Greece Golden Visa

Residence in Greece, without having to live in Greece.

Greece is one of the few residence-by-investment routes left in the European Union with no minimum stay at all — 0 days a year, for you and for the family on your application. P.A Golden Investment works with Arabic, Kurdish and English-speaking buyers from the first question through to the residence card, alongside lawyers admitted in Greece.

A 5-year renewable permit, from EUR 250,000. One qualifying investment covers your spouse or registered partner, your unmarried children under 21, and the parents of both spouses.

Why buyers look at Greece

Four things are true about the Greek programme as it stands in July 2026. The first is the one that decides it for most families.

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No minimum stay — 0 days a year.

You are not required to spend a single day in Greece to hold the permit or to renew it. There is no residence test, no day count, no entry log to keep and no explaining yourself at renewal. Almost every other residence-by-investment route in Europe asks for something. Greece asks for nothing, and that is the honest headline of the programme.

One investment, three generations.

The threshold does not rise with the size of your family. A single qualifying property covers the investor, a spouse or registered partner, unmarried children under 21 — extendable to 24 while they remain unmarried and in tertiary education — and the parents of both spouses, with no age limit. Siblings and other relatives are not covered, whatever anyone tells you.

The entry point is still EUR 250,000, Athens included.

The standard threshold in Attica is EUR 800,000, but two reduced routes at EUR 250,000 remain open anywhere in Greece, Athens included: a commercial or industrial building converted to residential use, and the restoration of a listed building. Each route carries its own deadline, and each may be used only once per property.

5 years, renewable, with Schengen travel.

The permit runs for 5 years from the date the residence card is issued, and renews while you still own the qualifying property. It allows 90 days in any rolling 180-day period of travel in other Schengen states, and days spent in Greece do not count against that allowance. Ireland and the United Kingdom are outside the Schengen area and are not included.

What the permit does not do

We would rather you heard this from us before you commit capital than from a lawyer afterwards.

  • It does not survive a sale.

    Selling the qualifying property at any point during the permit’s validity revokes the permit for you and for every family member on your application, at the same moment. There is no release at year six and no point at which the ownership requirement lapses.

  • It does not permit work.

    The permit carries no right to employment in Greece or in any other EU state, and no right to reside in another EU state. Schengen travel is short-stay travel, not a second home in another member country.

  • It is not citizenship, and it does not become citizenship.

    Citizenship is a separate process: 7 years of legal residence with genuine physical presence of 183 days or more in each of those years, Greek at B1 level, a civics test and a clean criminal record, with every adult assessed individually. Holding the permit without living in Greece never builds an entitlement to it.

  • It does not allow short-term letting.

    Letting the qualifying property for periods under 60 days is prohibited, on a platform or privately, and subletting is prohibited. The penalty is a fine of EUR 50,000 plus revocation of the permit for the investor and all family members.

Three thresholds, and what each one actually buys

A single property must reach the threshold on its own. Properties may not be combined, and the amount does not change with the number of people on the application.

€250,000

Anywhere in Greece, Athens included — but only by two routes

The reduced tier survived the 2024 rewrite. It is not a general discount: it applies only to a converted commercial or industrial building, or to the restoration of a listed building.

  • Change of use: a commercial or industrial building converted to residential use, with the conversion complete before the application is submitted.
  • Listed building restoration: the restoration must be complete by the first renewal, at year five.
  • No minimum floor area applies on either reduced route.

Each route may be used once per property. A later buyer of the same unit must meet the full threshold for its location.

€400,000

Everywhere else in Greece

The standard route outside the higher-threshold zones: an ordinary residential purchase, with no conversion and no restoration work attached to it.

  • One single property must meet the threshold on its own.
  • The property must be at least 120 square metres.
  • Properties may not be combined to reach the threshold.

€800,000

Attica — which includes all of Athens — the regional unit of Thessaloniki, Mykonos, Santorini, and islands with a population over 3,100

The standard route in the high-demand zones. If you want an ordinary Athens apartment with no conversion or restoration attached, this is the number.

  • One single property must meet the threshold on its own.
  • The property must be at least 120 square metres.
  • The price must be paid in full before the application is submitted.
  • Properties may not be combined to reach the threshold.

The figures above are the qualifying investment only. Transfer taxes, notary, land registry, legal and application costs sit on top, and we quote them to you in writing before you commit to anything.

See the full eligibility rules

How it runs, in four movements

The full sequence has seven steps. In practice it feels like four.

  1. Qualify

    We check your family list against the eligible and excluded categories, confirm which thresholds apply where you want to buy, and tell you plainly if nothing qualifies at your budget.

  2. Choose

    We shortlist only properties that genuinely qualify under your chosen route — the right threshold for the location, the floor area where one applies, and the paper trail for a change of use or a listed status.

  3. Buy

    A lawyer admitted in Greece runs the due diligence, and a Greek notary completes the transfer. On the high-demand tier the price is paid in full before the application is submitted.

  4. Apply

    The application goes to the one-stop service, each applicant attends in Greece for biometrics, and the 5-year clock starts on the day the residence card is issued.

Read the step-by-step process

How we work

P.A Golden Investment is an introduction and coordination firm, not a law firm. We work in Arabic, Kurdish and English, from offices in Greece and Iraq. Every application is prepared by a lawyer admitted in Greece and every property transfer is completed by a Greek notary. We introduce you to them, sit in the meetings, translate, and keep the file moving between three countries and two scripts.

Start with the qualification form

  • Offices in Greece and Iraq, in your time zone and your language.

  • Arabic, Kurdish (Sorani) and English, spoken and written.

  • Applications prepared by lawyers admitted in Greece. Transfers completed by Greek notaries.

  • Every cost quoted in writing before anything is signed.

General information, current as at July 2026. Not legal, tax or investment advice.