The Hellenic Revenue Service sets new high targets for the fight against tax evasion, instructing the Public Revenue Investigation and Assurance Service (PSI) carry out at least 15,500 targeted partial and on-the-spot checks and another 900 tax evasion investigations in 2023.
The risk analysis method
The audits, which will be carried out using the risk analysis method, will be precisely defined in the 2023 Action Plan to be prepared by the Directorate of Planning and Evaluation of Audits and Investigations of the Hellenic Revenue Authority.
However, as a matter of standard practice, cases are screened and investigated as a matter of priority, are selected on the basis of a combination of rational management criteria and risk analysis.
If the heads of the HACEAs, on the basis of the information or data available to them and in conjunction with the applicable provisions, consider that there is a valid reason for priority control of cases, rank the qualifying cases in order of importance, taking into account the seriousness of the cases reclassified.
Priority is given to tax cases of the last five years, those with high delinquency but also cases whose control - regardless of their prioritisation or not - is completed immediately, such as investigation cases resulting from prosecution orders at the request of the HEDDE and controls resulting from the participation of the HEDDE in special control teams and which are carried out under special provisions of other services.
The investigation control cases may be evaluated at later intervals on the basis of the risk analysis criteria or new criteria with a similar rating, and ranked in descending order according to the rating they received.
The action of the YEDDE
The action of these services is significantly differentiated from the normal controls carried out by the other control mechanisms of the tax administration, since they are mainly the main investigation services of the Hellenic Public Prosecutor's Office.
Their role is to identify natural and legal persons suspected of being or having been involved in information on their involvement in intentional tax evasion or tax avoidance, with the aim of concealing their real tax capacity.
The checks/investigations may be carried out unannounced, at the business premises of both the entities under investigation and those dealing with them, and even at the homes (following a prosecutor's order) of natural persons for whom there is sufficient evidence of tax evasion or avoidance.
They operate on a 24-hour basis, all days of the week, without spatial or other restrictions on their responsibilities, carry out coordinated actions simultaneously in various parts of the country, while cooperating and engaging in joint actions with other control mechanisms, within and outside the Hellenic Revenue Service, such as Customs, the Economic Police, the Ministry of Rural Development, the Port Authorities, the Public Prosecutor's Office, etc.
Assess and use any information that could lead to the detection of tax evasion or tax avoidance and build on the findings of their own preventive controls, turning them into operational action plans, thus highlighting new trends in tax evasion and avoidance.
At the same time, they shall carry out checks and searches in any type of business establishment or means of transport, seize accounts, carry out seizures of documents, digital files, goods, means of transport and any other items deemed necessary, where there are reasonable grounds for suspecting the commission of infringements of tax legislation.
They have acquired expertise in important areas of investigation, such as carousel fraud in intra-Community VAT and the detection of missing traders.
