Tax rates in Greece

Company Tax

22%

Tax Rate For Foreign Companies

Resident companies pay tax on worldwide income, while non-resident companies only pay tax on Greece-sourced income, at the same rate as resident companies.
Greek branches of non-resident credit institutions are taxed at a rate of 29% if they are subject to the special “deferred tax asset” recognition provision.

Capital Gains Taxation

Capital gains are taxed as normal corporate income at the standard rate of 22%. Capital gains derived from the sale of shares in an EU subsidiary are tax-exempt in case the participation is greater than 10% and has been held for a minimum of 24 months.

Main Allowable Deductions and Tax Credits

In general, all ordinary business expenses and expenses made for scientific and technological research are deductible. The Income Tax Code includes a list of non-deductible expenses. The new code does not mention the deductibility of donations to charities, in contrast to the previous version. Consequently, Greek tax authorities have to review each donation case individually to determine if it qualifies for tax deduction, similar to goodwill provisions. Expenses linked to corporate social responsibility actions can be deducted in the year they were incurred if the company's accounting result is profitable.
Certain bad debt provisions and write-offs are deductible. According to the Greek Accounting Standards (Law 4308/2014), start-up expenses are tax-deductible within the year that they have been incurred if they do not fall within a category of assets (including tangibles and intangibles - conditions apply).
Corporate social responsibility (CSR) expenses are deductible if they're deemed in the company's interest or part of its regular operations, applicable in the tax year of occurrence. Deductions are contingent on the company's profitability, except for state-requested actions.

Royalties, interest, and service fees paid to foreign affiliates are deductible expenses under certain conditions. Interest deductibility is subject to restrictions.

Taxes, excluding income tax, extraordinary contributions, and non-deductible VAT associated with expenses, are acknowledged as deductible. However, fees from criminal activities, penal clauses, fines, and penalties are not recognized as deductible expenses.

Net operating losses can be carried forward up to five years to offset company benefits, whereas the carryback of losses is not permitted.

Other Corporate Taxes

A 0.2% capital duty is levied on increases in share capital, excluding capital issued during company formation or invested solely in R&D activities, which are exempt. Additionally, a 0.1% surcharge benefiting the competition committee is imposed on capital contributions to SA, whether during formation or subsequent increases.

In Greece, real estate ownership is subject to the Uniform Tax on the Ownership of Real Estate Property (ENFIA), comprising a principal tax on each property and a supplementary tax on the total value of property rights. This tax isn't based on the objective property value but determined by factors recorded in the land registry or ownership title. The principal tax on buildings is calculated by multiplying square meters by a rate ranging from EUR 2 to EUR 16.20, with additional coefficients such as location and use. Similarly, the principal tax on land is determined by square meters and rates ranging from EUR 0.0037 to EUR 9.2500, plus location and use coefficients. A supplementary tax of 5.5‰ is imposed on the total property rights value, with self-used properties taxed at a reduced rate of 1‰.
Real estate transfer tax (RETT) is imposed on the value of transferred property at a flat rate of 3.09% (including the municipality surcharge). Such tax is not imposed if VAT is due on the purchase of new buildings.
Stamp duty may be imposed on certain transactions, with rates varying between 1.2%, 2.4%, or 3.6%.

Social security contributions are due on salary and benefits in cash or in kind granted by an employer to its employees. For the primary social security fund (EFKA), social security contributions are withheld at 13.87% at the level of the employee and at 22.29% at the level of the employer (capped at EUR 6,500/month). Furthermore, employers are liable to submit payroll withholding taxes on monthly salary payments under a Pay-As-You-Earn system (PAYE).

A 0.1% listed stock sales tax applies to the sale of shares listed on a Greek regulated market or multilateral trading facility, with exemptions available. The tax is based on the sale price and is paid by the seller, whether an individual or entity, regardless of citizenship, residency, or registered seat.

A uniform call rate of 80 cents per kilogram is applied to non-recycled plastic packaging waste under Council Decision (EU, Euratom) 2020/2053, implemented in Greece by L. 4783/2021. A 4-cent environmental protection levy is imposed per product on plastic packaging for food and beverages sold by catering or retail companies, considering plastic covers or lids separately.
The hospitality sector is subject to a climate crisis mitigation duty per day and per room or apartment for accommodations including hotels, furnished rentals, and short-term rentals under self-catering accommodations.

Other Domestic Resources

Directorate General for Taxation of the Hellenic Ministry of Finance

Tax Rate

Allowable Deductions and Tax Credits

The income tax is reduced based on certain expenditures for annual personal living. The maximum amount of tax reduction (applicable to salaried and pension income) is EUR 777 for income up to the maximum of EUR 12,000 for a single person or for a married person with no dependants (plus EUR 33 for a married person with one dependant, EUR 123 for a married person with two dependants and EUR 243 for a married person with three dependants, EUR 563 in case of four dependants and EUR 220 for each additional dependant). For salaried and pension income above EUR 12,000, the amount of tax deduction is reduced by EUR 20 for every EUR 1,000 of income.

Tax reduction on employment income is provided if a taxpayer pays 30% of the actual income from salaried employment, pensions, and business for the purchase of goods or services in Greece or in the EU/EEA using an electronic means of payment (if payments for income and real estate tax as well as for loans to financial institutions and rentals exceed 60% of the taxpayer's actual income, the threshold is reduced from 30% to 20%).

Certain expenses can be deducted from the gross income, including mandatory social security contributions and donations to certain charitable organisations (20% of the value of donations to the extent that the total amount of donations during a tax year exceeds EUR 100,00 and does not exceed 5% of the taxable income).

Special Expatriate Tax Regime

Personal income tax is payable by all individuals earning income in Greece, irrespective of citizenship or place of permanent residence. Non-residents are taxed only on Greece-source income.

A special tax regime for expatriates who intend to stay in the country for at least two years was introduced with Law 4758/4.12.2020. Subject to conditions, such individuals are exempted from paying income tax on 50% of their Greek source employment income or freelancer income (applicable for a maximum of 7 years).

Under the new alternative taxation regime for foreign pensioners relocating to Greece, individuals will be subject to an annual flat tax rate of 7% on total foreign-source income (applicable for a maximum of 15 years, conditions apply).

Furthermore, investors can opt to be taxed based on an annual flat tax of EUR 100,000 on their total foreign-sourced income (applicable for a maximum of 15 years).

Non-Greek tax residents who qualify as foreign taxpayers and maintain residency in an EU or EEA country may benefit from Greek tax resident reliefs if (i) at least 90% of their worldwide income is generated in Greece, or (ii) they can demonstrate their taxable income is low enough to warrant tax relief in their home country.