Despite the General Secretary of Public Revenue Haris Theoharis’ proclamation that all tax returns would take place within 90 days, the official statistics show that in certain cases, taxpayers have had to wait up to four years to receive their VAT returns.
The General Secretariat of Public Revenue revealed that there are currently 5,316 applications for VAT returns, with a value of 811 million euros, which have yet to be processed. Of those outstanding applications, 3,511 have been pending for over 120 days.
In an effort to overcome this profound problem, the Ministry of Finances is expected to include in its upcoming bill a provision that would allow businesses and self-employed to offset their VAT return claims with their debts towards the state. This provision is rumored to only apply to new VAT debts, rather than have a retroactive effect.
