Tax incentives luring Greeks from abroad

A new, favorable tax regime with lower rates has attracted more than 4,500 workers from abroad to work in Greece, many of whom are Greeks who left during the financial crisis in the previous decade. 

Moreover, more than 1,500 applications are pending, according to Finance Ministry figures, which show that the number of workers who decided to come to Greece to work under the favorable legislative framework has quadrupled since June 2022.

The new regulations have generated more interest because they exempt people who change their tax residence, begin working in new positions, or create their own businesses for a seven-year term from income tax and the special solidarity tax on 50% of their Greek-earned income.

Those who move to Greece for tax purposes will have a 50% deduction from the taxation of their income, as well as exemption from the presumption of ownership and use of private cars. 

The tax regime applies to those who were not a tax resident of Greece in the previous five of the six years prior to the transfer of their tax residence to Greece.

Applicants must also transfer residence from an EU or EEA member-state or from a state with which an administrative cooperation agreement in the field of taxation with Greece is in force.

They must also provide services in Greece in the context of an employment relationship, either with a domestic legal person or legal entity or with a permanent establishment of a foreign enterprise in Greece. The same privileges apply to natural persons who transfer their tax residence to Greece for the purpose of carrying on a sole proprietorship activity in Greece.

Applicants must also declare that they will remain in Greece for at least two years.

But it is not only workers who decide to become tax residents in Greece. 

In the three years of implementation, the tax incentive scheme has attracted 124 investors who have transferred their tax residence to Greece. 

Under this regime, they should not have been a Greek tax resident in the previous seven out of the eight years prior to the transfer of their tax residence in Greece. They must invest an amount of at least €500,000 in Greece within three years from the date of application. They will be taxed on their income from foreign sources, regardless of the amount, with an annual flat tax of €100,000.