Hiring employees in Greece as a foreign company: the legal steps for the employer.

Before the employee starts work

Before work begins, the employer posts in ΕΡΓΑΝΗ ΙΙ the Digital Announcement of Start of Employment (Ψηφιακή Αναγγελία Έναρξης Εργασίας). It contains, in particular, the essential terms of employment listed in the next section.

The announcement is valid only when the employee has signed it by hand or with a qualified electronic signature, has certified it through gov.gr, or has accepted it in MyErgani. A later change of terms is filed in the same way, on a Digital Declaration of Change that the employee must accept.

If an employee is found working without the announcement having been made, the administrative sanctions for undeclared work apply (Law 4554/2018, art. 5).

The written terms the employer must give

Greece transposed Directive (EU) 2019/1152 on transparent and predictable working conditions by Law 5053/2023; the rules are now articles 70 to 81 of the Code. The employer must inform the employee in writing of the essential terms of the contract:

• The identity of the parties and the place of work or, where no place is fixed, the employer's seat.
• The post or specialisation, the grade, the category of employment and the object of the work.
• The start date and, for a fixed-term contract, the end date or expected duration.
• The length and conditions of any probationary period.
• Any training the employer provides.
• The paid annual leave and how and when it is granted.
• The procedure for ending the contract: written termination, notice periods and how severance is calculated.
• All remuneration, and how often and how it is paid.
• The normal daily or weekly working time, the arrangements for overtime and its pay and, where it applies, for shift changes. Where the work schedule is mostly unpredictable: the reference hours and days, and the minimum notice before an assignment.
• The collective agreement that sets the minimum terms, if any, and the social security institutions that cover the employee.
• For a worker supplied by a temporary employment agency, the identity of the user undertaking.

When and how the terms are given

The core terms (parties, place, post, start date, duration, probation, remuneration, working time) are given within one week of the start of work; the rest within one month. They may be handed over on paper, sent electronically in a form the employee can store and print, with proof of sending or receipt kept by the employer, or notified through MyErgani. Some items, such as leave, termination procedure and remuneration, may be given by reference to the legislation that applies.

An employer that has given the employee the Digital Announcement of Start of Employment, and any later Digital Declaration of Change, has met this duty of information. Failure to give the documents does not make the contract void, but the employee may complain to the Labour Inspectorate and administrative sanctions follow.

Types of contract

Indefinite duration. A contract whose duration is not fixed, and does not follow from the kind and purpose of the work, runs until one of the parties terminates it. This is the ordinary contract.

Fixed term. The contract ends automatically when its term expires. In the private sector it may be renewed without limit only where an objective reason justifies it, and the reason must be stated in the written renewal agreement or follow directly from it. Without an objective reason, successive contracts that together exceed three years, or more than three renewals within three years, are presumed to cover fixed and permanent needs and are converted into a contract of indefinite duration; the burden of proving otherwise is on the employer. Contracts are successive when they are made between the same employer and employee on the same or similar terms with no more than forty-five days between them, and in a group of companies the other group companies count as the same employer. If the employee continues to work after the term ends and the employer does not object, the contract is treated as renewed for an indefinite time.

Part time. The parties may agree, in a written individual contract, work of shorter duration than normal, for a fixed or an indefinite time. If the agreement is not in writing, full-time employment is presumed. A part-time employee may not be treated less favourably than a comparable full-time employee unless objective reasons justify it. Work on fewer days a week, fewer weeks a month or fewer months a year (rotation work) is agreed in writing in the same way.

Contractors. An agreement for services or for a piece of work is presumed to conceal an employment contract where the work is provided in person, exclusively or mainly to the same employer, for nine consecutive months.

Probation

On concluding a contract of indefinite duration the employer may agree a probationary period of up to six months. In a fixed-term contract the probationary period must be proportionate to the length of the contract: it may not exceed one quarter of it, nor six months, and if the contract is renewed for the same post and duties no new probationary period may be agreed.

If the employer judges, during or at the end of the period, that the probation was not successful, the contract ends automatically and the time worked counts for all rights acquired up to then. If the employee is kept on, the contract is treated as having started on the original hiring date. All the protective rules of employment law apply during probation.

Separately, employment under a contract of indefinite duration may be terminated during its first twelve months without notice and without severance, unless the parties agree otherwise. A probationary period that ended successfully counts towards those twelve months.

Working time and overtime

Full-time employment is forty hours a week in every sector, spread over five days (eight hours a day) or six days (six hours and forty minutes a day). Collective agreements and individual contracts may set shorter hours.

