Greece’s mountain of unpaid taxes and fines has grown even larger, with overdue debts to the state reaching €111.82 billion by the end of July 2025. That figure is up €4.56 billion compared to a year earlier, according to the Independent Authority for Public Revenue and a quarterly report from Parliament’s Budget Office.
Not all of that money will ever be collected. Around €26.35 billion — nearly a quarter of the total — has been classified as uncollectible, mostly involving bankrupt individuals or companies with no assets. This leaves the “real” debt burden at €85.4 billion, which still represents a steep year-on-year increase of €4.53 billion.
Tax obligations dominate the arrears, making up 61 percent of the total, or €52.1 billion. Value-added tax alone accounts for nearly €25 billion, almost half of the overdue tax debts, while unpaid income tax represents about 42 percent. Property taxes, by contrast, are relatively minor at €2.8 billion. Fines, both tax-related and otherwise, amount to €24.4 billion, and another €9 billion stems from non-tax obligations such as court costs and loans.
The number of debtors has also surged. In July, more than four million taxpayers owed money to the state, an increase of 172,000 from the previous year. Most of these new cases involve small debts, especially in the €50–500 range. Yet the biggest driver of the overall increase is large-scale arrears: debts exceeding €1 million swelled by €2.7 billion within a year.
The distribution of debt is highly uneven. While nine out of ten debtors owe less than €10,000, these small sums represent only 3.5 percent of the total. By contrast, more than three-quarters of all arrears are concentrated in just a quarter of one percent of debtors — those with obligations above €1 million.
Households and businesses share the burden unevenly. Individuals owe €42.7 billion, while companies account for €69.1 billion. Among corporations, public limited companies carry the heaviest load with €39.5 billion in arrears, most of it tied to million-plus debts. Limited liability companies follow with €13.4 billion, and private companies have seen the sharpest rise, adding €1.7 billion in just one year.
Perhaps most concerning for policymakers, only 3.9 percent of the real arrears — about €3.3 billion — are under any kind of payment plan. Most settlements involve mid-sized debts between €500 and €10,000, with individuals tending to restructure small obligations and businesses focusing on medium-sized ones.
