By Chrysostomos Tsoufis

23,000 pensioners received the day before yesterday, November 26, retroactive payments that in some cases reached €11,900 due to the unconstitutionality of the law. Katrougalou which led to the recalculation of their pensions based on the provisions of N. Brush.

The amounts that reached the pensioners’ pockets would be more if they were not subject to a number of reservations:

  • 20% tax
  • Solidarity contribution 3% – 14% for pensions exceeding €1400
  • 6% for healthcare

However, even after all these deductions, the appointment with the tax office for these pensioners does not end here as this money must be declared and taxed.

According to the legislation, they must be declared with an amending declaration in the following year from the one they concerned, which must be submitted by December 31, 2025. That is, there is time.

The specific “batch” of retrospectives concerns the period from October 2019 to October 2023, so based on the above, amending statements for the years 2020-2024 must be made.

Retrospectives will be taxed based on scales and rates that were in force in the year to which they refer and the final tax is calculated after deducting, of course, 20% of the deduction made at source. In retroactive statements, the amounts are pre-filled and it is not possible to modify other codes.

The additional tax that will arise must be paid in one lump sum by January 31, 2026. Otherwise, there is the possibility of settlement in up to 48 interest installments. The more installments, the higher the interest rate. The first installment must be paid within three working days of the settlement of the debt.

In the event that the additional tax resulting from the return declaration is up to €100, no fines are imposed.

A fine is also not imposed when the amending declarations are submitted late, but not due to the fault of the beneficiary of the retrospectives, but due to the fault of the employer or the competent body (even if it is foreign) which has the obligation to issue and grant a relevant certificate necessary for to complete the statement. In such cases, the declaration is considered timely if it is made within the tax year in which the necessary certificates were issued by the obliged entities.

However, those who collected retrospectively in 2023 which concern the period 2015-2022 are NOT so comfortable with time. In fact, they still have 35 days to declare them by the end of the year.