Finance ministry officials on Thursday quickly clarified that two articles in the revised tax code allowing for the re-imposition of a surplus value tax on property transactions will remain suspended in 2017.
The officials made the clarifications after a "N" report cited a 24-million-euro provision in the draft 2017 budget for revenue from the specific tax.
The surplus or added value tax had been unveiled in 2014 but never implemented due to widespread confusion -- including by relevant tax bureaus -- on how to calculate and levy the tax. The fact that the real estate market and property values have collapsed in Greece since the advent of the economic crisis in 2010 also meant that scant revenue would be derived for its imposition.
The same officials, who spoke to "N" on Thursday, said an amendment renewing a suspension of the tax would soon be tabled in Parliament. However, no immediate reply was given on how the 24-million-euro "gap" in forecast revenue will now be plugged. Essentially, the oversight has generated the first budget gap for 2017, even before the draft budget is debated and comes up for a vote in Parliament.
