The deed is executed before the symvolaiografos , the Greek notary. But unlike in the Netherlands, with that signature you are not yet the owner: the transfer is only completed once the deed is registered with the Ktimatologio , the national land registry. For years that was a drawn-out step of weeks. Since the digital transfer folder on akinita.gov.gr it works like this: the notary starts the file online; you give your consent via TaxisNet, the online portal of the Greek tax authority; the supporting documents are retrieved automatically from AADE, EFKA, the Ktimatologio and the chamber of engineers; you pay the transfer tax digitally by card or e-banking; the deed is registered within one working day , if no old issues attach to the property. So ask your notary explicitly for the digital route. For properties with a history in the abolished mortgage registers it takes, according to the Ktimatologio, four working days on average. Since 10 June 2025 gifts and inheritances also run through the same folder.

Buying a house in Greece: first the tax, then the notary — and only done at the land registry

Q: What does buying a house in Greece cost in transfer tax?

The transfer tax ( foros metavivasis ) is 3% of the value of the property, plus a municipal surcharge of 3% on that tax. So it is effectively 3.09%. The return is a joint return by buyer and seller . It is nowadays digital via myPROPERTY on the tax portal, and the notary draws it up. After that you have three working days to pay. Only with that proof of payment can the deed be executed. So the order is immovable: first the tax authority, then the signature. For whoever is really going to live there, there is a serious exemption for the main residence . Up to € 200,000 for a single person and € 250,000 for a married couple (with increases per child) you pay no transfer tax. You only settle up on the excess. EU citizens qualify for it, but note the condition that determines everything for emigrants: you must live in Greece permanently, or settle there within two years of the purchase . Whoever buys from the Netherlands therefore claims the exemption on a promise. And that deadline is shorter than it sounds. Cost item or time limit What applies Transfer tax 3%, plus a 3% municipal surcharge on that tax: 3.09% Paying after the joint return within 3 working days, before the deed Main-residence exemption up to € 200,000 single, € 250,000 married couple, with increases per child Residence condition for the exemption living there permanently, or within 2 years of the purchase Registration at the Ktimatologio via akinita.gov.gr within 1 working day; on average 4 working days with old issues E9 return by 31 January of the year after the purchase ENFIA annually, on every property you own on 1 January

Q: What do I pay every year after that?

Two things follow after the handover of the keys: The E9 return : the declaration of your property holdings to the tax authority, by 31 January of the year after the purchase at the latest. If your transfer ran digitally via myPROPERTY, the E9 of buyer and seller is generated automatically. Check it, but the work is done. The ENFIA , the annual property tax on every property you own on 1 January. The assessment comes from the tax authority based on your E9. The amount depends on location, floor area and value. Put it in your annual budget, because it comes every year, including on a house that stands empty.

In Greece you pay the transfer tax of 3% before the notary may execute the deed, and you are only truly the owner once the deed is registered with the Ktimatologio — which via the digital counter akinita.gov.gr can now be done in one working day. For whoever is really going to live there, there is an exemption up to € 200,000 to € 250,000, with a two-year settlement requirement. After that come the E9 return and the annual ENFIA.

4 min read

Written and checked by Auke on 26 September 2026, against the sources at the bottom. Is something no longer right? Report it below and I'll fix it.

Yes, as an EU citizen you buy in Greece without restriction. The only condition for being able to sign is a Greek tax number (AFM).

Three things to know beforehand:

The costs. You pay a transfer tax of 3% (effectively 3.09% with the municipal surcharge) before the notary may execute the deed, plus the notary.
The find for whoever is really going to live there. For the main residence there is an exemption up to € 200,000 (single) or € 250,000 (married couple), provided you live there within two years of the purchase.
The pitfall. You are only the owner once the Ktimatologio, the Greek land registry, has registered the deed. The Netherlands doesn't have that step. Digitally that nowadays happens within one working day, if your notary takes that route.

In terms of order, Greece resembles Portugal: the tax is paid by you, before the deed.

In your first year you don't buy. You rent, you get to know the island or the region, and only then do you decide — why that order is fixed. This article is for the moment you have got that far.

What do I need before I can sign?

Everything in this process hangs on your Greek tax number: the tax return, the deed and the assessments afterwards. That AFM is the first thing you arrange, and it can already be done from the Netherlands.

What does buying a house in Greece cost in transfer tax?

The transfer tax (foros metavivasis) is 3% of the value of the property, plus a municipal surcharge of 3% on that tax. So it is effectively 3.09%.

The return is a joint return by buyer and seller. It is nowadays digital via myPROPERTY on the tax portal, and the notary draws it up. After that you have three working days to pay. Only with that proof of payment can the deed be executed. So the order is immovable: first the tax authority, then the signature.

For whoever is really going to live there, there is a serious exemption for the main residence. Up to € 200,000 for a single person and € 250,000 for a married couple (with increases per child) you pay no transfer tax. You only settle up on the excess.

EU citizens qualify for it, but note the condition that determines everything for emigrants: you must live in Greece permanently, or settle there within two years of the purchase. Whoever buys from the Netherlands therefore claims the exemption on a promise. And that deadline is shorter than it sounds.

Cost item or time limit	What applies
Transfer tax	3%, plus a 3% municipal surcharge on that tax: 3.09%
Paying after the joint return	within 3 working days, before the deed
Main-residence exemption	up to € 200,000 single, € 250,000 married couple, with increases per child
Residence condition for the exemption	living there permanently, or within 2 years of the purchase
Registration at the Ktimatologio via akinita.gov.gr	within 1 working day; on average 4 working days with old issues
E9 return	by 31 January of the year after the purchase
ENFIA	annually, on every property you own on 1 January

When am I the owner?

The deed is executed before the symvolaiografos, the Greek notary. But unlike in the Netherlands, with that signature you are not yet the owner: the transfer is only completed once the deed is registered with the Ktimatologio, the national land registry.

For years that was a drawn-out step of weeks. Since the digital transfer folder on akinita.gov.gr it works like this:

the notary starts the file online;
you give your consent via TaxisNet, the online portal of the Greek tax authority;
the supporting documents are retrieved automatically from AADE, EFKA, the Ktimatologio and the chamber of engineers;
you pay the transfer tax digitally by card or e-banking;
the deed is registered within one working day, if no old issues attach to the property.

So ask your notary explicitly for the digital route. For properties with a history in the abolished mortgage registers it takes, according to the Ktimatologio, four working days on average. Since 10 June 2025 gifts and inheritances also run through the same folder.

What do I pay every year after that?

Two things follow after the handover of the keys:

The E9 return: the declaration of your property holdings to the tax authority, by 31 January of the year after the purchase at the latest. If your transfer ran digitally via myPROPERTY, the E9 of buyer and seller is generated automatically. Check it, but the work is done.
The ENFIA, the annual property tax on every property you own on 1 January. The assessment comes from the tax authority based on your E9. The amount depends on location, floor area and value. Put it in your annual budget, because it comes every year, including on a house that stands empty.

In Vertrekklaar this is phase 5 of 5 of the journey: the same steps, but applied to your situation — in your order, tickable, and with the deadlines monitored. See the whole journey to Greece.

What this rests on

The facts in this article come from these official pages. Rules change. When in doubt, go by the source, not this article.

AADE — the transfer tax on real estate (rate, return before the deed, main residence exemption) — aade.gr
AADE — what you arrange before you buy a home (tax number, return and payment) — aade.gr
AADE — the E9 return and the ENFIA — aade.gr
Ktimatologio — the digital transfer folder on akinita.gov.gr and registration within one working day — ktimatologio.gr

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