Cruise professionals in Greece acknowledge the efforts that have been made to fully liberalize the sector, but believe that the job has not been done as completely as it should have in a new draft law set for submission to Parliament. The main objection they have with the bill is that the law continues to contain a controversial “head tax,” by which non-European Union flagged vessels have to pay a 3.95-euro tax for every passenger, rendering them automatically less competitive than their counterparts sailing under EU member states’ flags. Given that cruise liners hold an average of 2,500 passengers, this tax places a considerable burden on non-EU flagged ships every time they dock in Piraeus, which for most using Greece’s biggest port is at least five times a month.
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