Greece Launches Real Estate Tracking System

• 19 June, 25

The Greek government has officially launched a comprehensive digital property registration system aimed at tackling widespread tax evasion in the real estate sector. The system addresses a long-standing regulatory loophole where properties are declared as “vacant” but continue to consume utilities like water and electricity.

Spearheaded by Minister of Digital Governance Dimitris Papastergiou, the “Unified Property Registry System” will function as the “social security number” for Greek real estate, centralizing all key data. Its core goal is to eliminate the fragmentation of property information currently scattered across multiple agencies and databases.

Under the current regime, property owners can declare a property as “closed” or “vacant” to reduce tax burdens while still maintaining utility services—often indicating the property is actually occupied. This loophole has led to significant losses in state tax revenue, although authorities are still unable to accurately quantify the undeclared rental income or its cascading effects on housing policies such as social housing and short-term rental regulation.

From a technical standpoint, the digital platform will be integrated via the Gov.gr portal and linked with the Hellenic Cadastre, consolidating data across the country from legal, urban planning, administrative, forestry, tax, and energy domains. The system will include:

• National Cadastre Identification Code (KAEK)
• Property Identity Code (ATAK)
• Electricity consumption data from power companies
• Insurance contracts
• Pending legal disputes
• Building permits issued by the Technical Chamber of Greece

Each property will have a detailed profile including:

• Area / location / floor
• Electricity connection status
• Construction completion status
• Vacancy declarations
• Ownership shares

The system will also record lease status, rental amounts, and tenant information. By cross-verifying with cadastre data, authorities will be able to quickly detect undeclared properties, false declarations, or hidden rental income.

In parallel, the Independent Authority for Public Revenue (AADE) is also developing the “Property Ownership Management Registration System” (MIDA), which will be linked with the new platform. Implementation will take place in two phases:

• Initial phase: Matching ATAK with KAEK codes, requiring taxpayers to verify property details
• Final phase: Integrating redundant management systems to enable full real-time data centralization

The integrated system will fulfill three key functions:

• Auto-filling tax declarations
• Providing real-time, reliable data for welfare subsidy calculations
• Simplifying verification processes

Authorities expect the system will not only directly curb tax evasion, but also significantly boost fiscal revenues by preventing fraudulent subsidy claims.

Beyond tax enforcement, the system is expected to benefit professionals such as lawyers, notaries, and engineers by:

• Providing reliable property data
• Reducing administrative costs
• Enhancing legal security in real estate transactions

This marks Greece’s first comprehensive and systematic attempt to reform and regulate the real estate sector.

Cre: ekathimerini