The inheritance tax exemption for surviving joint holders of a bank account in Greece or with a foreign bank is definitively set out in a new circular issued by the Independent Authority for Public Revenue (AADE).
Under the new instructions of the Governor of the AADE, Giorgos Pitsilis, it is clarified that, in the event of the death of one of the joint holders of a joint bank account, the cash deposit and that account automatically pass to the remaining surviving joint holders, and the amount of that deposit is excluded from the estate, as it does not form part of the deceased’s estate.
Therefore, the withdrawal of that amount by the surviving depositor, even where that person is at the same time also an heir of the deceased, is made not only “in his/her own name” but also “by virtue of his/her own independent right,” and not in the capacity of heir.
Consequently, based on the AADE circular, deposits in joint bank accounts or joint portfolios in Greece or abroad, which, in the event of the death of one joint holder, automatically pass to the remaining surviving joint holders, are not subject to inheritance tax after the death of one joint holder in respect of all surviving joint holders, since, on the basis of the above, such deposited amounts do not form part of the estate.