After the approval of the bill by the Ministry of the Interior and the publication of the law in the Official Gazette, the way is open for the regulation of debts to municipalities and regions in up to 60 installments, while new favorable regulations will be applied to vulnerable citizens.
The regulation concerns all types of debts owed by natural and legal persons to municipalities and their legal entities (such as Municipal Water Supply and Sewerage Companies – DEWA), as well as to regions.
With regulation, on the one hand, citizens will be fiscally aware, on the other, OTAs will improve their finances, as part of the 3.6 billion euros that reached the value of debts owed to Municipalities and DEYAs will enter their coffers .
Settlement concerns debts confirmed by October 31, 2024, while the request to include the debtor in the settlement is submitted to the competent service of the municipality, region or legal person by January 31, 2025.
For those who have issued a vulnerable debtor certificate (individual annual income of up to 9,600 euros, other assets and other criteria also apply), debts are paid exempt from surcharges, interest and fines under the following terms:
a) if they are paid in cash, with a 95% exemption,
b) if paid in two to six installments, with an exemption of 85%,
c) if paid in seven to twelve installments, with an exemption of 80%,
d) if paid in installments in 13 to 60 installments, with a 75% exemption.
Companies, as well as individuals who do not belong to the category of vulnerable debtors, have the possibility of repayment in up to 60 installments, with the difference that in this case the exemptions do not apply.
In all cases, the installments are monthly and equal (except the last one) and cannot be less than 50 euros.
The regulation may also include debts that, at the date of submission of the request:
a) are suspended, administratively or by law,
b) have been the subject of a previous agreement or installment payment facility, in force, with loss of the benefits of the previous agreement and without its inclusion implying the refund of the amounts paid,
c) have not been confirmed, as they are pending judicial challenge to any degree, if, in the latter case, the debtor renounces the legal remedies or means exercised.
Payment, whether of the lump sum or the first installment, is made within three working days from the day on which the debtor becomes aware of its inclusion in the agreement, otherwise the agreement is automatically canceled. Subsequent installments are paid by the last business day of the corresponding month, without the need for special notification from the debtor.
In case of late payment of an installment, the debtor is charged a monthly surcharge of 5% on the value of the installment, starting from the day following the due date.
During liquidation, as long as the debtor has paid 5% of his regulated debt, for a debt up to 5,000 euros, or 10% of his regulated debt, for a debt greater than 5,000, an order is given to withdraw this commitment to the competent DOU and in order to restart in case of delay in payment of even one of the installments. Under the same conditions, the practice of coercive measures and the process of coercive execution on the debtor’s movable or immovable assets are suspended, but if the debtor loses the benefit of the agreement, the suspended measures remain in place.
In case of non-payment of two consecutive installments or a total of three installments, the settlement is interrupted and the debts are confirmed again, together with the fines and surcharges written off.
The Central Union of Municipalities of Greece (KEDE) requests that the settlement of municipal debts to OTAs be with 100% exemption from surcharges for everyone, without income criteria, as was the case in previous regulations.
The Union of Municipal Water Supply and Sewage Companies proposes to institutionally give all DEYAs the possibility of entrusting the DOUs with the collection of confirmed overdue debts and, at the same time, increase the limitation period from five to twenty years.
The new law also establishes the possibility of resorting to extrajudicial resolution of debts owed to municipalities and their legal entities that exceed 10 thousand euros.
In this case, the debt as a set of credits (initial amount owed, possible fines and surcharges), is certified to the competent DOU, which starts to manage it as a State debt, carrying out all the operations defined in the regulation of the relevant law 4,738/ 2020.
Source: AMPE