Greek Golden Visa — The Complete Guide
Buy property in Greece, and you and your family receive a residence permit valid across the European Union's Schengen Area. No minimum stay. No language test. No medical test. The whole purchase — selection, reservation, due diligence and the notarial deed — is completed remotely through a Power of Attorney; the only trip Greek law requires is one short visit for biometrics. Three investment thresholds — €250,000, €400,000 or €800,000 — depending on where and what you buy. This guide takes you from "what is it?" all the way to signing the title deed and collecting the card: the rules as they stand, every document you will be asked for, every euro of cost, and every tax you will pay afterwards.
Five Steps From Decision to Card
The full path from your decision to holding the Golden Visa card. Steps 1–4 are completed remotely through a Power of Attorney; the only trip Greek law requires is the biometrics visit in Step 5.
Digital selection and remote onboarding
Actions In This Phase:
Complete Step-by-Step Roadmap
Digital selection and remote onboarding
Output: shortlist agreed and the client onboarded — fully remote- Shortlisting and viewings are done remotely — video walkthroughs, live guided tours and full project documentation, with sales and translation support
- An on-site visit remains optional for clients who prefer to see the property in person; it is never a requirement to proceed
- If you do choose to travel, a Schengen / tourist visa is needed and lead times vary widely by nationality and consulate — plan for weeks, not days, and start early
- Onboarding: KYC / source-of-funds checks, and preparation of the Power of Attorney so the Greek lawyer can act for you from here on
Select and reserve (remotely or in person)
Output: property selected and reserved (~1 week); due diligence and POA (~2–3 weeks)- Final viewings of the shortlisted projects — remote or in person — with sales and translation support
- The client selects a property
- A reservation deposit is wired directly from the buyer's own foreign account to take the unit off the market — a Greek bank account is not required at this stage
- Private Reservation Agreement or a notarial preliminary contract (prosymfono) is signed
- Power of Attorney (POA) authorising the Greek lawyer is executed at a Greek consulate or before a notary in the home country, with Apostille — under it the lawyer obtains the AFM tax number, opens the bank account, signs the final contract, and files the Golden Visa application
- Title and legal audit by the lawyer, plus a technical inspection by a certified civil engineer (€500 + VAT)
Final contract and title deed
Output: the client receives the Title Deed (deed preparation ~2–6 weeks; overall payment cycle 1–3 months)- The lawyer completes signing of the Final Contract at the Notary Office and the transfer of the Title Deed into the client's name(s) — e-signatures are not legally recognised for Greek property deeds
- Payment of the remaining balance by bank transfer on the day of signing or on an agreed schedule
- Mandatory closing fees settled here: property transfer tax 3.09%, notary fee 1.24%, legal/attorney fee 2%, land registry fee 0.75%
- Immediate registration of the deed with the Land Registry / Cadastre (Ktimatologio) to secure title
Blue Card (the interim permit)
Output: the client receives the BLUE CARD- Filed 2–4 weeks after the property is registered, via the Ministry of Migration online portal
- The lawyer applies first for the Blue Card (Beveosi) — the receipt/interim residence document confirming the application has been lodged
- It is issued immediately on submission and is valid for up to 1 year, conferring legal resident status and travel rights while the physical card is produced
- Statutory government fees paid here: €2,000 primary applicant, €150 per adult family member, €16 card printing fee per person; plus Greek health insurance (€90–130 per person/year)
- Documents needed: signed Final Contract and Title Deed, entry visa, passport, signed application for permanent residence, medical insurance
- If spouse and children are also applying: family certificate, officially translated marriage certificate, officially translated birth certificates
- The client may sign in person, or the lawyer may act under the POA; if not visiting, documents are couriered
Biometrics and the 5-year Golden Visa card
Output: the client receives the 5-year GOLDEN VISA card- The wait for the biometrics appointment starts when the application is filed online (Step 4), not when the Blue Card is received
- The automated system typically allocates a slot within a few months of filing; the exact date and time is confirmed to the lawyer 2–4 weeks in advance, leaving time to book flights
- Greek law allows a window of up to 12 months from the online submission to complete fingerprinting in Greece — this is the one mandatory in-person visit
- Card issuance after biometrics: about 3–6 months in the Epirus region (Ioannina / Igoumenitsa) due to lower volume, versus 1.5–2 years in Athens (Attica) due to backlogs
- Personal attendance is not required for pickup — the lawyer collects the physical 5-year cards under the POA and couriers them to the client
The Three Investment Thresholds
Under the investment criteria that took effect on 1 September 2024 — under Greece's Law 5038/2024, amending the Migration Code, Law 4251/2014 — the baseline for the whole country is €400,000, with a higher band for the most sought-after locations and one special exemption category.
Zone 3 — Special Exemption
Zone 2 — National Baseline
Zone 1 — High-Demand Locations
Which zone? The Athens district-by-district investment map and the €250k / €400k / €800k geography
Golden Visa Cost Simulator
Select your property budget and family members to calculate turnkey acquisition costs, transfer taxes, and official residency permit fees.
