BMW, MB and Opel subsidiaries in Greece accused of €600 millions of tax evasion

[Giannis]

This is big news these days. The BMW Hellas, Mercedes-Benz Hellas and Opel Hellas companies, all subsidiaries of their parent companies, responsible for import and distribution of BMW, MB and Opel cars in Greece, are accused of tax evasion up to 600 million euros. Some other sources, suggest that the amount could be around 1.2 billion euros. The issue is under investigation from the Ministry of Finance.

The tactic was to under-price imported cars in their legal invoices that were used in order to calculate import fees, and then sell them for a different, much higher price.

A couple of sources (in Greek):

http://newpost.gr/post/245718/skand...o-tis-germanikwn-symferontwn-mercedes-kai-bmw

http://stokokkino.gr/article/11166/...-germanikon-autokinitobiomixanion-stin-Ellada

 

[Mr Robert]

In Greece!?

 

[ACE]

Just another financial problem in Greece that is the Germans fault!

 

[Giannis]

In Greece!?

Yes.

Just another financial problem in Greece that is the Germans fault!

This isn't a joke.

 

[Mr Robert]

Yes.

I didn't think the market was that big. "Good" job, sort of.

 

[Wolfgang]

An article in English:

Spiegel: Tax Fraud of German Auto Companies in Greece

According to a recent “Der Spiegel” article, German auto companies Mercedes-Benz, BMW and Opel are being investigated by Greek tax authorities as the latest suspects of fraud.

The extremely low clearing prices at which German companies deliver their vehicles to distributors in Greece raised suspicions. This price is the basis for a series of taxes and the lower the price, the lower the revenue of the Greek State from VAT, registration tax and luxury tax.

Theodoros Floratos, head of the Financial and Economic Crime Unit (SDOE), reported to Der Spiegel: “We are investigating a number of international auto companies for possible tax offenses.”

Mercedes-Benz and BMW confirm that transfer prices are based on international tax standards and comply with the Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD) rules and European law.

According to the article, low transfer prices are due to the collapse of the Greek car market. Cars were delivered with favorable prices so that Greek dealers could attract potential customers with a high discount.

- See more at: http://greece.greekreporter.com/201...uto-companies-in-greece/#sthash.FoY6gsEn.dpuf

 

[Giannis]

I didn't think the market was that big. "Good" job, sort of.

Robert the Greek market isn't that big. It's quite small now and it was quite small before the recession.

I believe I read it in a newspaper, that this tax evasion was going on for years, possibly more than a decade. Even though this might fall under the "no politics" rule, it clearly shows that the Greeks are not always the problem. The Germans (as in German companies) are also to blame for this mess. BMW, Mercedes-Benz and Opel are just three examples. The list goes on with Hochtief, Siemens, Mann, ThyssenKrupp and many many more.

 

[Mr Robert]

Ok, thanks for clearing that one out. If it has been going on for, say, that decade, it makes much more sense.

Seems like this is a transfer pricing problem. Tricky questions, that much I know. The same issue is present in Scandinavia, as car companies often regards Scandinavia as one market, while the consumer price of cars are extremely different between some of the countries.