Golden Visa in Greece: Citizenship by Investment in 2024
- Apply online
- From 250,000 euro per family
- Low rate of visa rejection
- Quick transaction
Why choose the Greek Golden Visa Programme
Greece Golden Visa is a residence permit by investment issued under the Greek state programme. The investor and their family get the status of residents in exchange for making investment into real estate, public securities, Greek business or making a bank deposit. A Golden Visa is a plastic card with an integrated chip, a photograph, and personal data.
The holders of a Greek Golden Visa do not have to live in Greece or pass a Greek language exam. Greek Golden Visa is extended once every five years as long as the investor maintains the property and still wants to be a resident.
The investor may obtain a Golden Visa by acquisition of a rental apartment, resort or commercial property, or a land plot with any purported use.
The programme changed from 1 January 2023
In the most popular areas of Greece among the investors, the minimum investment threshold is raised to 500,000 euro. These are the 28 municipalities of Athens, the 6 municipalities of Thessaloniki, the islands of Mykonos and Santorini. Only one property can be included in the application.
In other areas of Greece, there is no change: you can buy several properties worth a total of 250,000 euro and more.
What benefits Greece Golden Visa brings to the investor
- Residence permit for the whole family.
- The right to stay legitimately in Greece for unlimited time.
- Personal and commercial access to European banks.
- The right to legally stay in Schengen countries for up to 90 days in a 6-month period without gaining tax residency.
- 4–6% rental income per annum if your real property is rental.
- The prices of apartments in Athens increase by up to 11% annually.
- A permanent resident may apply for citizenship in seven years of permanent stay (the conditions are discussed on case‑by‑case basis).
Essential aspects of participating in the Greek "Golden Visa" programme
- The investor staying in Greece for more than 183 days a year becomes а tax resident in Greece.
- Residence is cancelled after the real property is sold.
- The law has no clear indication today what are the eligibility requirements for a Golden Visa holder to get citizenship, so each case is considered individually.
- Children of the investor are considered independent when they turn 21. Their residence permit may be extended for another three years upon expiry of which children will lose their resident status acquired by their parent’s investment.
Why Greek Golden Visa is better than other similar programmes
In 2022, the Greek Golden Visa programme became the most attractive one in Europe. Latvia has announced the closure of a similar programme, Portugal has changed the conditions in favour of commercial properties, and the price of a residence permit in Spain is twice as high as in Greece. Moreover, prices in Greece are growing annually up to 11% per year and by 2024 have not reached the pre-crisis level of 2008.
The Greek programme boasts rather fast application processing and low rate of refusals. A lawyer acting under a power of attorney may close your transaction and apply for a Golden Visa. You will have to come in person at the end of the procedure to do the fingerprinting.
Residence by investment programmes
| Country | Greece | Cyprus | Spain |
|---|---|---|---|
| Budget | €250,000 | €300,000 | €500,000 |
| Formalities | 3—4 mos. | 6—9 mos. | 4—7 mos. |
| Extension | Once every five years | Once every five years | First in one year and then once every two years |
| Children of the investor | Up to 21 years | Up to 18 years | Dependants up to 26 years |
| Parents of the investor | Without restrictions | Dependants from 65+ years |
We do our best to ensure good rental income for the investor and choose properties in popular locations with a good price‑to‑rent ratio.
Elena Milishenkova, Product Director
Real estate price growth index in Greece
Despite the COVID-19 pandemic, Greek real estate prices are on the rise year on year.
Source: Tradingecomonics, Bank of Greece
Where to buy real estate in Greece
The location depends on your goals. Choose your resort property in the location where you like to spend time: Athens Riviera, the islands or the Halkidiki peninsula. Real estate might not rise in price dramatically here but margin is not your main goal.
We recommend Athens for real estate rental business. 50% of the Greek population live in Athens — it's the heart of the country. Real estate prices here are constantly on the rise and investors enjoy steady demand all the year round. The investor might consider buying one or two buy‑to‑let apartments here and rent them out. A popular format is micro-apartments up to 30 square metres for tourists and students. Any part of Athens suits this purpose, and the choice would depend only on your expectations as to the tenant‑lessor relation structuring and the rent rate.
Athens is worth considering as the location for your own living. Northern Athens is for mountain‑lovers, and the southern districts are for those who prefer the sea. These are respectable clean, expensive districts with international schools for children located far away from migrants and tourists. In the city centre, there are high-end residential districts as well, however, they are often close to socially vulnerable districts and communities, so one must be careful.
Eligibility requirements for the investor and other applicants for a Greece Golden Visa
- Personal reputation: clean criminal record and proof of legitimate funds to open an account with a Greek bank.
- Be over 18 years of age.
- Minimum health insurance coverage.
- Payment of all the applicable taxes and levies.
- Other documents may be requested by officials for a particular applicant.
The documents to be submitted depend on the official accepting them. We prepare a comprehensive set of documents to be ready for potential requests.
Tranio Legal, Greece
What relatives may be included into the investor’s application
- One legal spouse.
- A civil partner if the partners are ready to enter into a cohabitation deed in Greece (valid only in Greece).
- The investor’s children from any marriage at the age under 21.
- Parents of the investor and spouse.
Extension of the Golden Visa for children over 21 years
The investor’s children may extend their residence permits until they turn the age 21 and may not extend their resident status further on only on the grounds of their parent’s investment. There are several ways to extend residence for the investor’s children.
