Greece Golden Visa 2026, thresholds, process, and pitfalls

2026 guide to the Greece Golden Visa, €800k/€400k/€250k tiers, 120 sqm rule, taxes, family inclusion, and how to list for free on immio.

The Greece Golden Visa has been the most active residency-by-real-estate-investment programme in Europe since Portugal closed its property route in 2023 and Spain ended its programme in April 2025. But it is no longer the €250,000 deal that made headlines a decade ago. The 2024-2025 reforms reshaped the programme, raising thresholds, introducing minimum property sizes, and creating new sub-routes for heritage and commercial conversion. This guide is the 2026 state of play.

What the Greece Golden Visa is in 2026

The Greece Golden Visa is a 5-year renewable residence permit granted to non-EU nationals who make a qualifying investment in Greek real estate (or one of several alternative asset classes). After the 2024-2025 reforms, the residential real-estate routes have three tiers:

Tier 1, €800,000 investment. Required if the property is located in:

• The Attica region (central and metropolitan Athens)
• Thessaloniki
• Mykonos
• Santorini
• Other islands with population above 3,100 (in some interpretations)

Tier 2, €400,000 investment. All other areas of Greece, most of mainland Greece outside Attica/Thessaloniki, the Peloponnese, Crete, Corfu, Rhodes, and the smaller islands.

Tier 3, €250,000 special routes. Two specific cases qualify at the older €250,000 level:

1. Commercial-to-residential conversion, buying a building currently zoned/used as commercial and converting it to residential use, with a binding commitment to complete the conversion before applying.
2. Restoration of listed heritage buildings, buying a property classified as a "diatiriteo" (preserved building) and committing to a full restoration.

Both €250k special routes carry construction and timing commitments that the applicant must fulfil to keep the permit.

A separate 120 sqm minimum property size applies to the €400k and €800k residential routes. The 120 sqm can be a single property; if combining multiple units to reach the threshold, each unit must independently meet the size requirement under the strictest interpretation. Local lawyers' interpretations vary on combined-units cases, and the rules continue to be clarified through ministerial decisions.

Other qualifying investments outside real estate include €500k in Greek government bonds, shares, or bank deposits, and €800k in listed-equity funds, but real estate remains the dominant route.

Eligible properties and zones

Eligible property categories include residential houses and apartments, off-plan properties (full price paid up front), and qualifying conversions/restorations. Land alone, agricultural plots without a building, and properties below 120 sqm (for the standard residential routes) do not qualify.

The investment must be in your personal name (or via an entirely Greek-domiciled legal entity in which you are the sole beneficial owner). Properties bought via foreign holding companies generally do not qualify.

Application process step-by-step

1. Engage a Greek immigration lawyer. This is non-optional. Pricing usually €5,000-15,000 plus VAT for the full process, depending on family size.
2. Get an AFM (Greek tax number) for every applicant, including dependants. Done at the local tax office or via consulate.
3. Open a Greek bank account. Required to wire purchase funds and pay annual taxes.
4. Property search and due diligence. Title search, planning compliance, mortgages, energy certificate, confirmation of the 120 sqm rule and zone classification.
5. Sign the purchase deed at the notary. Funds wired in full from the applicant's own account abroad, this is critical for the source-of-funds compliance check.
6. File the Golden Visa application. Within 12 months of the deed (in practice within 30-60 days). Lawyer files at the relevant Decentralised Administration office.
7. Biometrics appointment. Each family member must appear in person in Greece once for fingerprints and signature.
8. Receive the blue card. Initial issuance takes 2-6 months in 2026. The card is valid for 5 years.
9. Renewal. Every 5 years for as long as you maintain the qualifying investment.

The whole process from purchase to blue card typically takes 4-9 months in 2026. Backlogs eased in late 2025 after staffing increases at the Migration Ministry.

Tax implications

Holding a Greek Golden Visa does not automatically make you a Greek tax resident. Tax residency is triggered by spending more than 183 days a year in Greece, having your centre of vital interests in Greece, or specific elective regimes.

Key Greek property taxes for Golden Visa holders:

• ENFIA (annual property tax): €2-13/sqm depending on zone, plus a supplementary tax above €250k of total property value. On a €500,000 Athens apartment, expect €1,500-3,500/year.
• Transfer tax at purchase: 3.09% of the deed value (older properties). New-builds (rare in this programme) carry 24% VAT but most are sold pre-VAT regime.
• Rental income tax (if you let the property): 15% up to €12k, 35% €12-35k, 45% above.
• Short-term-rental (Airbnb): subject to recent regulatory tightening, including municipality-level caps.

For high-net-worth investors actually moving to Greece, the non-dom flat tax is a major incentive: €100,000/year flat tax on all non-Greek income for up to 15 years, plus €20,000/year per family member. It requires €500,000 of Greek investment and was specifically designed to be paired with the Golden Visa.

Family inclusion

The Greece Golden Visa is the most generous in Europe on family inclusion. A single qualifying investment covers:

• Main applicant
• Spouse or registered partner (same-sex partnerships recognised since 2024)
• Children under 21 of either spouse
• Parents of the main applicant
• Parents of the spouse

Children turning 21 can extend their permit if enrolled as students; otherwise they need to transition to another permit. Adult children, siblings, and grandparents are not included, adult children would need their own qualifying investment.

How Greece compares to other EU programmes

Greece's combination of low(er) entry, broad family inclusion, no physical-presence requirement, and proximity to the EU mainstream makes it the most flexible mainstream programme in 2026 for non-EU buyers. See the full EU Golden Visa comparison for tax, fees, and citizenship-track detail.

2024-2025 reform recap

The Greece programme has been restructured twice in two years:

August 2024 reforms:

• Thresholds raised from €250k to €400k or €800k depending on location.
• 120 sqm minimum property size introduced.
• Commercial-to-residential conversion route created at €250k.
• Listed heritage restoration route created at €250k.
• Single-property requirement (cannot stack multiple small properties to reach the threshold under most interpretations).
• Short-term-rental restrictions for Golden Visa properties tightened.

Throughout 2025:

• Implementation guidance issued by the Migration Ministry.
• Backlog clearance of pre-reform applications.
• Tightening of source-of-funds documentation under the EU's revised AML directive.
• Confirmation that off-plan purchases qualify only when fully paid before application.

For 2026, no further structural changes are signposted, but EU-level pressure on residency-by-investment programmes continues. Greek officials have publicly defended the programme as economically vital but well-regulated.

Red flags and scams

• "Guaranteed rental returns" packages. Common around Athens and the islands. The investor pays €450k for a property worth €350k, with the developer "guaranteeing" 4-5% rent for 5 years that comes out of the inflated price. Avoid.
• Sub-120-sqm properties marketed as "Golden Visa eligible". They are not eligible under the residential routes. Always verify the size from the cadastre, not the listing.
• Combining small units. Some agents still market three €130k apartments as a "Golden Visa package". The dominant ministerial interpretation since 2024 rules this out for the standard tier.
• Cash payments. Any portion of the purchase paid in cash invalidates the application under AML rules.
• Title gaps. Many Greek properties, especially on the islands, have inheritance gaps, encroachments, or planning irregularities. Independent legal due diligence is non-negotiable.
• Power of attorney misuse. Always limit POA to specific defined acts. Open-ended POAs to local fixers are a recurring problem.

Related guides: golden visa europe comparison, buying property in greece, foreigner buying process eu, property taxes and fees by country

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