Situated on the southern tip of the Balkans, Greece is located at the crossroads of Europe, Asia, and Africa. It shares land borders with Albania to the northwest, North Macedonia and Bulgaria to the north, and Turkey to the northeast. Greece stretches over a land area of 132,049 square kilometers. The country is also bordered to the east by the Aegean Sea, to the south by the Mediterranean Sea, and the west by the Ionian Sea. Greece’s main industries are tourism, shipping, industrial products, food and tobacco processing, textiles, chemicals, metal products, mining, and petroleum.
*Please note that the official currency is the currency of remuneration when employed through WorkMotion in Greece.
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Capital :
Athens
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Currency :
Euro (€, EUR)
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Languages spoken :
Greek
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Population :
10.64 million (2022 est.)
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Minimum wage 2023 :
€830 (monthly)
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Cost of Living index :
$$$ (41 of 139 countries)
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Payroll Frequency :
Monthly
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VAT - standard rate :
24%
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GDP - real growth rate :
5.9% (2022 est.)
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The national holidays mentioned below are valid for the year 2024.
The approximate time for sharing the contract with an employee in Greece is 3 business days assuming no special requests or changes to our standard employment contract. Any such requests or changes would need to undergo internal or external review, directly leading to a time delay.
NOTE: This number is subject to change and is only an estimate of the Contract Sharing Time. The estimated Contract Sharing Time begins from the moment that WorkMotion has received all required information from both the client and the employee.
In Greece, the first 12 months of an indefinite employment contract are considered a probationary period.
For the first 12 months, an open-ended employment contract can be terminated without notice or severance pay.
Thereafter, the employer is entitled to decide whether the employee will be dismissed with or without notice. If termination is carried out by the employer without notice, the employee will be entitled to full indemnity compensation.
Should the employer choose to terminate the employment contract with a notice period, the following guidelines must be followed:
| Tenure | Notice Period |
| 0 to 12 months (Probation) | No notice required |
| 12 months to 2 years | 1 month |
| 2 to 5 years | 2 months |
| 5 to 10 years | 3 months |
| More than 10 years | 4 months |
During the first year of employment, annual leave is granted by the employer on a pro-rata basis in proportion to the length of time the employee has been employed by that employee based on 20 working days. Employees with more years of service with the same employer get more annual leave days.
| Years of service | Annual leave entitlement |
| 1st year of service | Given on a pro-rata; calculated on a basis of 20 working days |
| 2nd to 3rd year of service | One day increment per year
Limit: 22 days for those working 5 days per week 26 days for those working 6 days per week |
| After 10 years with the same employer or 12 with different employers | 25 working days for a 5-day working system |
| After 25 years of service |
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Sickness absence within set limits depends on the length of service. It is considered to be short-term and cannot be regarded as voluntary employee withdrawal. Sickness should be evidenced by a doctor’s certificate.
Sick leave duration
| Years of service | Sick leave duration |
| Up to 4 years | Up to 1 month |
| 4 to 10 years | 3 months |
| More than 10 years | 4 months |
| More than 10 years | 6 months |
Working parents or people exercising parental responsibilities are entitled to four months of parental leave (continuously or intermittently) until the child reaches the age of eight years.
For the granting of parental leave, the working parent must have completed one year of consecutive or successive service with the same employer.
Working parents in a workplace with at least 50 employees who have children with a mental, emotional, or physical disability, which are certified with a medical opinion, have the independent right for every child to ask for a reduction of their working hours by one hour per day, with a corresponding cut in their salaries.
Working parents are entitled to special parental leave without pay, in the case of hospitalization of the child, regardless of their age, due to illness or accident which necessitates the immediate presence of an employee, for as long as the treatment lasts and in any case not more than 30 working days per year.
Employees are entitled to 119 calendar days of paid maternity leave: 56 days before birth and 63 days after birth.
The employer pays full earnings for 15 days (if the employee has been attached to the employer for at least 10 days to one year) or earnings up to one month (if employed for more than a year). The Social Security Fund pays 50% of the standard wage corresponding to the insurance contribution class of the insured person plus the child benefit at a rate of 10% of the above amount for each child for the rest of the maternity leave.
Every working father is entitled to 14 working days of paternity leave with remuneration, which must be taken in relation to childbirth.
This leave may either be granted two days before the expected date of birth, in which case the remaining 12 are granted, in whole or in part, within 30 days from the date of birth. Paternity leave may also be granted after the date of birth. During paternity leave, the employee receives a full wage from the employer.
In case of marriage or conclusion of a cohabitation agreement, six working days’ leave with remuneration is granted, provided that the employee is employed under a six-day working week whilst five working days are provided for those employed under a five-day working week system.
