Legal and Finance Legal Applying for Residency in Greece
Applying for Residency in Greece
To stay in Greece for 90 days or longer will mean you will need to obtain a residency permit. For EU citizens, a visa is not needed to enter the country and your passport will not be stamped. After entering Greece, any EU citizen will be legally able to stay in Greece for upto 90 days.
Possessing a residency card does not allow the holder to work in Greece, unlike some other countries, more visas are needed for those who want to work in Greece.EU citizens can stay in Greece for upto 3 months just by having their passport. As there is no visa giving or passport stamping on the border of Greece,there is no way for the police to know how long you have actually been in the country for, however, for those who are from other EU countries, acquiring a residency permit is farely simple and is required in some circumstances in Greece. To apply for a residency permit, you must go in person to the local police station or the Aliens Bureau in Athens and take the required documents.
The required documents are:
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valid passport
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copy of passport
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4 ID/passport sized photos
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a letter from your employer (only if you are employed in Greece)
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bank statement (sometimes needed to prove that you can financially
support yourself in Greece)
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Birth certificate
Many people who live in a quiet or rural area, may choose to take a translator with them if needed, as this will make the process easier and quicker. Usually a residency permit for EU citizens is valid for between one and five years and relatively easy to aquire.
Citizens from countries outside of the EU, may find that applying for a residency permit in Greece can be rather difficult. If married to someone with Greek origin, a residency card is much easier to aquire, for those applying alone, the process can be long and difficult. Before applying for a residency permit in Greece, you must first apply for a residency visa in your home country at the Greek consulate or embassy. This will allow you to stay in Greece for upto 3 months and also apply for a residency permit. The permit is then applied for when you are in Greece, which can be done at the local police station or Aliens Bureau in Athens. The original tourists visa which was applied for in your home country only last upto 90 days and so it is crucial that once you enter Greece, you must apply for your residency permit so as not to let your visa expire. If such a case occurs, where your visa expires, you will be made to leave the country. For non EU members, the process is long and so it is vital to make sure that your tourists visa is not close to expiring.
To apply for residency you will need:
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your tourists visa
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valid passport
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at least 2 passport/ID photos
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bank statement/financial details (to prove that you can support
yourself)
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address of local residence in Greece
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valid health insurance documents
health certificate (from a local hospital in Greece)
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birth certificate
It important to ensure that you have some sort of residence in Greece, so
that you can use the address when applying for the permit.Also ensure that
you have a routine health check at the local hospital to obtain a
certificate, which is needed for the residency process. The check includes
psychiatric, drug and blood tests plus an x-ray to certify that you are
healthy.
If the residency card is issued without complications, the residency
permit for non-EU members is valid for one year and after its expiry can be
re-applied for and a 10 year permit may then be issued.
It is also important for both EU and non EU members to be sure that their
passport is valid for at least 3 months following the issuing of a
residency permit.