Among other things, the new regulations provide for an income tax exemption for properties that will return to the long-term rental market, a doubling of the tax reduction for those who insure their property against natural disasters, a €40,000 fine for those who violate the ban on making new homes available for short-term rental in the center of of Athens, while the procedures for granting financing in the form of a loan to cover the housing needs of a first home and energy upgrading of properties through the Recovery Fund ("MY HOME" program) are defined.
Specifically, properties to be rented that were previously declared vacant or available for short-term rental are exempt from income tax for 3 years. The exemption concerns residences:
a) up to 120 sq.m.,
b) for which at least three-year lease contracts will be concluded between September 8, 2024 and December 31, 2025,
c) which in the tax years 2022, 2023 and 2024 (if the lease is drawn up in 2025), had been declared as vacant properties (form E2) or had not been declared as leased properties either as the landlords' main or secondary residences or as self-occupied or freehold granted properties (forms E1 and E2) or were allocated exclusively for short-term lease and the concluded short-term leases have been declared to the Tax Administration.
Double reduction of ENFIA from 2025 (from 10% to 20%) for residences of natural persons, with a taxable value of up to 500,000 euros, that are insured for natural disasters (fire, earthquake, flood). The condition is that the insurance covers the previous year with a duration of at least 3 months. If the duration of the insurance of the previous paragraphs is less than 1 year, the reduction of EN.F.I.A. adjusted proportionally.
In addition to the increase - from 10% to 20% - of the ENFIA discount for all properties insured against natural disasters, the draft law shapes a series of other interventions aimed at strengthening the resilience of the Greek economy against the effects of climate change.
Specifically there are guidelines for ,
- Compulsory insurance for businesses with annual gross revenues of 500,000 euros or more.
- Compulsory insurance of vehicles for natural disasters based on their current commercial value.
- A fee for resistance to the climate crisis is established in tourist accommodation per daily use and per room or apartment, in the months of April to October as follows:
For hotels:
1-2 stars, 2 euros,
3 stars, 5 euros,
4 stars, 10 euros,
5 stars, 15 euros,
in rented furnished rooms – apartments, 2 euros,
in properties available through short-term lease, 8 euros. If the properties available through short-term rental are single-family houses over 80 sq.m., a durability fee of 15 euros is imposed,
in self-catering accommodation – tourist furnished mansions (villas), 15 euros,
in self-catering accommodation – tourist furnished houses, 8 euros, if their area is less than 80 sq.m. and 15 euros if it is over 80 sq.m.
For the period November – March, the durability fee is structured as follows:
For hotels:
1-2 stars, 0.5 euros,
3 stars, 1.5 euros,
4 stars, 3 euros,
5 stars, 4 euros,
in rented furnished rooms – apartments, 0.5 euros,
in properties available through short-term lease, 2 euros. If the properties available through short-term lease are single-family houses over 80 sq.m., a durability fee of 4 euros is imposed,
in self-catering accommodation – tourist furnished mansions (villas), 4 euros,
in self-catering accommodation – tourist furnished houses, 2 euros, if their area is less than 80 sq.m. and 4 euros if it is over 80 sq.m.
Revenues from the imposition of the fee are used to cover natural disaster prevention and recovery costs, climate change adaptation projects and infrastructure improvement costs to support the country's tourism product.
Cruise fee
The fee basically concerns foreign visitors and is imposed per cruise ship passenger disembarking at a port in the country and ranges from 1 to 20 euros, depending on the port and time period. The collected revenues will be allocated to the municipalities in the administrative boundaries of which the ports are located and to the Ministries of Shipping and Island Policy and Tourism, in order to be used for the construction and improvement of infrastructure as well as the strengthening of tourism.
New home sales suspension for properties based in the center of Athens
Suspension of the availability of new homes in the 1st, 2nd and 3rd Municipal Community of the Municipality of Athens for short-term lease for one year. Specifically, from January 1, 2025 to December 31, 2025, it is not allowed to register in the Short-Term rentals Property Registry for properties located in the 1st, 2nd and 3rd Municipal Communities of the Municipality of Athens.
New loans through the "MY HOME" program
The procedures for granting financing in the form of a loan to cover the housing needs of a first home and energy upgrading of properties through the Recovery Fund ("MY HOME" program) are being enhanced. In further detail, the terms, conditions and procedure for granting loans and interest rate subsidies to individuals are being defined, the criteria and the way of checking the eligibility conditions, etc. In addition, the bill also provides for an increase in the housing repair subsidy of the "Renovate - I rent' as well as its retroactive application. In more detail, it is planned to increase the subsidy for the realization of repair and renovation costs on the property included in the program in the amount of up to 13,500 euros from 10,000 euros today, which includes the required materials and works. The subsidy now amounts to 60% of incurred costs from 40% today.
Total financing expenditure of the "Renovate - Rent" program does not exceed €50,000,000 and is charged to the regular budget of the Ministry of Social Cohesion and Family, distributed over the financial years 2024 and 2025.
VAT applicable on property transactions
In the next bill of the Ministry of National Economy and Finance, the submission for voting of the VAT exemption of new buildings for 2025 is underway. In addition, the bill provides an extension until December 31, 2026 of the suspension of capital gains tax from the transfer of real estate.
Sub-concession contracts in ports
Matters concerning the sub-concession contracts concluded by HRADF are regulated. concerning port operations and services of port and other facilities. In particular, it is provided that in each sub-concession agreement, it should be stipulated that a percentage of the intended annual financial consideration, which cannot exceed 20%, will be paid by the sub-concessionaire to the relevant Port Organization SA. in exchange for the responsibilities exercised by him regarding the monitoring of the orderly operation of the port included in the sub-concession agreement.
Changes to the digital platform – geoportal “valuemaps.gov.gr
Institutionalization and enrichment of the digital platform - geoportal "valuemaps.gov.gr - Objective determination of real estate values on a map", which is the digital display register of the Objective Determination of Real Estate Values system (APAA) for extracting information regarding starting prices, coefficients fluctuating starting prices, maps, price tables and how property values are calculated. The platform presents all the data related to these zones and provides a function to calculate the objective value of the properties.
"Zakynthos Shipwreck": Concession of use of seashore, beach and sea space
Concession of the use of the beach, beach and marine area of the "Zante Shipwreck" area to the Municipality of Zakynthos, after the basic salvage work of the wreck is done by the State, without compensation for its management, protection and exploitation. In this context, the Municipality of Zakynthos also undertakes the execution of maintenance and restoration projects and works of the area and its works, facilities and infrastructure. Also, an entrance ticket is established in favor of the Municipality of Zakynthos and is an income that is used compulsorily for the financing of projects that serve the development needs of Zakynthos and in particular the "Navagio Zakynthos" area. A percentage of 15% of the ticket is attributed by the Municipality of Zakynthos to the Ministry of National Economy and Finance and a similar percentage is attributed to O.FY.PE.K.A.