Additional investment
The investor may acquire another real property of at least 250,000 € in the name of the child. The additional investment should be made once the child turns 18 years. The principal investor shall then be the child, and the child’s residence permit validity shall not depend on her/his age.
Change of the principal applicant
The investor’s property holding may be restructured in favour and name of the child making the child the principal applicant. The investor and spouse shall not lose their residence permits and shall be viewed as parents of the principal applicant for the purposes of the golden visa programme.
Any case should be comprehensively discussed in advance with a competent lawyer to choose the best strategy.
Step‑by‑step guide to getting a Golden Visa in Greece
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Step 1 — Property selection
You think of selection criteria. It largely depends on the specifics of your request when the property will be selected: the more complex your request is, the more time it might require.
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Step 2 — Viewings and transaction preparation
A buyer can visit Greece to see the properties or request online viewings. A power of attorney is to be issued to the lawyer carrying out the transaction remotely.
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Step 3 — Booking an apartment
Before concluding a preliminary agreement, the lawyer checks the seller's certificate of ownership, possible encumbrances or tax debts.
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Step 4 — Transaction closing
When the review has been completed, the lawyer drafts the master sale and purchase agreement. A few days before execution, the investor should transfer funds to the lawyer’s account to cover the taxes. The master sales and purchase agreement can be signed in person or via a lawyer. The investor must make transaction payments for 7‑10 days. Any account may be used to make payment.
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Step 5 — Applying for a residence permit
After paying for the deal, the lawyer submits documents for a residence permit. The list of documents is individual for each applicant and is compiled by a lawyer. Within 2-3 business days after the documents’ submission, a temporary residence permit is issued for 1 year, allowing you to stay in Greece and cross the border.
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Step 6 — Visiting Athens for the fingerprinting procedure
For a temporary residence permit, it is necessary to arrive in Greece within 6 months (in coordination with the lawyer) for fingerprinting. This procedure is mandatory for all family members included in the application, except for children under 5 years old.
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Step 7 — Receiving residence permit cards
A few weeks after the fingerprinting procedure, the residence permit card will be ready. The lawyer can obtain it by proxy and send it to the applicant by the international courier mail service.
Frequently asked questions of investors
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Can I make a payment for the transaction using a company account or an account belonging to another individual?Unfortunately, no. For a transaction to be eligible for a residence permit, payment must come from a personal account or the account of a close relative: spouses or parents.
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Is it possible to get a mortgage in Greece?Although the law technically does not prohibit non-residents from obtaining mortgages, it is practically impossible for them to do so. In addition, the Golden Visa requires the entire payment be transmitted from the buyer's own funds and the buyer's account to the seller's account.
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Can I get a Golden Visa remotely?Tranio can help to acquire a property and submit the documents for a Golden Visa remotely. For this, you would need to issue a notarized power of attorney to the notary involved in the transaction. You will have to come to Greece in person just once for fingerprinting after the submission of your application for the residence permit.
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Can my civil partner get a Golden Visa?Yes, but you must enter into a cohabitation agreement that shall be valid only in Greece and will be null and void in the other countries.
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Can I pay for my real property in instalments?If a property is purchased during construction or capital repairs, payment may be made in instalments. However, you may apply for a residence permit only after your aggregate payment is €250,000.
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Can I close the transaction and obtain a Golden Visa on my own?This is officially allowed but extremely difficult in practice. You would have no opportunity to communicate with the officials in English, which will be the least of the troubles. Moreover, direct interactions with the officials are not a common practice in Greece, and the Greeks prefer to do paperwork through a lawyer. Some agencies may be approached only by licensed lawyers. Thus, it is extremely difficult to do the formalities in Greece without a lawyer.
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How can I speed up the formalities?Tranio would help you expedite real property due diligence before the transaction. Lawyers usually authenticate the title certificate and ensure there are no encumbrances or tax debts associated with the property. Sometimes, the actual floor area and energy efficiency class should be examined and other parameters of the apartment should be made legitimate before the purchase. This stage can take up to 1.5 months.
Tranio renovates entire buildings in Athens and sells our own new apartments. We do all the tiresome drafting work well in advance, and the lawyer would have all the documents on the table by the time of the transaction. -
Why do property selections in Athens become outdated so quickly?The housing market in Athens is very lively and offers quickly go off and on the market. Some apartments in the selection are often no longer on offer by the time of the viewing, but new properties pop up right away. We recommend selecting your apartment out of the current offers during your viewing rather than sticking to the initial property selection.
Why obtain a Greek Golden Visa with Tranio
Tranio opened an office in Greece in 2017. We feel confident in the Athens market. We are proud of our integrity and reputation and work closely with trusted local companies: developers, real estate agencies and lawyers.
Tranio has own development projects in Athens. We buy entire residential buildings to make renovations and sell finished apartments with guarantees. We can furnish the apartment upon the investor’s request.
An experienced attorney from the Athens Bar Association assists Tranio clients with all legal and government-related transactions. In five years of collaboration, we have submitted over 150 applications for one or more individuals without receiving a single denial.
- Own apartments with guaranties
- Own management company
- Own managers in Athens
- Legal support
In all our practice, our clients have never been refused a Golden Visa in Greece. This is a well-established procedure; we issued more than 150 cards in 2021-2023.
Marina Filichkina, Head of Sales, Tranio
