A report from the Federation of European Employers maintains that Greece’s annual tax revenue is at least €27 billion lighter than it should be if all due tax had been properly collected.

Gaping holes

The blame for this is attributed to endemic corruption, systematic tax evasion and poor tax collection practices – including the relative ease with which 1.3 million self-employed Greeks and those with access to corrupt officials can avoid payments.
According to London-headquartered FedEE, a bail-out can never be successful – no matter how high the funds -- unless the gaping holes in the Greek system are dealt with first.
As German tax payers are asked to disproportionately fund the €240bn Greek bailout, FedEE’s Secretary General Robin Chater – speaking on Sky News – said: ‘The question on people’s minds ought not to be so much whether Greece should leave the eurozone - but what real advantage is euro membership to Germany?’

Tax controls

The report suggests that now may be the best time to send in a team of tax experts to set up processes and controls in a similar manner to the establishment of border controls in other times of crisis.
According to the report, ‘confidence in the euro is dwindling, and Greece is sustained by taking what might have otherwise been disposable income out of Europe’s strongest economy’.