Less maneuvering room for debtors

 

This legislation (Law 3900/2010) that passed the review by the STE was drafted on Haris Kastanidis’ stay as Justice minister and was intended to discourage debtors of the State to use all legal procedures to which they are entitled in order to delay the payment of their debts.

 

It tightens the status for the granting a suspension decision at first instance courts and specifies that from now on suspensions will only be granted when the court finds that the main action of the taxpayer is made based on the possibility it will be accepted by the courts.

 

Until recently, Greek courts granted suspension decisions considering the taxpayer's argument that the judgment at a first instance level will result in irreparable economic burden of harm. After the implementation of this law, however, the treatment of those who resort to the courts has changed, since judges will be granting suspension decisions quite sparingly.

 

The STE judgment states inter alia: "For tax and customs disputes mainly, which depart from the general regulations regarding other disputes governed by this Law, including the regulation of the provision of Article 38 of Law 3900/2010 for the exclusion of irreparable or difficultly reparable harm as a reason for giving temporary legal protection, are based on the need to discourage the exercise of judicial means only to delay the fulfillment of legal obligations, in particular those relating to the payment of taxes, focusing on the economy of the trial and the prevention of delays and unnecessary extensions of pending issues."