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New Greek Regulation Designed to Fight Tax Evasion Problem: Will it Work?

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The following is a guest post by my colleague, Theresa Papademetriou, who is the Law Library of Congress Senior Foreign Law Specialist for the European Union, Greece, and Cyprus. Theresa’s blog post highlights Greece’s efforts to address the country’s economic challenges by, among other actions, tackling a common problem of “unreporting” or under-reporting of taxable revenues by providers of goods and services. 

Last month, during my recent stay in Athens, I was taken aback to see a prominently-displayed sign, written in English and Greek.  It sat on the receptionist’s desk in an hotel in downtown Athens, and it read: “It is your right to walk out without paying if no receipt is given to you.”

A view of Athens, Greece; Photo taken by Theresa Papademetriou, January 2013

As it turns out, this signage was a manifestation of compliance with new legislation. The new regulation