 13 defines the meaning of the benefits in kind and their special types and states how their tax value determined.  Article 14 par.1 defines what is excluded when calculating income received from salaried work and pensions.  Article 60 par.1 defines the withholding tax rate which is applicable for the gross income received from salaried work and pensions. B. Circulars  No. 1219/06.10.2014 provides further details about the...

12 Jun 2015

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Vacation leave entitlement for salaried employees

in Labor & Employment, Special topics

For the vacation leave of the newly recruited employees, the following shall apply: Each salaried employee from the beginning of his employment until the completion of a 12 month continuous employment, he is entitled to receive percentage of his annual leave with pay. This percentage is calculated based on the 24 working days annual leave (6 working days per week system) or based on the 20 working days annual leave (5 working days per week system) Therefore: -6 working days per week system -> 24 days of leave/12= 2 days per month -5 working days per week system -> 20 days of leave /12= 1,666...

12 Jun 2015

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The main tax developments in Greece between May 2014 – May 2015

From 1 January 2014, in the middle of an austere budgetary approach, the new Income Taxation Code (Law 4172/2013), which had already been published since July 2013, was entered into force. It is a piece of legislation directed towards the simplification and practical treatment of tax issues, which in its entirety comprises provisions of general formulation, which require further clarifications as to their regulatory object and scope. Thus, from May 2014 to May 2015, in addition to some legislative reforms, numerous circulars of the Ministry of Finance were also published. They are briefly listed below: 1. Value Added Tax (VAT) Code In August...

13 May 2015

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Categories of residence permits

in Immigration Law, Special topics

The categories of residence permits are as follows: A) Work permit for business purposes: A1. Employees with dependent employment relationship - provision of services - provision of work Α2. Special purpose employees A3. Investment activity Α4. Highly qualified employment - ‘EU Blue Card’ B) Temporary residence (employment with a national visa) B1. Seasonal work B2. Fishermen B3. Members of art ensembles Β4. Third-country citizens transferred from a company established in a Member State of the European Union or the European Economic Area in order to provide services Β5. Third-country citizens transferred from a company established in a third-country in order to provide services Β6. Leaders of organised tourism groups B7. Athletes, coaches Β8. Third-country...

15 Apr 2015

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Establishing an office pursuant to Emergency law 89/1967 (Law 3427/2005)

in Company Law, Special topics

Article 1 of Emergency Law 89/1967, as amended by Law 3427/2005 allows foreign companies to establish themselves in Greece for the sole purpose of providing their central offices or undertakings affiliated with them (within the meaning of Article 42e of Law 2190/1920) not established in Greece with consultancy services, central accounting support, production quality control services for products, procedures and services, or for the purpose of preparing studies, designs and contracts, or engaging in advertising and marketing, data processing, data collection and R&D. In order for foreign companies to come within the scope of the provisions of that Law, an application...

15 Apr 2015

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Taxation of offices established pursuant to Emergency Law 89/1967 (Law 3427/2005)