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Greek hotel owners  have called on Prime Minister Kyriakos Mitsotakis to cut VAT on accommodation to 6.5%, review the climate resilience levy, tighten regulation of short-term rentals, revise the Special Spatial Plan for Tourism, and improve financing access for small hotels, in a letter sent ahead of the Thessaloniki International Fair.

Greece’s Hellenic Federation of Hoteliers (POX) says the competitiveness of formal hotel businesses is being squeezed by taxation, rising operating costs and what it calls unequal treatment compared with short-term rentals. In the letter, signed by POX president Yannis Chatzis and secretary general Angelos Kallias, the federation argues that despite the strong overall performance of Greek tourism, these pressures are weighing on organized hospitality businesses. It also called for restrictions on tourism growth to be tailored to each destination’s specific characteristics rather than relying on blanket caps or bans.

Taxation tops the federation’s list of demands. POX wants accommodation VAT cut to 6.5% — the rate in place until mid-2015 — arguing this would bring Greece closer to the European average and to rates in competing Mediterranean destinations. It is also seeking a review of the climate resilience levy and a more balanced distribution of its costs.

The federation cited a study by the Greek Tourism Confederation (INSETE) showing that, for a comparable four-star hotel, Greece’s tax burden results in lower operating profitability than in competitor countries. Total taxes and non-wage costs amount to €44.70, or 29.8% of a €150 room rate, versus €24.10, or 16.1%, in Cyprus. EBITDA is about 38.4% lower in Greece, the study found, while the operating break-even point is €124.60, compared with €108.70 in Cyprus.

The federation placed particular emphasis on the Airbnb market and short-term rentals more broadly, calling for restrictions in areas facing acute housing pressure, stricter operating standards, more inspections through data-sharing with the tax authority (AADE), and a mandatory registration and renewal fee in the Short-Term Rental Property Registry. It also wants short-term rental owners to report arrival and overnight-stay data to the Hellenic Statistical Authority (ELSTAT), as hotels already do.