To the Minister of Finance Mr.Christos Staikouras
Communication to: The Minister of Development & of Investments Mr. Adonis Georgiadis
The Minister of State Mr.Georgio Gerapetritis
<p style "text-align: justify?" Skylakakis
justify?”> The Deputy Minister of Development & of Investments Mr. Nikos Papathanasis
The Governor of AADE Mr. Giorgos Pitsili -8-2020
SUBJECT: >POMIDA-ESA joint proposal for the voluntary reduction of professional rents: Tax relief is the “key” in the hands of the Minister of Finance!!!
Dear Minister
In your previous statements on the subject of the reduction of leases in certain categories of business leases, you noticed that the government cannot interfere for a long time in private arrangements such as real estate leases. You then called on the collective bodies of landlords and tenants to jointly proceed with negotiations for the adjustment of rents for as long as the economic crisis left by the coronavirus lasts.
But this well-intentioned appeal of yours for an agreement between our organizations on some percentage of temporary rent reduction, regardless of what its practical effectiveness would be, would have the most serious consequences at the expense of our organizations of the infringement of the Competition legislation, since it would constitute a clear incitement to “concerted practice”.
The joint proposal we submitted to you with the letter of 14.7 us, is about voluntary rent reductions incentivized to reduce taxes for landlords, within the same framework that your government has deemed fair and forced. Specifically we have asked that you legislate that those owners who decide for themselves and voluntarily accept the temporary continuation of the rent reduction, up to 40%, and until 31.12.2020 (after the full rent takes effect), to have as an incentive the same relief of returning 30% of the loss of rents, which the state gave to those who forcibly reduced their rents.
Consequently, Mr. Minister, immediately adopt our common proposal, legislating the tax 30% refund on all voluntary business rent reductions as mentioned above. This will facilitate consent exactly where it is needed to save existing tenancies, businesses and jobs across the country, and ultimately protect the tax State revenues, but also the real estate market from yet another disastrous “backsliding”!
The President The President The President p>
Stratos Paradias Stavros Kafounis
