Greece: Operating a Business

Eteria Periorismenis Efthynis (EPE): Private Limited Company

Number of partners: Minimum of 1 partner and 1 director.
Capital (max/min): Minimum 4,500 EUR totally released up to this amount.
Shareholders and liability: Liability is limited to the amount contributed.

Anonymos Eteria (AE): Limited Company

Number of partners: Minimum of 1 partner and 3 executives.
Capital (max/min): Minimum 60,000 EUR totally released up to this amount.
Shareholders and liability: Liability is limited to the amount contributed.

Omorithmos Eteria (OE): General Partnership

Number of partners: Minimum of two partners.
Capital (max/min): No minimum capital.
Shareholders and liability: Partners' liability is joint and unlimited.

Eterorithmos Eteria (EE): Limited Partnership

Number of partners: Minimum of two partners.
Capital (max/min): No minimum capital.
Shareholders and liability: Liability is unlimited for at least one active partner. Liability of sleeping partners is limited to the amount contributed.

New Private Limited Company (IKE)

Capital (max/min): No minimum capital.

Business Setup Procedures

The Competent Organisation

Upon establishment, the company is required to register with the Tax Office, procure accounting and company books stamped by the Tax Authorities and register with the Local Chamber of Commerce. Consult The Athens Chamber of Commerce and Industry for additional guidance. This, however, may change in the future: among the initial demands of the Troika in negotiations was the abolition of mandatory membership in chambers of commerce. The Chamber strongly resisted, and the Troika has not substantially pressed the issue for the time being, but this provision is likely to be a sticking point in future negotiations.

For Further Information

Doing Business: Greece, to learn about procedures to start a business in Greece
Athens Chamber of Commerce and Industry

Financial Information Directories

Athens Chamber of Commerce and Industry Directory - Financial information on members of the Chamber

Dun & Bradstreet - Worldwide directory with financial information on businesses

Recovery Procedures

Bankruptcy Laws

Commercial and bankruptcy laws in Greece are in accordance with international norms. Under Greek bankruptcy law, private creditors receive compensation after claims from the state and insurance funds have been satisfied. Monetary judgments are usually made in the country’s currency (Euro) unless explicitly stipulated otherwise.

For Further Statistics

OECD: Greece Labour Market Statistics

Opening Hours

 

• Legal Weekly Duration

8-hour day and 48-hour week.

• Maximum Duration

In companies where a contractual working week of up to 40 hours is implemented, employees may work an extra five hours per week at the employer’s discretion (overtime). These hours of overtime (from the 41st to the 45th hour) are compensated at the current hourly wage, increased by 25%, and are not calculated as part of the maximum overtime work allowed by current provisions. For employees who work a six-day working week, the above-described overtime is eight hours per week (from the 41st to the 48th hour).

• Night Hours

Night work is prohibited for certain categories of employee: women workers and minors. There are numerous exemptions from the general ban mentioned above, as permitted by Article 4 of the ILO Convention. It does not apply to women who occupy positions of responsibility or senior posts of a technical nature, to nurses or to women employed in allied occupations. When employees are doing night work they are entitled to an enhanced rate of pay equal to 25 percent above the normal pay.

Working Rest Day

Sunday

Paid Annual Vacation

Greek law stipulates a (minimum) annual holiday entitlement of 24 working days for employees who work a six-day week and 20 working days for employees who work a five-day week, once they have completed the basic "waiting" time (qualifying period of employment).

Retirement Age

65

Child Labour and Minimum Age For Employment

In Greece, under the relatively recent Law 1837/1989 on the protection of minors in employment the minimum age for entry into employment is 15: minors of any age who have not yet attained this minimum are prohibited from being employed.

Informal Labour Market

Very widespread in Greece, they account for possibly 25 percent of the gross national product. Their main feature is that they evade all control by the authorities, taxation obligations and social charges (social insurance, health and safety conditions and employees' holiday entitlements). Illegal immigrants predominate in the unskilled labor sector in many urban areas, as well as in agriculture.

Pay

Minimum Wage

EUR 713 per month as of 1 May 2022 (source: Greek government)

Average Wage

Average gross monthly earnings of full-time employees: EUR 17,099 per year (source: OECD, 2020).

Other Forms of Pay

• Pay For Overtime

Whether by consent or unilaterally imposed, overtime attracts extra pay in respect of the hours of overtime worked.

• Pay For Rest Days Worked

Employees who have worked on a Sunday or public holiday are entitled to their statutory minimum or contractual day's pay plus 75 percent of the statutory day's pay. They are entitled to this increased rate even if they take time off in lieu during the week, and regardless of whether their employment on a Sunday or public holiday was lawful or unlawful.

Social Security Costs

The Areas Covered

Social security is administered by multiple organizations in Greece. The Social Insurance Institute (IKA) covers pensions, medical expenses and long-term disability payments for employed individuals. Other insurance organizations cover the self-employed, depending on their profession.

Contributions

Contributions Paid By the Employer: 22.54%, with a monthly cap fixed at EUR 6,500.
Contributions Paid By the Employee: 14.12% with a monthly cap fixed at 6,500 EUR .

Recruitment

Method of Recruitment

Agencies, Internet and face to face interview.

Recruitment Agencies

In Greece, job placements fall exclusively within the competence of the Manpower Employment Organization (OAED). Consequently, private employment agencies are illegal for the time being, but this prohibition is under review since it is not in accordance with the relevant articles of the European Union.

The Contract

Dispute Settlement

Social Partners

Employer Associations

SEV - Hellenic Federation of Enterprises

Social Dialogue and Involvement of Social Partners

Over a quarter of Greeks are members of labour unions, though the density varies depending on if the organisation is in the public or private sector. Membership in private sector unions is relatively low, and the unions are not very powerful. Conversely, membership in public sector unions is high and the unions are much stronger. Legislation passed between December 2010 and 2013 liberalised national collective bargaining agreements, allowing private companies to negotiate in-house labour agreements with employees.

Unionisation Rate

Overall trade union density is 21.5% (OECD, 2013), though density varies by sector. Unionisation is very high in public sector enterprises, utilities and services, ranging from 80 to 98%. In the private sector, it is very low, especially in small and medium-sized enterprises.

Labour Unions

GSEE