Greece slams church with Tax

20/3/2010

Greece is cracking down on major cash transactions and will impose a high levy on the influential Orthodox church in a scramble to boost tax revenue in the face of a debt crisis.

A new draft bill to be tabled in parliament on Tuesday imposes a 20 per cent tax on the Orthodox church’s real estate income, reportedly worth over 10 million euros ($14.8 million) a year.

It also outlaws all business transactions of more than 1500 euros ($2220) conducted in cash, prescribing instead the use of credit cards and urging consumers to collect receipts in an effort to stamp out tax evasion that costs the state an estimated 10 billion euros a year.

‘‘The goal of our tax policy is a simple and fair system with uniform rules and without unjustified exceptions,’’ the finance ministry said in its report to parliament on Friday.

‘‘Our immediate priority is to deal with tax evasion, which is possibly the worst form of injustice in our tax system that hampers the operation of the state,’’ the ministry said.

The bill spells an end to special tax regimes enjoyed by several professional classes, including taxi and truck drivers, civil engineers, camping operators, doctors and athletes.

It also introduces income checks for owners of yachts, private planes and jets, swimming pools and other luxury items.

The Socialist government is trying to plug leaks in its budget – which last year ended up short by more than 30 billion euros – and bring an end to decades of fiscal waste that has produced nearly 300 billion euros in state debt.

AFP

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