The Greek government is ready to announce new relief measures for the country’s damaged middle class, following a budgetary recovery that was almost unthinkable during the European debt crisis, Bloomberg said in an analysis.

Utilizing an unexpected surplus from the significant higher revenue that seems to continue, the Prime Minister Kyriakos Mitsotakis He will present a number of measures in his speech this week at the TIF, which could lay the foundations for extending his term as the country’s longest -running leader in more than two decades, the international agency notes.

Among the measures that the government is considering, Bloomberg points out, is to reduce middle class taxes, household support and increase spending on pensioners, as well as security officials, such as police. Although the details have not yet been finalized, the scheduled package may exceed € 1.5 billion, Bloomberg notes citing sources with knowledge of these plans. Since the country’s budget continues to go beyond forecasts, the government may consider other relief measures in April, the same sources said.

Such measures would have once caused anxiety to investors in a country whose enlarged public financially almost forced her to leave the euro in 2015.

However, the fighting of her tax evasionadds Bloomberg, which has led to a massive increase in the tax compliance of Greek society as a whole, gave Mitsotakis a budgetary margin that would make other European leaders jealous of, despite debt exceeding 140% of GDP and remains the largest in the region.

The result has so far been an unexpected surplus in the budget in 2024, which opposed deficit forecasts, followed by similar favorable forecasts for this year. The opposition to the states from France to the United Kingdom, which are facing market criticism of uncontrolled deficits, is impressive, the international agency stresses.

“The government’s efforts to combat tax evasion give fruit and deserve recognition,” said Joong Shik Kang, head of the mission of the International Monetary Fund to Greece, who played a central role in the country’s monitoring during the crisis. “The results are really remarkable.”

Non -compliance has previously been the constant problem that has undermined Greece’s public finances, with the “underlying economy” to 27% of GDP when the crisis began in 2009, according to the IMF.

A multidimensional approach, utilizing the digitization of payments and evidence and the simplification of government procedures, has changed the situation. The change was so important that it is now a case study for other countries, according to Kang.

The high -tech measures applied by AADE They have helped, Bloomberg points out. At the center of its headquarters in Athens is a “business center” with huge screens that broadcast live data and information, while businesses in the field use drones and monitoring in real time ships entering Greek waters.

AADE has set tax evasion as a strategic objective, which, in addition to the economic and social problem, also spoils the country’s international image, said its head George Pitsilis.

In a surprise operation in August, the passengers of daily cruises landing in Santorini met an entire army of inspectors. Proofs of 23 ships that arrived on the island that day were checked and violations were found in 10 of them. Several similar businesses were carried out this summer.

From a statistical point of view, the results are clear. In 2018, the so -called VAT compliance gap – a measure of the estimated dispute between potential revenue from value added and the actual amount received – was 25.4%. By 2022, this figure was reduced to 13.7%, according to European Union data.

The significant increase in public revenue, without increasing tax burden, “shows that our efforts have yielded fruit,” Mr Pitsilis said.

The Tax Service now adopts a more strategic approach to the selection of targets, using artificial intelligence and social media to determine the priorities of controls. According to Nikos Batsilas, Director of Operational Planning of AADE inspections, officials have found that it is preferable to persuade citizens to voluntarily pay rather than hunt them and punish them. “We have conducted studies and have found that revenue does not come from fines, but from compliance,” he noted.

Investors have welcomed Greece’s efforts, Bloomberg still stresses. Unlike France, whose budgetary problems result in its bond yields being almost as high as Italy’s, at 3.58%, Greece’s 10 -year bonds today are 3.49%.

As Mitsotakis is expected to argue in his annual speech at the TIF on Saturday, the government is now seeking to share with the public the benefits of better tax compliance. At this event, the Greek prime ministers usually present the priorities for the following year, the international agency adds.

However, Bloomberg notes that it is too early to say whether Mitsotakis’ measures will persuade citizens who are struggling to survive and have been living in the cost of living for more than a decade. Their votes in the next elections, which will be held in 2027, will determine whether Mitsotakis may defy the history of his predecessors and secure a third consecutive term.

Whatever the situation, Greece’s fiscal heritage has already changed radically for the better and state subsidies will further contribute to the elimination of tax evasion excuses, according to Fai Makandassis, Director of Research in DISTINIS. This “will fuel a positive cycle of increasing compliance and constantly declining tax burdens,” he said.