Starting today, January 1, 2022, takeaway coffee for consumers will be 10 cents more expensive.
A new “green” fee has been introduced for plastic packaging and disposable cups. This means that from New Year’s Day, anyone who orders coffee or something else will be charged an additional € 0.10.
According to the AADE directive, as of January 1, 2022, the environmental tax will be levied on single-use plastic products that are available as food and beverage packaging when sold by food service and retail businesses.
It should be noted that the amount is charged to consumers per unit of goods, i.e. the plastic cover is treated as a separate item and will be charged separately.
How to calculate the amount of the “environmental” contribution?
It is 4 cents excluding VAT for 1 plastic product. So if someone from January buys, for example, a cold espresso, then the payment will be made as follows: 4 cents for a glass and 4 more cents for a cap. Then add 13% VAT, and the total amount of payment will be 9 cents, i.e. rounded 0.10 euros.
However, the new tax does not only apply to plastic cups and lids. It also applies to containers and boxes, i.e. takeaway packaging that:
a) intended for immediate use on the spot or outside the food service point,
b) are containers,
c) ready to eat without additional preparation, in particular for cooking or heating, including containers used for fast food or other ready-to-eat meals.
Can I avoid the extra charge?
Can consumers avoid additional costs? The answer is this. Companies are required by law to serve consumers by using their own reusable tableware instead of plastic packaging. So maybe you have to go to a cafe with your glass and plate?
Reportedly, a catering establishment may refuse service to a consumer if the table setting item (utensils) reused by it is clearly not suitable for the intended use.
More Stories
American billionaires want a Greek passport
Real estate: deals worth 2 billion euros in 2023 – the main characters
Real estate: what foreigners buy in Greece