Fin. Min.: Any fiscal space created will be returned to society

The possibility of taking new support measures was left open by the Minister of Finance, Christos Staikouras, from the floor of Parliament.

He stressed that “whatever fiscal space is created will be returned to society and I estimate that it will be created.”

Speaking at a joint meeting of the Parliamentary Committee on Institutions and Transparency and Financial Affairs on the actions of independent public revenue authority AADE, he reiterated that horizontal measures such as the abolition of the excise tax on fuel are not “socially just measures.”

He also stressed that the country’s exit from the enhanced supervision regime, the early repayment of the IMF and the lifting of capital restrictions show that Greece is returning to European normalcy.

AADE projects through the Recovery Fund

From there on, referring to the projects of AADE that will be funded by the  Recovery and Resilience Facility, the minister announced in advance:

– The administrative procedures for VAT refunds for companies are simplified, through the implementation of automated VAT refund procedures, electronic submission and the risk analysis process for refund applications.

-The use of AADE’s internal data is upgraded and new tools are introduced in order to improve the collection of public revenues, increase the efficiency of tax audits and reduce smuggling through the development of a common metadata repository, the provision of appropriate software solutions, tools and techniques artificial intelligence and the use of machine learning for data mining.

-The digital transformation of tax audits is promoted, with the parallel reorganization of the audit centers.

-A new framework is being created to curb smuggling (tobacco, alcohol, energy) by modernizing surveillance systems, control procedures and customs equipment, and upgrading information systems to obtain information from European / national databases.

-The platform for keeping electronic books, electronic invoicing, a special website for informing taxpayers, and the interconnection of all cash registers with its information systems are fully operational, in order to facilitate the automatic completion of tax returns and efficiency of tax audits.

According to the minister, the aim of the actions is to encourage employment, attract investment and strengthen the payment culture. Referring to the work of AADE in 2021, he stressed that the implementation of its business plan was for the benefit of business citizens and businesses.