VAT compliance and reporting rules in Greece 2024
Below is summary of the major rules provided under Greek VAT rules (VAT Law (2859/2000) of 2000 as amended), plus adoption of EU VAT Directive provisions. Check our country VAT guides for other jurisdictions.
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Greece VAT country guide
| Highlights | Local term | Foros prostithemenis axias (FPA or ΦΠΑ) |
| VAT Rates - standard | 24% | |
| Rates news | Temporary VAT cuts extended into 2024 | |
| VAT Rates - reduced | 13%; 6%; 0% | |
| VAT number format | EL 123456789 | |
| Registration threshold | Nil for residents and non-residents; €10,000 resident small business exemption option; €10,000 for pan-EU digital services and goods OSS return. Intra-community acquisitions €10,000. | |
| VAT Group | Not permitted | |
| VAT recovery foreign businesses | For EU, Swiss and Norwegian businesses only. Post-Brexit UK to be confirmed | |
| Fiscal Representative | Required of non-EU taxpayers | |
| Currency | Euro €, January 2001 | |
| Administration | Introduction | Greece introduced VAT from 1987. It joined the European Union in 1981 |
| VAT laws | VAT Law (2859/2000) of 2000 as amended; Also EU VAT Directive which takes supremacy as part of EU membership | |
| Tax Authorities | VAT Directorate of the Greek Independent Authority for Public Revenue (AADE), Ministry of Finance | |
| VAT Rates | Standard rate | 24% |
| Rates news | Temporary VAT cuts extended into 2024 | |
| Reduced rates | 13%: hospitality; hotel accommodation; certain foodstuffs; passenger transport; entrance to cinema and sports events; tour packages; gyms; cinema; theatre; health supplies; 6%: Newspapers; public gas and electricity; newspapers and journals | |
| Zero-rated | Intra-community passenger travel by air and sea; Exports and intra-community supplies of goods; gold to central banks; services related to vessels and aircraft | |
| Exempt | Education; financial services; health, hospital, and social welfare; public postal; letting immovable property; betting and gambling; welfare services; international passenger transport; public broadcasting; and others. | |
| Scope of VAT | Scope of VAT | Provision of domestic taxable goods and services; EU imports; intra-community acquisitions; Distance selling of goods B2C (OSS or IOSS); receipt of services or goods via the reverse charge |
| Time of supply | Goods & Services (general rule) | Goods at time of delivery or start of transport; services at time performed. Issuing an invoice beforehand will overrule this. Advance payments are not due VAT element |
| Reverse Charge | As per general rule (see separate); advance payment creates a tax point (unlike general rule) | |
| Continuous Services | At time of any payments. | |
| Imports | At time of clearance into free circulation from customs into Greece | |
| Goods on approval and return | Upon permanent acceptance by the customer | |
| Registration | VAT registration threshold | Nil for residents and non-residents - small residents below €10,000 turnover may apply for exemption from registering; €10,000 for pan-EU digital services and goods OSS return. Intra-community acquisitions €10,000. |
| Voluntary VAT registration | N/a, no VAT registration threshold | |
| VAT number format | EL 123456789 | |
| VAT Group | Not permitted | |
| Non-residents | Permitted. No VAT registration threshold, and may be subject to reverse charge - thought largely restricted to B2B services. Fiscal Representative for non-EU taxpayers. | |
| Fiscal Representative | Required of non-EU taxpayers. Jointly and severally liable for their clients' VAT. Not required for import VAT postponement licence. Required even where EU has signed a mutual assistance agreement - Norway and the UK | |
| Digital Services | Greece participates in the EU single One Stop Shop (OSS) VAT return for digital, telecoms and broadcast services. This was formerly the MOSS regime until 30 June 2021 | |
| Pre VAT registration costs | Not recoverable | |
| VAT Invoices | Issuance | 15th of the month following the tax point (see separate). Retail transactions still require receipts. |
| Content | Date; unique sequential invoice number; name and address of supplier and customer; Customer VAT number for intra-community supplies or reverse charge; date of supply or advance payment if different from invoice date; Description, quantity or units etc of supply of goods or services; price per unit; taxable amount; VAT charged; rate (broken out if supplies at different rates); total; explanation if zero-rated supply; and discount | |
| E-invoices | E-books and e-invoices obligations | |
| Simplified invoices | Permitted for invoices not exceeding €100. May exclude customer details and not breakout VAT amount. Not permitted for reverse charge or intra-community supplies. | |
| Self-billing | Permitted by agreement by supplier and customer | |
| Retention of invoices | Six years from the year of issuance of invoice. Invoices may be stored outside of Greece provided there is ready access. Records may be digitised with proper controls on creation and storage. | |
| FX rules | Invoices may be issued in any currency, but the taxable amount must be stated in €, using the European Central Bank or Greek Central Bank rate on the time of supply. | |
