Laws, Regulations & Policy Greek Tourism Body SETE Calls for Integrated and Permanent Taxation Policy by GTP editing team 24 May 2019 written by GTP editing team 24 May 2019 0 comments Share 0FacebookTwitterLinkedinWhatsappEmail 12 The Greek Tourism Confederation (SETE) reiterated this week its call for government planning that will include tax cuts in transportation, among others. Referring to Prime Minister Alexis Tsipras’ announcement earlier this month on a series of new relief measures to take effect in 2019-2021, including the reduction of value-added tax (VAT) on restaurants and hotel accommodation, SETE underlined that though reduced taxation for accommodation, F&B and energy “were in the right direction to ensure competitiveness of the Greek tourism product, they lacked strategic planning” failing to include transport. SETE also expressed concerns about VAT cuts in F&B. Citing its letters to Economy Minister Euclid Tsakalotos, SETE underlines that over the last decade, VAT on F&B and transport tripled from 8 percent to 24 percent with adverse effects on the competitiveness of the tourist product. “The government’s intention to provide incentives and relief measures, although initially encouraging, once again confirms that it lacks overall strategic planning,” SETE said in a statement. More specifically, the PM announced earlier this month, that VAT on food and beverage (F&B) items would drop to 13 percent from the current 24 percent, and on goods and services including hotel stays (as of 2020) – both key areas in tourism – down to 11 percent from 13 percent. “For years, SETE has stressed and repeated that over-taxation impacts the competitiveness of the tourism product, employment, investments and by extension the Greek economy,” SETE said, adding that any “taxation policy, incentives and relief measures should serve an overall plan of a permanent nature. An integrated national strategy for the future of the country”. Follow GTP Headlines on Google News to keep up to date with all the latest on tourism and travel in Greece. Share 0 FacebookTwitterLinkedinWhatsappEmail GTP editing team This is the team byline for GTP. The copyrights for these articles are owned by GTP. They may not be redistributed without the permission of the owner. previous post Santorini Named Best Island in Europe by ‘Global Traveler’ Readers next post Greece to Hold Snap Elections After EU Vote You may also like Greece’s Hotel Market Sees Major Investments Over Four Months 5 February 2025 Greek Tourism Ministry Monitors Santorini Situation as Seismic Activity Continues 5 February 2025 Global Air Passenger Demand Reaches Record High in 2024, IATA Reports 5 February 2025 Greek PM Reassures Public About Santorini’s Ongoing Seismic Activity 5 February 2025 Milos: Ministry Suspends 5-star Hotel Construction Near Sarakiniko Beach 5 February 2025 ELIME and HELMEPA Join Forces for Safer, More Sustainable Greek Ports 5 February 2025 Leave a Comment Cancel Reply Save my name, email, and website in this browser for the next time I comment. Δ