cicero1948

We bought a property in Kos in 2006. After we retired and decided to spend a longer period in the country we purchased a car in 2010. At the time, as far as we knew, non-residents did not have to register the vehicle with the Tax Office. When this became necessary we duly did so. Today, after visiting our accountant - I should stress that we have no business interests here nor do we receive any monies from within Greece, i.e. rental etc., we have learned that we are liable to pay fines for non-declaration of the car ownership in 2010 and 2011, despite the fact that as soon as we learned of the need to register the vehicle with the tax authorities we did so. This seems to me to be both illegal and immoral.

SpammyTesteri

Sour grapes.
I have lived in Greece for 20 years now and even though the locals (not the tax office) said I didn't need to, I registered my car immediately since I knew I was going to be here for a while. When I am in a foreign country I never take the word of locals but I go to the local authorities to find out. When I came to Greece I didn't speak a word of Greek but still managed to find out. Not to mention that the British Consulate said what the rules were.

For over 40 years, Greece and the UK have required that you register a car with new plates if you are resident for more than 6 months of the year in that country. This was always the case and it did not suddenly occur. If you take the car out of the country for more than 6 months then you do not need to register it with new plates. The reason they include the car in the tax declaration is that if you own a car then they expect you to have the appropriate income to use it.

In all countries (including the UK) ignorance of the law is no defense. This is why it neither illegal or immoral. The rules are very clear if someone asks at the local tax office. You have to understand that in most countries the only reason for not registering a car is to avoid paying taxes. If someone doesn't pay taxes they leave it for someone like me and you to pay for their taxes.

cicero1948

P.S. In my previous submission I did not make clear that the car was bought in Greece, and the person from whom I bought it made no mention of the need to register. How,therefore, am I responsible for what happened?

SpammyTesteri

If I hunted swans with a registered gun would it be my fault if I got arrested when in other countries you can hunt and eat swans but in the UK they are all protected under the crown? Why do I need a fishing license when in other countries you don't need one?

SpammyTesteri

I would be more worried about whether your Greek tax declaration is prepared properly. The manual is quite easy .... if you know Greek. Most likely your tax is dealt with through an accountant so he should have included the vehicle in the declaration if you had told him about it.

SpammyTesteri

Don't forget to find out about paying the ENFIA tax on your property. The first payment is due on 30/9/2014.