Airbnb Greece Provides Data to Tax Authorities

Airbnb notified real estate owners in Greece renting out their properties short term that 2018-2019 information would be sent to the Independent Authority for Public Revenue (AADE) for taxation purposes.

The announcement comes after the home-sharing company said it would be launching a new “City Portal” allowing local governments to closely monitor listings.

The company said the portal will provide “actionable insights” into Airbnb’s activity in local communities, tools for regulatory compliance and centralized technical support and resources to rebuild tourism revenue.

Initially, Airbnb’s City Portal is set to launch as a pilot program in some 15 North America cities.

“We created this tool with cities and our goal is to ensure it works for big cities and small towns and is adaptive to different needs,” says Airbnb co-founder and CEO Brian Chesky.

Photo Source: Airbnb

The new portal will include a dashboard providing such information as Airbnb data on short-term rental market features (local and international); remitted tourist tax revenue in locations where tax agreements exist; compliance tools to assist authorities in formulating and developing short-term rental policies and regulations; direct access to Airbnb representatives; and links to other Airbnb support resources.

With regard to Greece, Airbnb said it would be providing AADE with the following information of Airbnb operators in Greece with active listings on the platform: host passport number (if available); name of the host or host company; date of birth; email address and phone number; URL of listings; type of property (detached house / apartment building / other, if available); address; estimated gross income from listings – including Airbnb’s commission for the 2018-2019 period; method of payment, account number and payment provider.

Data for 2019 will be provided on September 25 with 2018 data to follow.

Meanwhile, Secretary General of Public Revenue Giorgos Pitsilis announced this week that the deadline for tax declarations as well as for Covid-19 rent relief declarations for March-September has been extended to December 4.

Short-term rental operators who fail to declare their properties to AADE will be faced with stiff penalties. It is reminded that home sharing platforms operating in Greece, which fail to provide information requested by the country’s tax authority may also be faced with hefty fines. Under a draft law tabled and passed last year, AADE has the right to file a request within a given deadline to any online home sharing platform, based in Greece or not, seeking information about persons using the platform as sellers (property owners) who may be liable for taxation in Greece.