| Invoice corrections | Via credit notes for corrections are permitted. Limit of five years from issuance of original invoice. Credit note should refer to the original invoice number and reason for correction. | |
| Compliance | Right to deduct | Excluded: hospitality and entertainment; passenger vehicles including fuel; taxis; accommodation and entertainment for employees; business gifts above €10 |
| Call-off stock | Following the EU's 2020 Quick Fix harmonisation reforms, stock may be transferred from an EU state to an customer location/warehouse in Greece without triggering a VAT registration and supply for a non-Greek supplier. Title has not passed until the customer takes the goods for production and sale. At which time a zero-rated transaction may be effected. This must happen within 12 months of the original movement | |
| Reverse Charge - B2B | In addition to cross-border services reverse charge to business customers, Greece applied limited use of RC for non-residents. Goods supplies generally require a foreign provider to VAT register to charge VAT. However, if the provider fails to do so, the Greek or non-resident customer takes up the responsibility to VAT register. The reverse charge will apply for non-residents non-EU who have imported goods without a fiscal representative. The domestic reverse charge applies: natural gas and electricity; CO2 emission licences; scrap materials; certain B2G contracts; mobile phones; laptops and tablets; games consoles. | |
| Cash discounts | Provided by credit note if early payment discount is taken-up by the customer once they have received the full price invoice. | |
| Bad debt relief | Only available where customer is in formal liquidation procedures | |
| Import VAT deferment | Residents and non-residents may use reverse charge to avoid paying import VAT, instead recording the transactions through their next VAT return. Subject licensing and being a regular importer (€250m per annum).Residents may apply for deferred VAT and customs payments until 16th of the following month. This requires application. Exemption is allowed in the case of an import and immediate (30 days) intra-community supply. This requires the importer to hold its customer's valid EU VAT number registered in VIES. | |
| VAT warehouse | Greece offers licensed VAT warehouse in accordance with the EU VAT Directive Annex V, including exemption on services provided within warehouses. It also offers licensed bonded warehouse for customs and VAT | |
| Supply & install | Non-resident providers of supply and install of goods are required to Greek VAT register, and may not use the reverse charge instead. | |
| Use and enjoyment services | Greece has implemented local VAT on: short term transport hire; telecoms, broadcast and e-services; hire of tangible property | |
| Capital goods adjustment period | Movable property: five years. Immovable property: five years | |
| Non-residents VAT recovery | EU businesses may apply for Greek VAT reclaims through the electronic portal of the tax authorities of their company of residency (8th Directive). Quarterly claims above €400 permitted, with final claim above €50 by 30 Sept of following year. Only Norwegian, Swiss and UK (to be confirmed) from outside the EU may reclaim VAT via the 13th Directive claims process as have reciprocal agreements. This requires paper-based claims direct to the Greek AADE authorities | |
| VAT on Digital Services | Greece follows the EU VAT on digital services regime, introduced in 2015. This includes participation in the One-Stop-Shop (OSS) single EU VAT return (formerly MOSS until 30 June 2021) | |
| Live events | ||
| Distance selling threshold for goods | Nil. Following the EU ecommerce VAT package reforms from 1 July 2021, local Greek VAT must be charged on all sales by non-Greek EU e-commerce sellers shipping from within the EU. Imported distance sales not exceeding €150 liable to Greek sales VAT with IOSS return option | |
| Cash accounting scheme | Available for residents only where turnover does not exceed €2million per annum. | |
| VAT registered cash tills | Certified cash registers | |
| Statute of limitations | Six Years | |
| Other | Greece has implemented transaction reporting via myDATA e-books and e-ledgers from 1 July 2021. | |
| VAT Returns | Frequency | Quarterly |
| Filing method | Electronic via TAXISnet | |
| Deadlines (inc payments) | Last working day of the month following the reporting quarter. Payments are the same deadline - some scope for two-instalment payments with second due end of the second month following reporting quarter | |
| VAT credits | Applied for through VAT return. Otherwise excess VAT is carried forward to future returns. | |
| Corrections | Corrective return required | |
| Non-residents | Similar to residents. Non-EU taxpayers require a Fiscal Representative | |
| Other filings | Monthly European Sales Listing for goods and services supplies without any threshold by 26h of month following. Intrastat monthly by the last working day of the following month for supply of goods above threshold: dispatches: €90k; arrivals: €150k. | |
| SAF-T | myDATA transaction reporting | |
| Penalties & interest | €100 missed return fine, plus up to €500 further fine where VAT due. 0.73% monthly penalty for unpaid VAT due. 50% fine on VAT mis declared without voluntary disclosure. | |
| B2C Distance Selling returns | Greece participates in the One-Stop-Shop OSS pan-EU VAT return for distance selling, introduced in July 2021. |
