The Greek government is offering an amnesty to all tax dodgers – including those currently under investigation by the authorities.
Serious cases of tax avoidance – normally punished with huge fines and lengthy jail terms – will be written off, but there’s a catch:
Tax avoiders who come clean will be required to pay 15 per cent of funds positioned abroad and 30 per cent of any capital in domestic banks, according to a draft law on the legalisation of illegal incomes put forward earlier this week for public consultation by the Greek Finance Ministry.
The normal course of action for individuals who have been found guilty of tax evasion is a hefty fine and taxation at rates as height as 45 per cent, i.e. according to the tax brackets that originally applied during the period when the tax evasion was committed.
The new bill reportedly provides immunity from any legal action over illegal incomes declared. It is understood foreign bank account holders who legalise their funds according to the amnesty’s guidelines will not be required to repatriate their capital.
Source: Kathimerini