Tax relief coming for self-employed professionals in small settlements
The Ministry of Finance is preparing a significant tax relief package aimed at self-employed professionals living and working in small settlements across Greece. The new legislation is expected to be submitted to Parliament in September 2025, and will apply to income declarations filed in 2026.
Who Will Benefit?
The regulation targets self-employed individuals residing and operating in settlements with populations between 500 and 1,500. These professionals will be eligible for a 50% reduction in their total taxable income.
What Problem Does It Solve?
Under the current system, professionals living in small communities that fall under the jurisdiction of larger municipalities (those with populations over 1,500) were not eligible for tax relief. This especially affected villages merged into large municipalities under the “Kallikratis” reform, creating an unfair situation for many rural residents.
Key Changes Under the New Regulation:
All small settlements will now be taxed equally, regardless of their parent municipality’s size.
Villages that were previously excluded due to being technically part of large municipalities will now qualify for the 50% income deduction.
The measure will apply nationwide, excluding only the Attica region.
Policy Goals
The initiative seeks to boost economic activity in rural areas, support the sustainability of local communities, and eliminate long-standing tax inequalities caused by administrative boundaries.
The new regulation is spearheaded by Deputy Minister of Economy and Finance Yorgos Kotsiras, in collaboration with Finance Minister Kyriakos Pierrakakis.
