Do you have a house or apartment in Greece and are thinking about leasing it out? And you are thinking about short term rental or long term rental and want to know what applies and how you will be taxed in Greece? According to the rules, a rental is classified as short-term if it’s no longer than 59 days. This limit applies to the duration of each lease and not to the total number of rental days in a year.
The taxation for long term lease
When you lease out your property you have to pay tax on the revenue in Greece. For private persons the tax is progressive and is measured per owners gross revenue.
- Up to gross revenue of 12 000 €: 15 %
- Between 12 001 € and 35 000 €: 35 %
- Above 35 000 €: 45 %
Example 1. You lease out for 500 euro per month and the gross revenue is 6000 Euro. The tax is 15%, which gives 900 euro and you will earn 425 Euro per month after tax.
Example 2. You have 2 properties and you lease them out. One for 650 Euro per month and one for 750 Euro per month.The gross revenue is 16800 Euro for the year. The tax is 15% up to 12000 Euro and for the rest of 4800 it is 35%. The tax is 3480 Euro in total (20,7%) and you will earn 1110 Euro per month.
In cases when the revenues exceed 12000 Euro it is an advantage if there are 2 owners of the property. Then you can divide the revenues to each owner because the taxation applies for each owner.
Example 3 with 2 owners. You have 2 properties and you lease them out. One for 650 Euro per month and one for 750 Euro per month.The gross revenue is 16800 Euro for the year but is divided between 2 owners. It is 8400 Euro each for the year and taxed at 15%. The tax will be 2520 Euro (15% on the full 16800 Euro) divided by the owners, which gives a revenue of 1190 Euro per month.
The taxation for short term lease
For taxation purposes, income from up to two properties rented short-term without additional services is classified as property income and taxed the same way as for long term rental. If an individual rents out three or more properties or offers additional services, the income is considered business income and requires VAT registration at a rate of 13%.
The vendor must register the property or properties in the Short-Term Stay Property Registry and obtain a Property Registry Number (PRN) and also file a Declaration for Short-Term Stay for each lease. If an individual rents out three or more properties or offers additional services, the income is considered business income and requires VAT registration at a rate of 13%.
Short term rental properties must ensure the guests comfort and safety. That for the properties MUST have proper natural light, ventilation and air conditioning. The host also needs to install fire extinguishers, smoke detectors, escape signs and provide certification from a licensed electrician. Violations of the rules will result in a €5,000 fine, which will double for repeat offenses.
If you want to lease out on AirBnB there are new rules in Greece from 2025
- The tax is raised to 8 € per night (from 1,5 €) during April-October
- Taxis raised to 2 € per night (from 0,5 €) during November-March
Whatever you decide to do with the lease, you should always contact your accountant in Greece about it. They will know the rules and what kind of permit, lease contracts etc you will need. The sources: Etias.com, Tovima.com, GTB.gr.
