Memorandum with her positions and proposals for changes in taxation and measures to support small and very small businesses and freelancers, the General Confederation of Professional Craftsmen and Merchants of Greece (GSEVEE) at the meeting held yesterday by its representatives with the new leadership of the Ministry of Finance, the minister Kostis Hatzidakis and the deputy ministers Haris Theoharis and Thanos Petralia.

As the representatives of GSEVEE stated, the circumstances require that the actions of the ministry in the next period focus on policies that will aim at achieving high growth rates and recovery of the investment level and must also include the strengthening and support of small-scale entrepreneurship.

In the proposals of GSEVEE for the tax policy include, among others: the rationalization of indirect taxes (VAT and excise taxes), the abolition of the trade fee without conditions, the restoration of the tax-free limit for professionals, craftsmen and traders, the release of a bank account for settled debts and the abolition of the tax luxury in the manufacturing sector of silver and goldsmiths, the rationalization of tax fines and the restoration of the tax-free reserve for businesses, with the condition of reinvesting part of the profits and increasing employment, issues that Mr. Kampanis specialized in.

As for policies enhancing the liquidity of small businesses GSEVEE considers that a permanent measure should be considered as a financing tool exclusively for small and very small enterprises. Also, the government should proceed with the establishment of an unencumbered account for businesses so that they can respond in the short term to liquidity problems, an increase in the funds provided for very small businesses from European programs as well as the creation and utilization of innovative financial tools such as the use of POS and connection to trade credits.

“Access to finance continues to be one of the key issues facing small businesses. In all IME GSEVEE climate surveys, regardless of the economic situation and the optimism-pessimism rates, a consistently negative balance emerges regarding business liquidity. This image is also confirmed by the European Central Bank’s six-monthly opinion surveys, where our country consistently ranks first in the financial gap, throughout the period that the survey is carried out (from 2009 to the present day)”, emphasized the president of GSEBEE George Kavvathas.

With regard to the regulation of tax debts, in its proposals GSEVEE includes:

  • New arrangement of 120 installments in which all tax debts can be included, especially those created during the health and energy crisis. For the regulation to be effective, the cancellation of fines and other surcharges should be foreseen, as well as a reduction of the basic debt for the debts created during the pandemic.
  • Speeding up and streamlining the procedures of the extrajudicial mechanism for the arrangements of the 240 installments.
  • Suspension of auctions for the protection of the first home and commercial housing for the duration of the accuracy crisis.
  • Adjustment-reduction of banking fees (electronic transactions, charges, e-banking transaction costs, payments to DEKO, etc.) to the conditions that have been established.