1. Investment & Family Parameters
What You Actually Get
Lowest EU entry threshold
Qualifying investment starts at €250,000 in the special conversion category
No minimum stay
You never have to relocate; the permit does not lapse for absence
No language test
No Greek language requirement at any stage
No medical test
No health examination required for the application
100% remote acquisition
Selection, reservation, due diligence and the notarial deed are all handled by the lawyer under a Power of Attorney — the only mandatory trip is the biometrics visit
Schengen travel
Freedom to travel to and within the other Schengen countries
Fast interim residence
The Blue Card grants legal residence and travel rights the moment the file is lodged; the physical 5-year card then takes about 3–6 months in the Epirus region (Ioannina / Igoumenitsa) and 1.5–2 years in Athens
Whole family
Buyer, spouse, children under 21 (renewable to 24), and the parents of buyer and spouse
Freehold ownership
Full property rights and a title deed in your name
Right to rent
You may let the property out on a long-term basis and earn rental income
Public services
Access to the Greek public healthcare and education systems
Beyond the Permit: Why Greece
The Rules You Must Not Miss
These conditions came in with the September 2024 criteria and they disqualify applications when they are ignored.
One single property
The investment must be made in a single property. You cannot combine two €200,000 apartments to reach €400,000.
Minimum 120 m²
In both the €800,000 and €400,000 zones, the property must have a minimum covered area of 120 m². This requirement does not apply to the €250,000 conversion category.
No short-term rentals
Airbnb-type short-term letting of the qualifying property is prohibited. Only long-term tenancy agreements are permitted, and serious financial penalties are imposed on violators.
No business use
The property may not be used as a company headquarters or a branch office.
The value is assessed at acquisition
The minimum value is measured at the time of acquisition, on the contract value.
Money must come from the buyer's own account
The buyer must pay by transfer from a personal bank account directly to the seller. First-degree relatives may also pay on the buyer's behalf. Third-party and cash payments break the chain of proof.
Who Can Be Included?
One qualifying investment covers:
Covered 3-Generation Members
- The main applicant (the buyer)
- The spouse
- Children under 21, with renewal possible up to age 24
- The parents of the buyer and the parents of the spouse
Each family member needs their own documents and pays their own government and service fees — the investment threshold does not rise, but the per-person fees do.
Documents required specifically for family members
- Marriage certificate — officially translated into Greek and apostilled
- Children's birth certificates — officially translated into Greek and apostilled
- Family certificate from the country of origin
Document Checklist
Check off every document required for your application file and track your readiness.
Main Applicant Document Checklist (Click to check off)
- 1.Translated into English
- 2.Stamped by a notary
- 3.Certified by the competent Greek Consular Department in the country of origin
Applies to the Tax Residence Certificate and the household register/utility bill. Afterwards, the original documents must be sent — not scans. For clients coming from Turkey this means a trip to the notary and then to the Greek Consulate in Istanbul or Ankara — the longest-lead item in the whole file, unrelated to the property, and it should start on day one.
The Full Cost Breakdown
The figures below follow a detailed cost breakdown for a €250,000 investment. There are two blocks: property closing costs (a percentage of the contract price, plus a fixed engineer fee) and per-person permit costs.
Closing costs — percentage of contract price
Worked example on a €250,000 property (primary applicant)
Extra cost per dependent family member
Spouse, child or parent added to the same application
All-in totals by threshold
Primary applicant: closing stack ≈ 7.08% (transfer 3.09% + legal 2% + notary 1.24% + registry 0.75%) plus the €620 engineer fee and ~€2,300–€2,400 of application fee, card, insurance and translations. Broker fee (2% + VAT) and additional family members are extra.
After You Buy: Ongoing Taxes and Costs
ENFIA — the annual property tax
ENFIA is the annual property tax, calculated from the property's location, size, price, age and other factors. Indicative figure: for a two-bedroom apartment valued at €250,000, ENFIA typically runs €300–€800 per year, depending on the area. An accountant can file and pay this on the owner's behalf.
Rental income tax
If you let the property (long-term only), rental income is taxed on a progressive scale:
Accounting and tax compliance
Ongoing annual accounting and local tax return filing runs €300 + 24% VAT = €372 per year, handled by a Greek accountant on the owner's behalf. This is set up once the residence cards are issued.
Property management and rental service
- Where a property is let without a rental guarantee scheme, the standard market practice is that the rental agent takes the first month's rent as the service fee, provided the tenancy runs for a minimum of one year.
- Maintenance is normally charged at the cost price of parts and materials against an official receipt, plus labour.
- Recurring services worth budgeting for: utility set-up and payments, key cutting, accepting deliveries, security visits, deep cleans, translations, and insurance.
Medical insurance
Private medical insurance covering hospitalisation and medical care is a condition of the permit, not an optional extra. Budget €90–€130 per person per year, renewable annually.
The Non-Dom Tax Regime — For High-Net-Worth Clients
This is a separate programme from the Golden Visa, aimed at people who want to move their tax residence to Greece. The Golden Visa does not change your tax residence — this is a distinct, larger mandate.
- Pays an annual flat tax of €100,000
- Is excluded from income tax reporting obligations on all offshore income
The conditions
Anti-avoidance rules that catch people out
- Asset transfers from relatives do not count — assets transferred by a spouse, parent, grandparent, child or grandchild do not qualify.
- Look-through on legal entities — if an asset is acquired from a legal entity ultimately owned by relatives, that ownership percentage's value does not count.
- The 10% appraisal rule — where the contract value exceeds the property's official objective value by more than 10% and the higher figure is to count, a qualified appraiser's report is mandatory.
What Happens When
Frequently Asked Questions
Find Out Which Threshold Applies to You — in One Conversation
The difference between €250,000 and €800,000 is not your budget; it is which property you choose and where. A twenty-minute conversation is usually enough to tell you which of the three routes fits your situation, what your total cost will be, and how long it will take.
- Free eligibility assessment
- A written cost breakdown for your specific budget
- Property shortlist matched to your qualifying threshold
- Full support: lawyer, tax number, bank account, application, biometrics
Ask Your Question Now
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