Greece’s Independent Authority for Public Revenue (AADE) announced on Friday that is establishing a special forces squad to combat tax evasion and smuggling.
With 500 checks daily, Greece aims to collect 65 billion euros
AADE is planning sweeping checks in all sectors of the economy with “special forces” whose aim will be to identify tax evasion, while at the same time a new attempt is being made to collect overdue debts.
This year’s action plan reportedly foresees 170,385 checks across the entire spectrum of the economy such as shops, customs, ships, national roads, places of special interest and others.
According to AADE plan, cross-checks to identify undeclared incomes will continue in 2024 for incomes higher than 10,000 euros.
The auditors have at their disposal all the data of the audited and with the electronic system “live audit” they are directly connected to the operations center, where the staff team is located.
The checks will cover every economic activity, while the “red debts” will also be on the front line with the AADE trying to curb a new explosion of “unpaid taxes”. The goal is to collect 2.8 billion euros from the old debts of totaling 107 billion euros and 2.3 billion euros from the new ones that will be created within the year.
The new agency will be reminiscent of the Financial Crimes Squad (SDOE) of the past, where customs and tax inspectors worked as one team.
*thumbnail pictures: Blues Brothers (film) – scene from tax office.
