According to the Law “Creation of a Development Friendly Environment for Strategic and Private Investments” (4146/2013) there is added a new paragraph in the Greek Immigration Law, which mentions that there can be granted a residency permit to citizens of countries not members of the European Union, who want to invest on buying or renting property worth more than 250.000,00 Euros.
The initiative, comes in response to strong demand from Arab, Chinese and Russian investors and is anticipated to give a give a great boost to the property market.
Valid for five years and open to renewal, the residence plan follows similar measures adopted by Hungary, Spain and Portugal in the past.
The permits will enable the holders, their spouses and children under the age of 18 to freely travel—though not work—in the Schengen area for three consecutive months at a time.
In more details :By decision of the General Secretary of Decentralised Administration, a residence permit for five (5) years is issued to a third-country citizen, if he/she has obtained a visa, if required, and legally owns, either personally or through a legal entity whose shares are wholly owned by him/her, property in Greece, or has, at minimum, a ten-year time-sharing contract under Law 1652/1986: \"Time-Sharing and Regulations on Related Issues\" (A’ 167) as applicable, or a 10-year lease of hotel accommodations or furnished tourist accommodation (houses) in tourist accommodation complexes according to Article 8, par. 2 of Law 4002/2011 (A’ 180).
The aforementioned residence permit may be renewed for the same duration (five years), if the property remains unchanged in its legal ownership status as described above and the contracts of ownership remain in effect, and other statutory conditions detailed above are met.
The minimum value of the property and the contract price of the time-share leases and the leases for hotel accommodations or tourist furnished accommodations (houses) in tourist accommodation complexes, according to this Article, shall be two hundred fifty thousand (250,000) Euro.
By joint decision of the Ministers of Interior and Finance, the value of the above-mentioned property may increase or decrease, and will be determined in accordance with the stated prices of the sale documents of the properties, or leases as per their contracts, or as determined by ministerial objective values. The period of residence, under these specific conditions, is not taken into account in cases of granting citizenship to said residents.
The aforementioned third-country citizen (property owner) may be accompanied by the members of his/her family, as specified under paragraph 1 of Article 54 of Law 3386/2005. Upon their own request, family members may be granted a personal residence permit that is renewed and/or expires concurrently with the residence permit of the sponsor (property owner). The residence permits do not allow a right to employment of any type.
The presence of a lawyer is considered necessary and determinative for the purchase of real estate in Greece. The lawyer first of all performs a legal control of the property in the Land Registry Office.
The deeds of the seller are controlled and it is checked that there are no mortgages or vindications registered against the seller and all the previous owners. The Lawyer also collaborates with the notary for the composition of the notarial purchase contract and is present with the purchaser while this purchase contract is signed.
In case the purchaser can not be present in all the steps of the purchase, he can appoint a lawyer to represent him by signing a power of attorney. This power of attorney, if the purchaser is in Greece, is composed before a Greek notary in the Greek language with the presence of a translator.
In case the purchaser is not in Greece he has the following options:
Singing the power of attorney in Greek language in a Greek Consulate of his country with the assistance of a translator. This document has immediate legal validity in Greece.
Signing the power of attorney before a notary of his countryn in the language of his country. This document has not yet immediate legal validity in Greece. First there has to be put by the responsible Authorities of the foreign country the APOSTILLE STAMP according to the contract of Hague of 1961, that will give to the document the legal power needed in Greece. After that, this power of attorney has to be translated into Greek language either from the Translation Sector of the Greek Ministry of Foreign Affairs or from a Greek lawyer, who knows efficiently the foreign language. The power of attorney gives the authorization to the lawyer to generally buy any real estate in Greece after the indication of the buyer and with the terms, the agreements and the price the buyer approves. The orders include the payment of the deposit, signing a preliminary contract, payment of the price, signing the definite notarial contract of the purchase, signing the tax declaration for the transfer of the real estate, issuing a Greek tax registration number, opening a bank account and making withdrawals from this bank account for the expenses of the purchase.
Each foreign person who wants to purchase real estate in Greece and has no income in Greece, has to transfer the purchase price from his country to his own Greek bank account. The next economical year after the purchase, the purchaser has to submit to the Greek Tax Authorities a tax declaration and declare the ownership of the real estate and prove where he earned the money for the purchase. For this reason, along with the tax declaration there is submitted a certificate issued from the Greek Bank of the purchaser that proves that the purchase price was transferred legally from the foreign country into Greece. For the opening of a Greek bank account usually it is necessary to submit to the bank a copy of the passport of the buyer, some personal information (address, place and date of birth etc), a document which proves the permanent residence of the buyer like an electricity bill, water bill, gas bill and also in case the buyer has a Greek Tax Number the relevant certificate from the Greek Tax Authorities, or a certificate regarding the Tax Returns (Tax Declarations) of the buyer issued by the Tax Authorities of his country.
