Greece is introducing new environmental taxes from January 1, 2025, which were previously known as residence taxes. These fees have been renamed and adjusted to finance measures to combat climate change.
Environmental taxes are paid around the world in different forms and under different names. For example, in many European countries there are CO2 taxes for cars, taxes for the use of plastic bags, environmental taxes in tourism as in the case of Greece, as well as many other types of environmental taxes that are intended to finance environmental protection and sustainable development projects. .
In the context of Greece, taxes differ depending on the type of accommodation – for example, in one or two-star hotels, the tax is from 1.5 to 2 euros per night per accommodation unit, while in five-star hotels it is from 10 to 15 euros. In the camps, however, the fee will not be charged. In three-star hotels, it is from 3 to 5 euros per night, and in four-star hotels from 7 to 10 euros, also per night.
In addition, Greece is introducing special taxes for cruise ship passengers visiting popular destinations such as Santorini and Mykonos, where the tax will amount to 20 euros per person. For other destinations such as Crete, Corfu and Rhodes, the fee will be lower and will amount to five euros. It is about managing excessive tourism in the most popular destinations.
Both islands host over a million passengers on cruise ships. Santorini welcomed 800 cruise ships in 2023, which highlights the pressure that such volume of visits places on local infrastructure and resources. It is important to point out that these are extremely small islands with between 10 and 15 thousand inhabitants.
That is why it is part of a wider initiative and plan for the Government to limit the number of ships that can dock at the same time in the port.
The new taxes should bring in twice as much revenue as compared to the previous year. Proceeds will go towards the Climate Change Resilience Fund, which will help implement sustainable tourism practices and manage the economic consequences of natural disasters.
Energy portal
Source: energetskiportal.rs
