Persons registered as foreign tax residents with the Office of Foreign Residents are taxed in Greece and only need to file a declaration of income arising in our country. This applies both to Greeks who have moved their tax residence abroad due to relocation, and to foreigners.

Therefore, a foreign tax resident will be taxed in accordance with our domestic law, i.e. on rents received from real estate in Greece, on dividends from shares of Greek companies, on profits from participation in local LLCs, IKE, personal companies, on interest on deposits in local banks, on wages from an employer / business established in our country , etc. .

However, if the recipient of income is a resident of a country with which Greece has entered into a double tax treaty / DTA (all EU, EEA, USA, Canada, China, etc.), will be taxed in accordance with the provisions of the relevant treaty.

Although all bilateral treaties are not alike, most of them usually provide, for example, real estate income is taxed in the country where the property is located, dividends, interest and royalties are taxed at source (at certain rates) in the country where they are arise, business income is taxed only in the country of tax residence of the professional, unless he has a permanent professional base in Greece, etc.

Tax residents abroad are not eligible for tax credits on income from work and pensions they receive in Greece, unless they are EU tax residents. or the EEA and receive at least 90% of global income in Greece, or demonstrate that their taxable income is so low that they are eligible for a tax reduction under the tax laws of their country of residence.

In addition, a tax resident abroad must consider, based on the tax legislation of the country of his tax residence, whether he is obliged to declare there also the income received by him in Greece. In this (usual) case, the possibility of offsetting the tax paid in our country on this income against the tax due abroad should be explored.

On the other hand, since a tax resident abroad does not receive real income in Greece, he is not required to file a tax return in our country.

It is emphasized that the presumption of a living wage does not apply to tax residents abroad, so such a person will not be taxed on the estimated income received as a result of maintenance, for example. car or holiday home in Greece. Also, these persons are not subject to the presumptions of acquiring assets (real estate, vehicles, etc.) provided that they do not receive real income in our country (for example, interest on deposits).

Foreign tax residents with tax liabilities in Greece must appoint a tax representative with tax residence and address in Greece, who will receive their correspondence with the tax administration. The tax representative is not responsible for the fulfillment or non-fulfillment of the tax obligations of a tax resident abroad. However, the new circular 2010/2023 has clarified that foreign tax residents may file income tax returns even if they have not appointed a tax representative, provided they: a) have updated their contact information (email and phone) in myAADE and b) confirm and/or change, at the time of filing the application, the details of their tax residence (country, address and tax identification number in the country of their tax residence).

In the event of a change in their country of tax residence, foreign tax residents are required to submit to the competent IOU a tax residence certificate from their new country of tax residence in order to update their register.

* Ms. Jeny Panu is Head of the Tax Department of Accounting Solutions SA.