The government is putting some final touches on its new real estate tax which is scheduled to replace a number of separate real estate taxes in 2014. The Ministry of Finances will present the draft to the troika technocrats next week for approval.
The unified tax will replaced the current real estate tax and a controversial “emergency” real estate tax that was imposed by the troika. The new tax will be applicable to urban properties (such as homes, stores, professional spaces etc), land that lies both within and beyond urban planning zones and agricultural land.
Different tax rates will apply according to the use and objective value of the real estate, with some rumors suggesting that there might be up to 30 different tax rates, based on objective values. Agricultural land will have simplified rates relevant to location and size, while professional farmers will pay 50% lower rates.
The new tax rates and payment procedures will be submitted in a different bill in Parliament, after they have been agreed upon with the troika representatives. The government expects to collect over 3.2 billion euros from the new tax, however the troika is not convinced.
Recent statistics indicate that 20% of taxpayers are not paying the emergency tax and due to the tax burden, about 30% of taxpayers will be unable to pay their taxes on time.
