Key Types of Tax and Current Rates for Individuals and Businesses
Tax law plays a central role in every member state of the European Union, since it is how the state budget is financed. Harmonizing cross-border tax law is therefore of fundamental importance for the functioning of the EU; tax sovereignty itself, however, remains with the individual member states.
The most important laws of Greek tax law are the Income Tax Act (Law 4172/2013), the Value Added Tax Act (Law 2859/2000), the Tax Procedure Act (Law 4174/2013), and the Code on Inheritance, Gift, and Parental Gift Tax (Law 2961/2001).
Current Key Figures of Greek Taxation
- Income tax for individuals: a progressive scale from 9% (income up to €10,000) to 44% (income over €40,000) for income from employment and pensions; at the beginning of 2026 several middle tax brackets for low and middle incomes were further reduced.
- Rental income: taxed progressively at rates from 15% to 45%, graduated according to the amount of annual rental income.
- Corporate income tax: a uniform rate of 22% for capital companies (AE, EPE, IKE); an additional 5% withholding tax is levied on distributed dividends.
- Value added tax: standard rate 24%, reduced rates of 13% and 6% for certain goods and services; temporary reductions apply on individual islands.
- Real estate transfer tax: 3% plus a surcharge in favor of municipalities (approximately 3.09% in total) on the purchase price (adjusted upward where applicable); VAT on the first sale of new-build properties is currently suspended until the end of 2025.
- Gifts, parental transfers, and inheritances: for transfers between spouses and between parents/grandparents and children/grandchildren (Category A), the tax-free allowance was raised to €800,000 per recipient as of 1 October 2021; amounts exceeding this are taxed at 10%. Significantly lower allowances and higher tax rates apply to more distant relatives and unrelated third parties (Category B and C).
Within the EU, “European tax law” refers primarily to the cross-border law of indirect taxes. Value added tax was harmonized by the VAT Directive (Directive 2006/112/EC); for direct taxes, however, the EU has no independent legislative competence and relies only on selective harmonization measures such as the Merger Directive, the Parent-Subsidiary Directive, and the Interest and Royalties Directive for the avoidance of double taxation.
FAQ
Tax law plays a central role in all states of the European Union because it is how the state finances itself. Harmonizing cross-border tax law is therefore of fundamental importance for the sustainable functioning of the EU. Tax sovereignty, however, remains with the individual member states.
The main laws are the Income Tax Act (Law 4172/2013, since amended several times, most recently in particular by Law 5246/2025), the Value Added Tax Act (Law 2859/2000), the Tax Procedure Code (Law 4174/2013), and the Gift and Inheritance Tax Act (Law 2961/2001).
Greece applies progressive taxation with different tax rates for income from employment and pensions, rental income, and capital income (e.g. dividends). The specific tax rates and allowances were adjusted for the 2026 tax year by Law 5246/2025 (see our separate FAQ on income taxation for more details).
Important update: capital companies (AE, EPE, IKE) are now uniformly subject to a 22% corporate income tax on their profits (reduced from a previous 24% under Law 4799/2021); an additional 5% withholding tax is deducted from distributed dividends (reduced from a previous 10% since 2020). Freelancers and sole proprietors are subject to the progressive individual income tax scale (see our FAQ on income taxation).
Important update: since the 2026 tax year, a four-tier progressive scale applies (Law 5246/2025): 15% up to €12,000, 25% on the portion between €12,001 and €24,000, 35% on the portion between €24,001 and €36,000, and 45% on the portion exceeding that.
In principle, real estate transfer tax of currently 3.09% (3% plus a municipal surcharge) applies to the purchase price, provided it exceeds the “objective value” set by the tax authority. For the commercial sale of new-build properties (building permit issued on or after 1 January 2006), the purchase price is in principle subject to VAT of currently 24%; however, this VAT is currently suspended until the end of 2026, meaning that during this period only the real estate transfer tax applies even to new builds (see our FAQ on ancillary costs of a real estate purchase for more details).
For gifts, parental transfers, and inheritances to close relatives (Category A: spouses, children, grandchildren, parents), significantly higher tax-free allowances apply than for more distant or unrelated recipients; the specific allowances have been raised several times in recent years and should be checked for the individual case (see our FAQ on inheritance law in Greece).
The EU is authorized to harmonize indirect taxes in order to remove trade barriers, particularly in the area of value added tax (today: VAT Directive 2006/112/EC). For direct taxes, however, there is no comprehensive power to intervene; only partial areas are regulated, such as the Merger Directive, the Parent-Subsidiary Directive, and the Interest and Royalties Directive for the avoidance of double taxation.
As of June 2026. All information on these pages is provided without guarantee or liability.