Greece to ban new short-term lets in Athens for at least a year
Greece to ban new Athens short-term rentals in 2025
A tax on such lets will be raised in summer months
2024 set to be another record year in tourism revenues
Adds when the ban takes effect in paragraph 6
By Stamos Prousalis and Angeliki Koutantou
ATHENS, Sept 16 (Reuters) -A ban on new licences for short-term rentals in three districts in central Athens will be in force for at least a year, the Greek government said on Monday, also raising the tax on such holiday lets.
Like many other European tourism destinations, Greece is seeking to balance a profitable industry fuelled by online platforms such as Airbnb with the needs of locals facing a housing shortage.
A lack of housing and the rising cost of living prompted the country this month to announce an increase in a tax on short-term rentals, ban new licences in central Athens and give homeowners incentives to switch to long-term rentals.
Detailing that plan, Greek Tourism Minister Olga Kefalogianni said on Monday that the ban for new licences on short-term rentals in three districts in central Athens could be extended beyond the initial one year.
"We have found that they (short-term rentals) operate somehow as hotels, while there is also a lot of pressure on society," Kefalogianni told reporters.
The government said the ban on new short-term lets in Athens would take effect on Jan. 1, 2025.
With many homeowners choosing short-term lets for their property, Athenians are having a hard time to find an affordable house to rent.
"I was looking for a house for eight-nine months and ended up in the one I'm in now," said Alma Lazi, 34, a private sector worker who lives in the central Athens borough of Pangrati.
"Even during that period when I was looking and expanding the range of areas that I was considering, I didn't find anything I could afford to maintain."
GREECE EYES RECORD TOURISM REVENUE
A daily tax on short-term rentals which helps the country deal with the impact of natural disasters related to climate change will be increased to 8 euros from 1.5 euros for the April-to-October period, Finance Minister Kostis Hatzidakis said. The tax will rise to 2 euros from 0.5 euros for the winter months.
Greece expects its revenue from tourism to hit 22 billion euros this year, another record high, Kefalogianni said.
The Mediterranean country, with its crystal-clear waters and pristine beaches, reported record tourism revenue of 20.6 billion euros last year. Data so far indicated that 2024 will be another good year, Kefalogianni added.
"Greece is in the top 10 of the most popular tourist destinations in the world," she said. "We can be hopeful that revenues could reach as much as 22 billion euros."
A 20-euro levy on cruise ship visitors to the islands of Santorini and Mykonos during the peak summer season, another measure announced earlier this month to battle over-tourism, will take effect next year, Kefalogianni said.
($1 = 0.8986 euros)
Reporting by Lefteris Papadimas and Angeliki Koutantou;
Editing by Tomasz Janowski, Keith Weir and Emelia Sithole-Matarise
免责声明: XM Group仅提供在线交易平台的执行服务和访问权限，并允许个人查看和/或使用网站或网站所提供的内容，但无意进行任何更改或扩展，也不会更改或扩展其服务和访问权限。所有访问和使用权限，将受下列条款与条例约束：(i) 条款与条例；(ii) 风险提示；以及(iii) 完整免责声明。请注意，网站所提供的所有讯息，仅限一般资讯用途。此外，XM所有在线交易平台的内容并不构成，也不能被用于任何未经授权的金融市场交易邀约和/或邀请。金融市场交易对于您的投资资本含有重大风险。
所有在线交易平台所发布的资料，仅适用于教育/资讯类用途，不包含也不应被视为用于金融、投资税或交易相关咨询和建议，或是交易价格纪录，或是任何金融商品或非应邀途径的金融相关优惠的交易邀约或邀请。
本网站上由XM和第三方供应商所提供的所有内容，包括意见、新闻、研究、分析、价格、其他资讯和第三方网站链接，皆保持不变，并作为一般市场评论所提供，而非投资性建议。所有在线交易平台所发布的资料，仅适用于教育/资讯类用途，不包含也不应被视为适用于金融、投资税或交易相关咨询和建议，或是交易价格纪录，或是任何金融商品或非应邀途径的金融相关优惠的交易邀约或邀请。请确保您已阅读并完全理解，XM非独立投资研究提示和风险提示相关资讯，更多详情请点击 这里。
