The new structure of AADE and the changes being promoted in its administration and operation were presented by the Minister of Economy and Finance, Kostis Hatzidakis, during the release of the new tax law.
“AADE is a step forward. I’m not saying there are no problems, but let’s remember what the picture was 8 years ago and see what it is like now,” Hatzidakis noted, giving credit to Authority commander George Pitsilis for the progress made.
The 4 main changes
The main changes to the structure of the Independent Authority are as follows:
- Redistribution of responsibilities between the Governor and the Board of Directors. The Council will not deal with day-to-day operational issues. On the other hand, it acquires a more institutional role, assuming the preparation of annual reports to evaluate the project. There will be a different balance.
- The possibility of a second renewal of the Governor’s mandate is foreseen, with a decision naturally made by the Board of Directors.
- It will be possible to hire some general managers and directors from the private sector, as has been done at EFKA. As explained by Mr Hatzidakis, this does not only concern tax and customs services. An example would be hiring someone from the private sector to take over AADE’s communications direction.
- Vice-commander positions are introduced, as is the case with EFKA and DYPA.
There will be, in particular, three sub-commanders:
a) for the organization of operations (COO)
b) for legal services. It will exclusively focus on interpreting laws and issuing circulars
c) for the digital transformation of AADE. The aim is modern, which will work at higher speeds.