Working parents are entitled to special parental leave, lasting 10 working days per year, with pay, to address the needs of children up to 18 years of age.
Working parents who have been widowed or unmarried and have sole custody of a child are entitled to paid leave of six working days per year. An employee with three children or more is entitled to paid leave of eight working days per year.
Up to two times a year and up to one working day at a time, the working parent or caregiver is entitled to be absent from work, with remuneration, for reasons of force majeure related to urgent family issues in case of illness or accident, which make the immediate presence of the employee necessary.
Employees who undergo medically assisted reproduction are entitled to a paid leave of seven working days, following a certificate from the attending physician or the director of a medically assisted reproduction unit.
A full-time or part-time employee may, following an individual written agreement with the employer, take unpaid leave for a period not exceeding one year, which may be extended by agreement between the parties.
Working parents have an individual and non-transferable right, upon request, to leave without pay for a period not exceeding six working days every calendar year, in case of illness-dependent children or other family members. This leave may be taken as a single or partial amount of eight working days if the beneficiary protects two children and 14 working days if it protects more than two.
The great majority of individuals who are employed in the public and private sector and render dependent personal services are principally, directly, and compulsorily insured in the National Social Security Fund (e-EFKA) for old-age pension, maternity benefits, healthcare, unemployment benefits, and benefits for accidents at work and occupational diseases. Apart from the main contribution, e-EFKA compulsorily collects contributions for other minor funds created for the employee’s benefit (Unemployment Benefits Funds, etc.).
| Benefits | Employer Contributions (Full-time employees) | Employer Contributions (Part-time employees) |
| Pension Fund | 13.33% | 13.33% |
| Supplementary insurance | 3% | 3% |
| Health Insurance | 4.55% | 4.55% |
| Other Funds | 1.41% | 1.89% |
| Total | 22.29% | 22.77% |
Public healthcare in Greece is run by the Greek National Organization for Healthcare Services Provision (EOPYY-Ελληνικός Εθνικός Οργανισμός Παροχής Υπηρεσιών Υγείας). The Greek national health system provides healthcare benefits/services through a network of public/state providers and contracted private providers of primary, hospital, and ambulatory care intended to ensure disease prevention and the promotion, preservation, improvement, recovery, and protection of health.
The system is financed by the state budget, social insurance contributions, and private payments. The employer contributes 4.55% towards healthcare in Greece.
Salaried employees who are under the e-EFKA insurance scheme and are victims of an accident that either took place during work or in relation to work or while traveling to or from work are entitled to benefits in kind and in cash which are provided in the event of a work accident, regardless of the length of insurance coverage. In other words, it is sufficient to have one day of insurance.
Insured employees or pensioners who suffer from a chronic illness related to the hazards of their jobs are entitled to the benefits provided in the event of occupational disease.
Unemployment benefits (ΕΠΊΔΟΜΑ ΑΝΕΡΓΊΑΣ) are granted by the Labor Employment Office (OAED) to employees with unemployment insurance, who were dismissed or whose employment contracts expired, who are registered with an employment office, and are both willing and capable of working.
In order to be entitled to this benefit, employees are required to have worked for a period of at least 125 days during the 14 months prior to the termination of their employment or for a period of at least 200 days within the two years prior to the termination of their employment.
Unemployment benefits are funded by the social security system.
To be entitled to an old-age pension, one is required to have reached a certain age and to have accumulated a certain number of insurance days. The right to a pension can be exercised at any time and up until then, insured persons are entitled to continue working. The general age limit is 67 years and the minimum insurance period is 15 years (4,500 days of employment).
The employer pays a contribution of 13.33% to the public pension.
The Supplementary Funded Insurance Fund provides the insured with a predetermined life cycle investment program, which is evaluated by the board of directors as the most appropriate for the average insured person. Upon joining the supplementary insurance, the insured persons are automatically classified in the predetermined investment program. The Fund may provide policyholders with more than one life-cycle investment plan with differentiated investment risk than the predetermined one.
Both employer and employee contributions towards supplementary insurance are capped at 3% each.
Employers are also mandated to pay additional contributions of 1.41% to the National Social Security Fund.
The information contained in this Country Guide is provided for informational purposes only and should not be construed as legal advice on any subject matter. The contents of this Country Guide contain general information and may not reflect current legal developments or address your situation. You should not act or refrain from acting on the basis of any content included in this Country Guide without seeking the advice or representation of a licensed attorney. WorkMotion Software GmbH disclaims all liability for actions you take or fail to take based on any content included in this Country Guide.
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