Greek Finance Ministry

The poorest classes are not threatened simply by a small decline in the standard of living, but may well face dilemmas heretofore inconceivable for a Western country, such as “food or heating?”

The current strategy of social benefits and subsidies should be a guide for the future, especially since it is clear that the government has set aside funds for such necessary interventions.

SDOE was abolished by Presidential Decree and will be replaced by General Secretariat for Tax Policy and Public Assets.

With over four million citizens – professionals and businessmen – with delinquent debts, one can easily surmise the dire straits in which a large swathe of Greek society finds itself.

According to data provided by Greek banks, the unpaid portion of about 70 percent of home loans for the purchase of a primary residence is less than 100,000 euros, whereas the unpaid portion of 85 percent of non-performing loans is on average 150,000 euros.

The overarching aim is for the finance ministry to have a comprehensive file on all types of assets so as to catch the huge number of taxpayers who currently declare extremely low incomes.

The government exempted the Onassis Foundation and enterprises associated with it from the Special Real Estate Tax, which represents 15 percent of the tax valuation of a property.

'Much of the out-performance has come from deep cuts in public investment, which would normally be a critical driver for economic growth,' the FT report underlined.