Greek Finance Minister Euclid Tsakalotos published a decision dated July 21, 2016, a by virtue of which capital control measures have been substantially lifted aiming at the strengthening of the deposit basis of the banks in Greece. Specifically, the following should be noted:
Cash withdrawals:
• Cash which will be deposited after July 22, 2016 into bank accounts belonging either to individuals or legal persons can be withdrawn 100%.
• It is permitted to withdraw cash in amount up to 30% of the total funds which have been transferred from abroad and credited to existing accounts. The specific procedure will be defined by the Commission for the Approval of Bank Transactions.
• EUR 840 may be now withdrawn in cash every two weeks from the banks or the ATMs. Effectively, if someone didn’t manage to withdraw the permitted amount of EUR 420 in a given week, the withdrawal can be done during the following week as well.
Opening of bank accounts:
• Erasmus students may open a bank account for the purpose of the deposit of their respective compensation, provided that they do not have any other bank account.
• The opening of a bank account is also permitted for foreign residents for the purpose of depositing their pension in Greece.
Loans:
The early, partial or whole payment of bank loans is now fully permitted.
Payments abroad:
Payments of pensions and welfare benefits of any kind from Greek social security organizations to bank accounts held at banks with registered seat and operating abroad are permitted in the following cases:
• The beneficiary was entitled to pension or welfare benefit before June 28, 2015 (commencement of bank holiday) or the beneficiary used to receive his/her pension or welfare benefit in that way or had submitted application for receiving them until the above date; or
• The pension has been granted for the first time after July 22, 2016 provided that the beneficiary has been a foreign resident for the last two years.
For more information please do not hesitate to contact:
Maria Sarantopoulou
Tax & Legal Advisor
Eurofast Global’s Athens office
e-mail: maria.sarantopoulou@eurofast.eu
tel : +30 210 8257720.