Significant changes are foreseen in taxation in 2024in a series of issues, which directly or indirectly concern all taxpayers and for this reason from the very first day of the new year, good information or a visit to the accountant and tax specialist would be useful.

Today we will try to record the most important changes that have already been launched, with previous legislation but also based on the bill that is already up for vote in the Parliament.

The biggest change takes place in new way of taxing the approximately 730,000 self-employed, the taxation of which for the incomes they obtained this year will be done in a presumptive manner. Also over 1.3 million taxpayers who have children will see from the current month – if they are public employees or pensioners – and from the next if they are private employees, an increase in their earnings thanks to the increase in the tax-free allowance, by 1,000 euros, a development that leads in lower withholding tax.

Changes are also coming to the tax regime of those who manage real estate that they have available for short-term rentals. Those owners or managers who own more than 3 properties are considered entrepreneurs by the Tax Office and should open books.

Another important change is that now all real estate transactions will have to be done through the banking system and not with cash. At the same time, a 10% relief will be available to all those house owners who insure them against natural disasters. Also, all professionals and businesses will be obliged to transmit their income and expenses to the myDATA platform of AADE.

Let’s see the main changes coming to the tax system from 1.1.2024:

1. The taxation of freelancers, self-employed and sole proprietorships will take place in 2024, for the income they earned in 2023, in a presumptive manner. However, exceptions are foreseen, most of which are focused on young professionals, those who are active in areas with a small population, those with many children, etc.

The upper presumptive income is set at 50,000 euros. At the same time, a full exemption from the presumption is provided for when there are special reasons, such as illness, completion of military service, natural disasters, reasons of force majeure, etc., for the self-employed with a Certificate of Provision of Services (APY) up to 3 employers, while the exemption also concerns the farmers. The basic criterion for the amount of the presumption is the basic salary. The presumption varies according to the years of professional activity, the total payroll and the amount of turnover of the business in relation to the average of the sector.

2. Horizontal reduction by 50% of the application fee which is currently 650 euros and will now be 325 euros for all professionals. For each additional branch, the Fee is reduced to 300 euros from 600 euros.

3. The tax-free allowance is increased by 1,000 euros for employees, pensioners and farmers with children as their main occupation. On an annual basis, the relief ranges from 90 euros to 220 euros depending on the number of children.

4. Real estate transfers will now be mandatory using banking tools. Any contract recording an advance, partial or full cash payment will be considered void and non-transferable.

5. The payment of social and welfare benefits (child benefits, birth benefit, unemployment benefits) will now be made exclusively by debit card.

6. The fine for cash transactions is increased. For purchases worth more than 500 euros with cash, from 100 euros which is today, it will be double the value of the receipt.

7. Mandatory transmission to the myDATA platform of all income and expenses. The income to be declared from business activity cannot be less than the income that has been transmitted to the platform. Also, a business’s expenses that have not been passed on will not be deductible.

8. Freelancers and businesses are now required to issue invoices electronically.

9. Interface of cash registers with POS in March 2024

10. Expansion of POS to the remaining branches of the retail market that currently do not have them.

11. Activation of the digital consignment note, pilot from the beginning of 2024 and fully by the end of the year.

12. Compensation from 100 to 3,000 euros to citizens who report, through the “Appodixi” application, incidents of issuing receipts from falsified or tampered cash registers.

13. Reduced VAT rates. The reduced VAT rates on transport, tourist packages, gyms, dance schools, tickets to cinemas, theaters and zoos, goods related to public health are fixed. The reduced VAT rate on coffee and drinks in catering as well as on taxi fares is extended until June 30, 2024. From January 1, 2024, the VAT rate on served non-alcoholic beverages (soft drinks, non-alcoholic beers, carbonated waters) will return to 24%.

14. The tax reduction for real estate renovation will be greater from now on. Expenditures for the purchase of goods and the receipt of services related to the energy, functional and aesthetic upgrading of buildings, reduce, equally distributed over a period of five years, the income tax of natural persons, up to the corresponding tax for each year, with a total upper limit spend 16,000 euros. Costs for materials are taken into account up to an amount corresponding to 1/3 of the amount for service costs. All costs should result from invoices that have been paid by electronic means of payment and transmitted to AADE by the supplier through the myDATA system.

15. As every year, this year also the applications for separate tax returns from the spouses should be submitted by February 28 and these will be binding for both and cannot be revoked after the said date.

16. Changes to the way long-term leases are taxed, with natural persons owning three or more properties on short-term lease will be required to start a business, keep books and issue tax information. Also, as is natural for all self-employed people, they will be charged with the prescribed insurance contributions, business tax and VAT from the first property.

17. The accommodation tax is abolished and a “climate crisis resilience fee” is imposed, which will additionally burden all short-term rentals with 1.5 euros per day.

18. The short-term accommodation fee of 0.5% of income is extended to short-term rentals.

19. Increase in fines for non-registration in the Short-Term Rental Property Registry: The fine for non-registration in the Short-Term Rental Property Registry, which is currently horizontal, amounts to 5,000 euros and is imposed on the administrator, whether he is a principal or a beneficiary or a third party, will now be defined at 50% of the gross income of the last fiscal year and at least 5,000 euros.

20. Establishing a maximum duration of 60 days in each short-term rental: The limit of 60 days applies to the duration of each rental separately.

21. Sanctions for forgery, fuel smuggling or obstruction of control are tightened: the installation is sealed for two years, while it is stipulated that the natural or legal persons whose installation was sealed cannot be active in the trading of energy products also for two years from the finding of the violation.

22. Taxes on capital accumulation (from 0.5% to 0.2%) and stock market transactions are reduced by 50%, to 1 per thousand