The seller hands over to the lawyer of the buyer a copy of the deeds of the property and the lawyer begins the legal control.
Because the procedure for completing officially the purchase takes a some time until everything is prepared, the buyer usually pays a deposit to the seller to book the property and put it out of the market. The payment of the deposit is done with singing a private preliminary purchase agreement, but it is clarified that this is only a simple document and is valid only as a simple receipt.
After the legal control is completed, the notary begins to compose the purchase contract. The notary also composes the declaration for the tax of transfer or V.A.T. (depending on the kind of property) which is submitted to the Tax Office and the relevant tax or V.A.T. is being paid by the buyer before the signing of the definite contract. When the tax or V.A.T. is paid, the declarations are returned to the notary, the definite contract is being completed and it is signed by the contracting parties, the lawyers and the notary. After the signature, the notary prepares an official copy of the purchase contract, which is given to the lawyer of the purchaser and the lawyer submits the copy to the competent land registry office in order to register it. When purchase contract is registered, the buyer is considered as a legal owner of the property and gets an official copy of the purchase contract from the notary.
Greece is one of the smallest European countries, located in the most oriental point of Europe, in the Mediterranean Sea, between Italy and Turkey.
Despite its size, it is considered one of the top vacation destinations by the Europeans and the other nationalities due to its enormous natural beauty and the careless life style that it shows. Whether for winter or summer vacation, Greece offers many options. One of its strong advantages is the calm Mediterranean weather that allows traveling at ease and is ideal for perfect tanning in summer! On the sandy beaches the Greek islands you will fall in love with the unique blue color of the Aegean Sea.
Greece and the Greek Islands are the Europeans' favourite vacations destination.
Greece is a country of natural beauty and charm which welcomes every year millions of visitors from all over the world.
Crete is the largest island in Greece, and the fifth largest one in the Mediterranean Sea. The island of Crete is an extremeely popular area, visited by lots of tourists every year who want to enjoy the long beaches, scenic landscapes and mountains villages. Crete is after all, a small universe teeming with beauties and treasures that you will probably need a lifetime to uncover.
Crete was the Minoan civilization (ca.3000-1400BC),of the first civilizations in Europe and according to legend was the birthplace of Zeus, king of gods and men.
The current tourism infrastructure in Crete serves a wide range of tastes from large, luxurious hotels, with all the specified facilities (pools, sports and recreation facilities, etc.), to smaller family owned apartments or organized camps. The access of visitors to the island is by plane via the international airport at Heraklion and Chania airports in the state and Sitia or sea ports of Heraklion, Chania, Rethymnon, Agios Nikolaos, Sitia and Kastelli Kissamos.
Rethymno, in particular, is an area of great historical importance and natural beauty, with many places worth to visit. The prefecture of Rethymno is the heart of the island of Crete and is one of the most beautiful places in Greece. Rethymno awaits you with clear blue seas and Mount Psiloritis.
Byzantine churches and monasteries, enchanting Venetian monuments, the most well-preserved Renaissance city in Greece, with endless beaches, caves, gorges and uniques flora and fauna. Rethymno and its villages are live postcards, which are pervaded by the aroma of Cretan cuisine and the sound of the Cretan lyre. Rethymno is the homeland of Zeus, the god of Hospitality.
The great number of visitors who return repeatedly confirms the words of the poet: "Rethymno is not a place where you go to, but a place where you return".This is the Rethymno we offer you as an alternative for your holidays and we invite you to discover it.
The traditional and historic village of Agia Triada located 8km east of Rethymnon and is located in the valley between the olive and other fruit trees. It has all the necessary facilities such as shops, supermarkets, cafes and restaurants. Within walking distance of the village lie famous crisp, clean and sandy beaches, and the popular tourist resort of Platanias.
People live here amidst nature and emotions, outside the code of behavior found in big cities. No matter where you go, be it even to the most isolated village, our people will open their doors to you to treat you to a "tsikoudia" and be friend with you. Available houses for buying, are four two-storied independent villas with swimming-pools, in the region of Agia Triada in Rethymno of Crete.