Greece (Government of the Hellenic Republic) as a member State of the European Union and the Eurozone enforces specific legislation regarding immigration in order to protect the European market and Economic Zone. We are here to support your company through this legislative and procedural path in order for your clients or employees to experience this process as smoothly as it gets.
Third country national is any person who is not a citizen of Greece or of any other member State of the European Union.
A third country national needs to follow specific steps in order for the latter to access Greece’s Labour market or society.
You will find below some of the most important options that your client or employee has:
A third country national can work in Greece as a specific purpose employee, as a highly skilled employee (holder of a European blue card) and as a seasonal employee or employee by invitation. By virtue of the new Migration Code (L.5038/2023) the mobility is being promoted and in most cases the third country national can change the category of his/her residence permit without having the obligation to exit and re-enter Greece holding a different type of visa in order to apply for a different category. For example a third country national, which is a managerial employee in a Greek company can change his/her category and submit an application for the issuance of his/her residence permit as a highly skilled employee and receive a European blue card).
We are here to provide you with a fully support in every stage, starting for the decision of which category is suitable for you, with the visa preparation, residence permit process and renewal or change of the residence permit category according to your needs.
A. SPECIFIC PURPOSE EMPLOYEE
According to the legislation the categories of a special purpose employee are as follows:
a. Manager, operational and technical executive of a company under Law 2289/1995 involved in marine research, drilling, and hydrocarbon extraction.
b. Employee staff and legal representative exclusively employed in companies subject to the provisions of Legislative Decree 89/1967 and Law 378/1968, concerning the establishment of foreign commercial and industrial companies in Greece, to article 25 of Law 27/1975 , concerning the establishment in Greece of offices or branches of foreign shipping companies, as well as businesses under Legislative Decree 2687/1953, concerning the investment and protection of foreign capital.
c. Technician employed in industries or mines under the terms of Legislative Decree 448/1968, except for the duration of residence.
d. Executive of a strategic investment according to the specific provisions defined in paragraph 2 of Article 2 of Law 4864/2021.
e. Employee in businesses, based on special interstate agreements or recommendations of competent Greek authorities. ‘
Contact us to start the process.
Our external partners can issue the TIN no., the Greek Social Security no and the AMA no.
Our Insurance Consultants can issue the private insurance certificate.
Contact us to get an offer of these services.
RENEWAL PROCESS
Our office will support to the renewal process of your client’s or employee’s residence permit. Your client or employee doesn’t need to exit and re-enter Greece for the renewal process. Have no worries, we are here to follow up with the Ministry of Migration at any stage.
Contact us to examine the status of your client’s or employee’s residence permit.
FAMILY MEMBERS
The European Union and Greece embrace and support family reunion. To this end Greek legislation provides with the necessary steps that need to be followed by your client’s or employee’s family members in order to join him/her in Greece. Third country national spouse or proved partner will access the Greek Labour market. If the family includes children, note that only minors under eighteen (18) years old are eligible to receive a special type of visa and a residence permit in Greece.
Contact us to receive our services.
B. HIGHLY SKILLED EMPLOYEE_EU BLUE CARD
A third country national who has a higher education qualification or proven work experience in specific areas (such as technologies and artificial intelligence fields) can be eligible to obtain a European Blue Card in Greece. Moreover, if a third country national is a hoder of a European Blue Card issued in a different european country and has a twelve month duration of living in the latter, he/she can submit an application for the issuance of a EU Blue Card in Greece. The duration of the employment relationship in Greece has to be of at least six months and the duration of the residence permit has a duration of up to two years following the duration of the employment relationship and the validity of third country national’s passport. A three month period extension might be granted under specific circumstances. A third country national with international protection might be also eligible for this category.
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C. SEASONAL EMPLOYEE & EMPLOYEE BY INVITATION
(in process)
Are you interested to assign or open positions for high-ranking executives or specialized professionals that work for at least twelve months in a company or a corporation located in a State that is not a member of the European Union and there is an opportunity for them to mobilize and work in a Greek company, which belongs to the same corporation with the foreign company-employer by obtaining a special type of visa and submitting an application for a residence permit in Greece?
