Criminal prosecutions against citizens and businesses in Greece with outstanding debts to the state will be suspended, provided their debts are subject to official repayment plans, according to a new amendment submitted by Minister of National Economy and Finance Kyriakos Pierrakakis.
This provision, which is part of a broader bill concerning capital markets, aims to provide relief to thousands of debtors who have been facing legal action despite adhering to their repayment obligations.
It replaces a previous law that triggered prosecutions against individuals and companies with debts exceeding €100,000, even when they were consistently making installment payments, and continuing until their debts were fully settled.
The amendment specifies that prosecution will be suspended for debtors who are either enrolled in a debt settlement program through legislation, court ruling, or administrative decision, or subject to an official debt collection suspension.
This suspension will remain in effect for the duration of the repayment plan or the collection freeze.
Under the new regulations, if overdue debts are settled within four months, tax authorities will not refer the case to a prosecutor.
If the four-month period has passed but a referral has not yet been made, no referral will take place. In instances where a referral has been made but no charges have been filed, the prosecutor will be notified by the tax authorities.
Furthermore, if charges have already been filed, proceedings will be halted by a court decision.
The amendment also establishes that in cases where debts are fully repaid, the offense is considered extinguished.
However, if a debtor defaults on their agreed-upon arrangement, authorities are required to notify the prosecutor and provide an updated debt statement.
Importantly, this regulation applies retroactively, extending to cases where sentences have already been handed down.
In these situations, the enforcement of the penalty is either postponed or interrupted if it is already in progress.