Grace period for papers to commute

Enterprises were on Tuesday given an extended grace period until 6 a.m. on Friday to supply their employees with the necessary documents allowing them to commute in areas under strict lockdown. This was due to the adverse weather conditions on Tuesday that extended the Wednesday deadline by another 48 hours.

The new forms concern even those who have documents ascertaining their employment, and exclude all those who are teleworking, on furlough or on leave, who will need to have sent a text message to the 13033 number and received an approval message to move around.

The new forms are submitted online through the Labor Ministry’s Ergani database at forma.gov.gr, following a formal declaration by the employer. This also applies to self-employed professionals. Crucially, a company that the state has forced to close for the pandemic, such as a café, may only issue commuting documents for employees involved in activities that are still allowed, such as takeaway and delivery services in this case.

There is a special provision for rotating teleworkers (e.g. working on Mondays, Wednesdays and Fridays at the workplace and Tuesdays, Thursdays and Saturdays from home) through the E4.1 form on the platform.