the positions where they are mostly needed.
- The intensification of the effort that is already
underway to promote transparency and justice
in our day-to-day operations, in regard to both
our auditing procedures, and the interpretation
and application of tax legislation.
- The instillation of extroversion in all our opera-
tions. It is absolutely necessary to systematise
our communication with citizens and business-
es, in order to listen to their problems and find
legal solutions that will make it easier for them
to do business.
In the end, the success of the organisational
transformation of the Tax Administration into an
independent authority is summed up in two major
bets: first, to understand the need for, and instil
the mentality of, constant change to the better,
with the ultimate goal of building a model public
administration agency.
Second, and most important, is the bet of estab-
lishing reliability and confidence. Both internally
and externally: With the Authority's personnel,
whose professional advancement must be based
on meritocracy and transparency. With each polit-
ical leadership and the other state agencies, con-
tinuous cooperation with which is indispensable
for serving the public interest. And, finally, with the
citizens, who need to deal with a Tax Authority
that shows no tolerance to offenses, albeit will
never treat them unfairly and will always help
them do business, offering high quality services.
The independence of the new Authority presents
a great opportunity: the opportunity for a new
beginning. We must not let this opportunity go to
waste.
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rendered to both sectors. In organisational terms,
the Greek model of Tax Authority independence is
one of the most advanced in Europe, pointing out
to the need for reforms in its internal operation,
which are necessary in order to improve its per-
formance, to the benefit of the taxpayer and the
economy.
These considerations inform our major reform tar-
gets for 2017, which must be pursued along with
our main task, the collection of public revenues:
- The creation of a comprehensive information
strategy and operational plan, which will
enable us to establish flexible internal proce-
dures for our day-to-day operations, increasing
the effectiveness of our work and simplifying
tax procedures, in order to reduce compliance
costs for the taxpayer. This way we will be able
to deploy our human resources where they are
mostly useful: in the fight against tax evasion
and smuggling.
- The establishment of a permanent system for
the education and ongoing training of our
employees, through long-, medium- and short-
term programmes, along the standards of mod-
ern tax administrations. Continuous investment
in the knowledge and skills of our people is a
necessary condition for upgrading the quality of
our services, and establishing relations of mutu-
al respect, reliability, and confidence between
our staff and the citizens.
- The development of rules and procedures
ensuring that evaluation, ranking, promotion
and compensation are solely based on merit
and performance. Because if we wish to suc-
ceed, we must create a system that will direct
the best and most appropriate individuals to
