Corruption in Greece

Corruption is a problem in Greece. Transparency International stated in 2012 that corruption had played a major role in causing the Greek financial crisis (although the crisis itself was triggered by the global financial crisis of 2007-2008, and Greece's economy had fared well for most of the period up to the aforementioned crisis ). Tax evasion was described by Greek politicians as "a national sport"—with up to €30 billion per year going uncollected, according to a 2012 estimate. A 2016 estimate indicated that between €11 billion and €16 billion per annum were not collectable. Other significant amounts were uncollected due to VAT (sales tax) fraud and smuggling. In 2016, the OECD, Greece and the European Commission launched a project to increase integrity and reduce corruption in Greece through technical empowerment of the Greek authorities for the implementation of Greece's National Anti-Corruption Action Plan (NACAP).

Political corruption is also acknowledged as a significant problem by many observers.

The government's anti-corruption efforts have not been evaluated as effective, according to several sources, which has been attributed to poor enforcement of anti-corruption legislation and the ineffectiveness of anti-corruption agencies. Anti-corruption agencies have been hindered by excessive political influence and continuous replacement of staff. Recent involvement of high-ranking public officials in corruption cases has been reported in the media.