Protest gathering for the new tax system is organized by the Kozani Catering Association “Ermis”

The bill of the Ministry of Finance entitled “Measures to limit tax evasion”, which includes the presumptive taxation of freelancers, individual businesses, is nothing more than another collection measure.

Indeed, it comes at a time when public revenues are increasing while consumer purchasing power is declining due to ever-increasing accuracy and “greed” inflation.

With the main argument of tax evasion, the small and very small businesses that have suffered so much from the successive crises and have always been on the sidelines of public policies are being targeted once again.

Obviously, no one can claim that there is no tax evasion. However, it is misleading to attribute this exclusively to freelancers.

Major issues such as smuggling, smuggling and undeclared business activity remain, glaringly demonstrating the State’s failure to deal effectively with them.

And of course, no reason is articulated for dealing with legal tax evasion and profiteering.

The new self-employed tax system which essentially sets a horizontal presumptive income, if finally implemented will be the gravestone for thousands of very small businesses.

The Government shows that it ignores the reality experienced by the majority of freelancers, scientists and small and medium-sized businesses, after more than ten years of economic and social crisis, due to memoranda, pandemic, energy crisis, precision and inflation.

It ignores the data it has that prove that a significant part of the active potential of the Greek economy, the middle class, is unable to meet its basic obligations, has significant debts to the State, Banks, Insurance Funds and has lost arrangements debts with an immediate risk of the imposition of stalking measures against him.

The fight against tax evasion presupposes a substantial dialogue between all entities, with the aim of a fair tax system that will take into account the real conditions of development of the Greek economy and the particularities of each profession and will be based on the contribution of each to the public burdens according to the actual his forces and not with “presumed” absolutely non-existent incomes. It also requires the cultivation of a feeling of fiscal reciprocity, i.e. a reflection of the tax burden in a strong social state, in a reliable National Health System, in decent public education, in adequate infrastructures and services that return to the citizen and the business its contribution to public revenues.

The Government is deploying anachronistic, unfair and leveling methods to fight tax evasion at the same time as it boasts that it has new control tools at its disposal (indirect control techniques, mydata, connection of cash registers with the Ministry of Finance, installation of POS, etc.) thereby admitting failure their application.

The memorable decade of overtaxation is still fresh in the memories of freelancers, as its negative consequences continue to afflict a significant part of them. And in this context it should be fully understood what the “backbone” of the Greek economy has demonstrated in recent years with its attitude, namely that it no longer forgets and does not forgive.

We express our strong reaction to the tax measures being promoted.

We invite all our members and more broadly all freelancers to participate in the protest on Wednesday, November 22, in the central square of Kozani, at 10:30 am.

For the Board

The president

Voutiris Alexandros