We are here to guide you and provide with a fully support through the several stages of this process.
VISA ISSUANCE
In order for an intra-corporate transferee to enter Greece and submit an application for the issuance of his/her residence permit, the latter needs to obtain a specific type of visa by submitting the required documentation to the competent Greek Consulate. The processing time of the visa issuance depends on the country that he/she is located. For example, many Greek Consulates all over the world which are familiar with this kind of mobility will issue the visa the same day of the appointment. Some of them need two to three weeks for the issuance depending also on their workload. It’s very important for us to contact the competent Greek Consulate at an early stage in order to book an appointment for your client or employee on time.
Contact us to start the visa process as soon as possible by scheduling an e-meeting.
RESIDENCE PERMIT
Upon the issuance of intra-corporate transfer visa, the third country national will be able to enter Greece. He/she is going to receive a special entry stamp in the passport once enter the first Schengen country during his/her travel to Greece. We are going to set up with you the process for the preparation and delivery of the documentation and we will submit the residence permit application to the Ministry of Migration in Athens. Τhe most important documents for the process are the proof of their specialization and experience or any proof of academic background, the employment agreement with the company-employer and a letter with a specific content signed by the company-employer, the client or employee and the Greek company by virtue of Greek Immigration Code. We can prepare this letter for you.
Following our submission, the third country national is going to receive the respective proof, the so-called E-Certificate.
At this point the third country national can start his/her assignment in Greece.
He/she needs to issue a Greek Tax Identification/Registration number (TIN) and maybe a Greek Social Security number. He/she doesn’t need to issue a Greek Social Security number in case that his/her home country has already signed a bilateral agreement on Social Security with Greece. The processing time of both issuances is approx. three to seven working days.
At a second stage (approx. two to three months later) and upon Ministry’s request we are going to accompany the third country national in order for the latter to submit his/her biometric data to the Ministry of Migration. This is the last step on the Immigration Process.
The residence permit will be issued with a one-year duration and delivered to your client or employee upon arrangement.
*Please note that the social security regime for intra-corporate transferees in Greece need to be examined ad hoc. The Ministry of Migration has already addressed this issue by accepting a private insurance certificate with specific coverages as per law predicts, however it remains an open issue to the Greek Ministry of Labour.
Contact us to examine the status of your client’s or employee’s residence permit and any additional action that may be required.
Our external partners can issue the TIN, the Greek Social Security number and the necessary private insurance certificate.
Contact us to get an offer for these services.
RENEWAL PROCESS
We will support your client or employee to the renewal of their residence permit. They don’t need to exit and re-enter Greece for the renewal process. Have no worries, we are here to follow up on your behalf with the Ministry of Migration at any stage.
Contact us to examine the status of your client’s or employee’s residence permit.
FAMILY MEMBERS
The European Union and Greece embrace and support family reunion. To this end Greek legislation provides with the necessary steps that need to be followed by the third country national family members in order to join your client or employee in Greece. The third country national spouse or proved partner will access the Greek Labour market. If the family includes children, note that only minors under eighteen (18) years old are eligible to receive a special type of visa and a residence permit in Greece.
Contact us to receive our services.
Does your client or employee have the option to relocate in Greece and provide his/her work via digital means? The latter needs to be an employee in a company located outside Greece or a freelancer that provides his/her services in companies located outside Greece or be the owner of a company that is located outside Greece.
Your client or employee need to prove that he/she has sufficient funds to live in Greece which currently is approx. 3.500,00 euros income per month. Α corresponding percentage increase in his/her monthly income will be the ticket to his/her family in order to join him/her in Greece.
The duration of the respective permit is two years and it can be renewed.
Your client or employee and its family members will not access the Greek Labour Market.
Private insurance certificates with specific coverages will be submitted to the Ministry of Migration.
Our Insurance Consultants can issue the respective private insurance certificates.
