With POL 1201/2017, the tax administration settles the various issues that have arisen in recent years regarding the possibility of transferring the tax residence (Law 4172/2013 & Law 4174/2013). Specifically, Greeks due to the economic crisis are looking for work abroad and in this case they request the change of tax residence in order for foreign incomes not to be taxed in Greece.

In particular, in order for a natural person to transfer his tax residence abroad, he must submit to the Tax Office to which he belongs a relevant application as well as the necessary supporting documents from which the country in which he declares residence is derived. The application must be submitted no later than the first ten days of March of the year following the year of departure.

The supporting documents that must & nbsp; submitted to the competent Tax Office is: tax residence certificate from the competent tax authority of the state where it is established or. Alternatively , a copy of the settlement or income tax return submitted abroad may be provided. In the event that the foreign tax authority does not issue the above supporting documents, then a certificate is required from any public authority where his permanent residence will be proven.

Additionally, the taxpayer & nbsp; must provide alternative and not restrictive, employment documents or employment contract and its inclusion in the insurance legislation of this country, rent a residence, enrollment of children in schools abroad, etc.

In the event that only one of the spouses requests the change of his / her tax residence while the other remains a tax resident of Greece, the following must be submitted in addition and cumulatively:

- details of his employment abroad (employment contract, recruitment, etc.)

- information on the existence of a bank account abroad,

- information on the existence of his own or rented residence and utility bills abroad as well as

- details for obtaining a tax, insurance or equivalent register abroad (eg social security ID)

It is recalled that with a recent decision, the Dispute Resolution Directorate (TEN), accepted the right to submit a separate declaration for couples in which one of the two spouses is a tax resident abroad.

All the above supporting documents can be submitted after the submission of the application and no later than the first ten days of September. All the above documents must be legally certified.

The competent Tax Office is obliged to decide on the request within two months from the submission of the supporting documents. In case of acceptance of the application, the taxpayer is transferred to the Tax Office for Residents Abroad. Otherwise, in case of rejection, he can file an appeal and appeal to the Administrative Courts.

In case the taxpayer has submitted the application and the necessary supporting documents within the deadline, but his request is rejected, he is obliged to submit

income tax return as a tax resident of Greece (global income) no later than the end of the following tax year than that relating to the transfer request, without the imposition of a fine overdue return. Otherwise (non-submission of supporting documents or late submission), the declaration is considered overdue and incurs the imposition of a fine.

All of the above apply to applications submitted within 2017 and concern a change of residence for the years 2016 and beyond respectively. Specifically, taxpayers who submitted an application in 2017 and it was rejected, may re-submit a new return.