What does emigrating to Greece cost?
Answer four questions and you'll see an honest range for your situation. Every item shows whether it's a checked rate or an estimate. The paperwork is the cheapest on the site here. The money is in the 2,700 kilometres and in the home.
Looking for the whole route to Greece, not just the costs? See the steps, the order and the paperwork →
A rough indication for your situation
A few short questions, and you get a range instead of an amount. That's deliberate: an exact figure would suggest a precision nobody has.
Count on a total of
€ 2.100 – € 7.600
Where does that difference come from?
- The first months€ 1.800 – € 6.500
Below you'll find per item where the upper and the lower limit come from.
- Aanvraag en papieren
- € 5 – € 150
- De verhuizing
- € 350 – € 900
- De eerste maanden
- € 1.800 – € 6.500
Every item, one by onePer item the amount, the source and whether it's a rate or an estimate
Aanvraag en papieren
- Registration certificate, AFM and AMKA€ 5 – € 25
- Certificates and any translations(estimate)€ 0 – € 150
De verhuizing
- The journey(estimate)€ 350 – € 900
Greece is the longest drive within the EU: well over 2,700 kilometres to Athens. That is three to four days on the road through six countries, with tolls in Austria, Italy and Greece itself. The well-worn route cuts that in half. You drive to Ancona, Bari or Brindisi and take the overnight ferry to Patras or Igoumenitsa, with a cabin and the car on board. Count on two to three overnight stays. In July and August the crossing has high-season fares.
De eerste maanden
- The first months(estimate)€ 1.800 – € 6.500
Rents vary widely. Athens now asks close to Dutch prices in the sought-after neighbourhoods, the provincial towns and the interior a fraction of that. On the tourist islands half the stock disappears into weekly holiday lets in summer. Count on a deposit of one to two months, the first month in advance and an agent's fee of usually one month's rent plus VAT. Add the double costs of the weeks of searching and the utility connections in your own name. On the mainland there is also a winter of heating in poorly insulated houses.
And if you buy a house?
This calculation assumes renting: the first months include deposit and rent in advance.
If you buy, count on 8 to 10% of the purchase price on top of this amount. On a home of € 250,000 that's € 20.000 to € 25.000.
The transfer tax of 3.09% is low by European standards, but the rest adds up. The notary costs 1 to 1.5% (statutory rate), registration 0.5%, your own lawyer about 1% and the estate agent usually 2%. For new builds 24% VAT applies in principle. Until 31 December 2026 inclusive the builder may suspend it on request; you then pay transfer tax instead of VAT. The tax is calculated on the purchase price or on the official "objective value", the value the Greek tax authority sets itself. Whichever is higher counts.
An order of magnitude based on averages, not a quote. The real amounts depend on your occupation, your route, the season and dozens of choices you still have to make.
Rates checked on 23 August 2026.
Ready to get started with Greece?
The whole journey in the right order, with your documents, your costs and all your cancellation letters. € 199 one-off, no subscription.
Also want to know whether your departure date is feasible, and where you start? Take the departure scan for Greece →
One thing you can sort out today
Closing down the Netherlands is the same work for everyone, wherever you're going. With the letter pack you enter your details once, and every cancellation and notification letter is ready: health insurance, rent, employer, bank, pension fund. Each comes with the date by which it has to go out. € 49 one-off, and it's also included in every plan.
In Vertrekklaar you get the complete picture of your own costs, with your route, your documents and your deadlines.
From range to your own budget
In Vertrekklaar the same model calculates with your real situation: who's coming, car along or not, mainland or island. The calculator above has four questions, the journey itself has more. Vertrekklaar also watches the deadlines: three months for the certificate, six months' car use before the relocation certificate and twelve months for the re-registration of the car. A one-off € 199, no subscription.
Leaving with AOW or a pension? Compare how countries tax your pension
Every step on one list, free
Not ready to start yet? Then you get the departure checklist for Greece: every step in order, to print and tick off. With it, five mails in a week and a half about the pitfalls and the real costs. If the rules for Greece change, you'll hear about it. After that we ask once where your plans stand, send one offer, and now and then one thing that fits your moment. No newsletter, and you can switch it off at any time.
Ready to begin?
64 journeys are fully ready: your step-by-step plan, your documents and your costs in one place, and the plan keeps an eye on your deadlines. You pay once, and then it's yours.