Hatzidakis: Tax cuts for the middle class and dutiful taxpayers in September

The government is planning further tax reductions for middle incomes and those who conscientiously pay their taxes, Deputy Prime Minister Kostis Hatzidakis revealed in interviews with SKAI television and radio on Wednesday. He noted that the raft of measures announced on Tuesday, which were made possible by the overperformance in meeting budget targets, aimed to alleviate poverty and the housing problem.

“Measures will be announced in September for the reduction of taxation, especially for the middle class and dutiful tax payers. The announcements made yesterday aim chiefly to alleviate the housing problem and poverty for specific population groups, such as pensioners and the disabled. We need to care for all of society and, based on the economy’s performance and arrest of tax evasion, to proceed with further tax relief,” Hatzidakis said.

He emphasised that the funds had not come from a “magic moneytree” but were the result of the work done by the government in recent years, resulting in economic growth, and a systematic effort to clamp down on tax evasion that had yielded more pronounced results in the last two years then at any other time in Greece’s recent political history, as well as an increase in social insurance contributions brought about by the implementation of the digital labour card, which revealed black and under-declared labour.

According to Hatzidakis, the measures were based on the fact that the balance of the budget in 2024 was better than the government had expected: “It is an issue for which I also feel personal satisfaction since, with my associates at the national economy and finance ministry, we helped bring about the best fiscal result since Eurostat started counting. This also sends a message to the markets and investors. It contributes to the constant upgrades, protects the economy at a time of international upheaval due to tariffs and allows us, in spite of the EU’s strict fiscal rules, to proceed with initiatives with a marked social stamp.”

Regarding housing policy, in particular, the deputy premier said that the package of measures being implemented has a budget of 6.7 billion euros and includes more than 40 actions to both increase the supply of housing, which need time to mature, and to support tenants, which have an immediate impact. Regarding the subsidy of one month’s rent per year announced on Tuesday, Hatzidakis said this could also have the added benefit of revealing more taxable income.

He also cited measures such as the use of housing stock owned by the broader public sector, putting pressure on banks to put properties they own on the market, regulating the short-term rental market and providing financial support to renovate properties, as well as incentives for putting them on the long-term rental market.

Source: pagenews.gr