Businesses — and small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) in particular — will take center stage at the Prime Minister’s announcements at the Thessaloniki International Trade Fair (TIF), as the government moves to reduce their tax and operational costs, boost liquidity, and create stronger incentives for investment and job creation. Beyond tax relief measures, significant emphasis will be placed on giving SMEs access to affordable financing, with the aim of opening the door to new investment and growth initiatives. The government’s plan includes leveraging the Hellenic Development Bank of Investments (HDB) to establish a new mechanism for providing preferential, low-interest loans.
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TIF 2026: A new package
The total value of these loans is expected to exceed €1.5 billion, with capital drawn from unallocated resources of the Recovery Fund. These funds are set to form the foundation for new financing instruments targeting small and medium-sized enterprises, with the goal of facilitating their access to credit and mobilizing additional private capital. Under this framework, the low-interest loans could be used both for company investment initiatives and as collateral for further borrowing from the domestic banking system.
The government’s expectation is that the HDB’s €1.5 billion will act as a catalyst for attracting an additional approximately €4 billion in financing, potentially pushing the total liquidity that could flow into the economy to as much as €6 billion. On the tax front, one of the interventions under consideration is the complete abolition of the business registration fee (the so-called “business exercise fee”) for companies. This charge was introduced during the bailout memorandum years and was already abolished for self-employed professionals last year. For companies, however, it remains in place, with the annual burden ranging between €800 and €1,000 depending on the case. Eliminating it across the board for all businesses is estimated to carry a fiscal cost of approximately €240 million per year. An even larger fiscal impact is attached to the debate over tax prepayment, which is one of the most demanding liquidity measures for businesses. Currently, companies prepay tax equivalent to 80% of their income tax liability, while for self-employed individuals the rate stands at 55%. Scenarios on the table include reducing the prepayment rate to 40% for professionals, while for smaller businesses a graduated reduction to levels between 50% and 60% — depending on turnover — is being considered. This particular intervention is not straightforward, as tax prepayment represents a significant source of budget revenue: approximately €3.5 billion is collected from legal entities, while self-employed professionals contribute around €645 million. The same package also includes the potential reduction of the corporate tax rate on business profits from 22% to 20% — a move that would further ease the tax burden on companies and could strengthen incentives for investment and profit reinvestment.
A fairer model
In addition, targeted changes are being set in motion for the presumptive taxation system affecting approximately 700,000 self-employed professionals, which will now be linked to the degree of tax compliance.
The goal is to create a model in which presumptive income thresholds do not apply in the same way to everyone, but can instead be reduced for those who consistently demonstrate a high level of compliance. The new model will evaluate parameters such as the timely payment of taxes and social contributions, consistency in submitting data to the myDATA platform, use of electronic payments and POS terminals, limited use of cash, proper transmission of electronic invoices, implementation of digital dispatch notes, and consistency in servicing restructured debts.
In this way, presumptive income could gradually be transformed from a blanket mechanism for determining taxable income into a system that rewards compliance. Professionals with a consistently strong tax compliance record would have the option of progressively reducing their presumptive income, while in cases of very high and verified compliance, full exemption from this method of calculation is not ruled out.
Rewarding compliance
Moving in the same direction is the creation of a permanent reward scheme for compliant businesses. The assessment will not be limited to the existence of tax and social security clearance certificates, but will take into account a broader set of economic and developmental characteristics.
Job creation, productive investments, innovation, extroversion, and environmental performance could all be factored into a company’s overall score. A high score would be linked to specific privileges. Scenarios under consideration include faster tax refunds, simplified access to debt restructuring arrangements, reduced low-risk audits, and potentially tax or social security relief.
Of particular significance is the proposal for a “compliance bonus” for businesses that remain fully compliant for two or three consecutive years. In such cases, the automatic granting of a tax discount — without requiring a new application or evaluation process — is being considered.
Double the income threshold
The package also includes measures targeting new professionals, with the headline scenario being the doubling — from €10,000 to €20,000 — of the income threshold eligible for more favorable tax treatment during the first years of a new professional activity. Within the same framework, an extension of the time horizon during which businesses can offset tax losses against future profits is also being examined. This is a long-standing request from the business community, as a longer carry-forward period can serve as a tax planning tool, particularly for companies undertaking large investments or operating in sectors with significant cyclical fluctuations.
Published in Kyriakatiki Apogevmatini