Contact us to schedule a consultation.
If your client is interested to invest in Greece and receive a residence permit as an investor, it’s time for you to contact our office.
Greek legislation provides with a several options such as investment by purchasing a real estate located in Greece or Greek Treasury bonds or stock, corporate bonds or Greek Treasury bonds which are listed for trading or are already traded in regulated market in Greece, by contributing with a specific amount to an existing investment in Greece, by capital contribution to specific types of companies in Greece or by a Term Deposit in a Greek Credit Institution.
The amount of each investment choice ranges between 250.000 to 500.000 euros. It depends on your client’s investment decision.
Moreover, the enforceable legislation provides with the option of issuance of residence permits to valuable executives under specific requirements.
Family Members
Exceptionally and only for this category of immigrants, Greek legislation provides your client with the option of bringing with him/her not only his/her spouse or proven partner, however also his/her single children up to twenty-one (21) years old and his/her parents. Your client has the option to bring also his/her parents in law! Family members will not access the Greek Labour Market.
Contact us to schedule a consultation.
Our external partners can advise you and your client regarding his/her investment choices. Contact us to schedule an appointment with our financial advisors.
Is your client or employee an author, novelist, film director, painter, sculptor, actor, musician, singer, choreographer, scenographer or an artist or a member of an audiovisual work that will take place wholly or partly in Greece? Did he/she sign an employment agreement or contract with a Greek company? Your client or employee is going to need a special type of visa in order for the latter to enter Greece and be eligible to submit an application for a residence permit. The duration of this permit will follow the duration of his/her employment agreement or contract. The respective application will be submitted to the competent decentralized administration authority in Greece.
Contact us to get our advice and services.
European nationals enjoy the right to move and reside freely within the territory of the European Union. According to Greek legislation a European national can work in Greece without a Greek residence permit. However, a Tax Identification/Registration number (TIN) needs to be issued by the European national and as he/she will be employed in a Greek Company, a Greek Social Security number and a special Registry number to the Social Security system (AMA) need to be issued too.
If you or your client are interested to hire a European national, we are here to guide you. Moreover, even a European national, the latter is obliged to prove his/her professional equivalency in Greece in case that he/she is going to provide specific services that under Greek legislation need to be promptly proved or registered to the relevant Registries.
For example, you can’t hire an engineer to sign and bind the Greek Company (i.e., signing of a technical study that is going to be submitted in the Ministry of Environment and Energy) however you can hire an engineer in order to provide his/her services without having the right to act, sign or bind the Company under his/her capacity. The same is applicable to workers. You can’t hire a worker that needs a specific license to work in Greece as a blaster or an electrician unless the latter will run the process for recognition of his/her professional rights in Greece.
Our external partners can issue the TIN, the Greek Social Security number and the AMA number.
Contact us to get our services.
The European Union embrace the mobility of employees between companies that belong to the same corporation. You or your client have the option to send your employee in a Greek Company for a specific period of time. The enforcement of Greek Labour Law depends on the total duration of the posting and basic legal principles. Your employee needs to issue a Tax Identification/Registration number (TIN) however he/she can avoid the issuance of a Greek Social Security number in case that he/she is a holder of an A1 document, issued before posting. The legal framework provides specific action list and time-frame of the respective submission to the competent local Labour Authority in Greece, so please make sure that you will contact our office prior to employee’s posting in Greece.
Moreover, note that in case that your or your client’s employee is a third country national he/she can also be posted without having the obligation to issue a residence permit in Greece however a specific type of visa needs to be issued by his/her side before his/her arrival in Greece.
Contact us to get our advice and services.
Contact us to get our advice and support, if your employee or client is a Greek national (holder of a Greek citizenship) or has proven Greek origins and he/she is working and living outdoors many years, however he/she needs to be transferred in Greece or employed directly in your Greek subsidiary.
If you or your client are the employer-company and you need support to set up or review the hiring or dismissal process, your employment agreement templates or your rights and obligations based on employee’s status contact us to arrange a consultation.