Major groups that opt to ship their products to Greece and use the port of Piraeus as a hub from which to distribute them to other countries in the region will be exempt from paying value-added tax, according to a draft law amendment submitted in Parliament on Thursday by the Finance Ministry reports Kathimerini.

Under certain conditions provided for in the amendment, imported goods will not be subject to VAT but they will be monitored up to their export to third countries, within or outside the European Union, as is also the case in France and the Netherlands.

The tabling of the amendment came a day before the signing of an agreement that will see Hewlett Packard (HP) make Piraeus its distribution center for products heading to other European and Middle Eastern countries.