• Additional hours: where the contractual week is up to forty hours, the employer may require five more hours a week (the 41st to the 45th hour; eight hours, up to the 48th, in a six-day system). They are paid at the hourly wage plus 20% and do not count towards the overtime limits.
• Overtime: work beyond forty-five hours a week (forty-eight in a six-day system) is overtime and is subject to the formalities the law sets. Lawful overtime, up to four hours a day and 150 hours a year, is paid at the hourly wage plus 40%, subject to the rules on working and rest time.
• Overtime for which the formalities were not observed is unlawful overtime and is compensated at the hourly wage plus 120%.
• The employee may refuse overtime on the terms of article 12 of the Code. A refusal is not a ground for dismissal and may not lead to less favourable treatment.

The digital work card

Employers must have an electronic system for measuring working time that is connected with ΕΡΓΑΝΗ ΙΙ in real time. Working time is measured with the digital work card (ψηφιακή κάρτα εργασίας), which records the start and end of work, the break, any work beyond the lawful hours and every kind of leave.

The card does not yet apply to every employer. The sectors, and the size and kind of businesses, are set by decision of the Minister of Labour and Social Security: decision 49758/26.5.2022, extended in stages. Whether an employer is covered depends on its main activity code (ΚΑΔ) in the tax register. Following the decisions of 2 and 29 June 2026, the sectors covered include:

• Many manufacturing activities (not all; for example ΚΑΔ 19 and shipbuilding, 30.1, are not listed), and electricity and gas supply.
• Wholesale and retail trade.
• Hotels and other accommodation, restaurants and bars.
• Banking and other financial services, and insurance.
• Private security services.
• From 2 June 2026: telecommunications (ΚΑΔ 61); employment activities (78) and cleaning, building and landscape services (81); human health activities (86; doctors and dentists excluded); personal services (96).
• From 29 June 2026: water supply, sewerage and waste management; warehousing (ΚΑΔ 52.1); head-office activities and management consultancy; advertising, market research and public relations; business support services; gambling and betting; repair of computers, household goods and motor vehicles. For the newly covered sectors the administrative fines for the card apply from 12 October 2026 (tables 8 to 11 of the decision in Gazette Β' 3051/2026) and from 16 November 2026 (tables 12 to 18 of the decision in Gazette Β' 3791/2026).
• An employer that is covered must operate the card for all its employees who work with physical presence at its premises. The exact activity codes are listed in the tables of the decisions and should be checked against the company's own code.
• If an on-site inspection finds that an employee's card has not been activated, the fine is 10,500 euros for each such employee; three findings within twelve months lead to a temporary closure of fifteen days.

Minimum wage

The statutory minimum wage is set each year. For 2025, 2026 and 2027 it is set by joint decision of the Ministers of Labour and of National Economy, issued by the end of March with the assent of the Council of Ministers; the Code also provides for a yearly adjustment by a formula based on consumer prices and wages. No individual contract or collective agreement may set full-time pay below it, and part-time pay follows in proportion.

The decision now in force is no. 8934 of 27 March 2026 (Government Gazette Β' 1759/27.3.2026). From 1 April 2026 the minimum monthly wage for salaried employees (υπάλληλοι) is 920 euros and the minimum daily wage for manual workers (εργατοτεχνίτες) is 41.09 euros, for full-time employment and without distinction of age. Sector collective agreements that bind the employer may set higher pay.

Social security contributions, in outline

Employees are insured with e-ΕΦΚΑ. Contributions are calculated on the employee's remuneration and are shared between the employee and the employer (Law 4387/2016, art. 38). The employer files a periodic return (Αναλυτική Περιοδική Δήλωση, ΑΠΔ), and the data of the digital work card are cross-checked against it.

We do not give rates here: they have changed several times, and the company's accountant or payroll provider applies those in force. Registration matters on termination as well: a dismissal is valid only if the employee was entered in the payroll records kept for e-ΕΦΚΑ, or was insured.

Ending the contract

A fixed-term contract ends when its term expires. Either party may terminate any employment contract at any time for a serious reason (σπουδαίος λόγος), and this right cannot be excluded by agreement. A contract of indefinite duration is ended by the employer by dismissal. Written form, the conditions of validity, the grounds on which a dismissal is void and the filing in ΕΡΓΑΝΗ ΙΙ apply to every dismissal; only notice and severance depend on the contract having run for more than twelve months:

• Written form. The termination must be in writing.
• Validity. The dismissal is valid if it was made in writing, any severance due was paid and the employee was entered in the payroll records kept for e-ΕΦΚΑ or was insured. A late instalment of severance makes it void. A formal omission, other than non-payment of the severance, can be cured within one month of service of the employee's claim or of the request to resolve the dispute.
• Void dismissals. A dismissal is void if it is due to discrimination, if it is a reaction to the exercise of a lawful right, or if it breaches a specific protection, for example of pregnant employees and new parents, of employees who ask for or take family leave, or of trade-union officers.
• Filing. Every end of a contract (dismissal, resignation, automatic end of probation, termination by agreement, expiry of a fixed term) is announced in ΕΡΓΑΝΗ ΙΙ within four working days.
• Notice, after twelve months. Written notice of one month for service from twelve months to two years, two months from two to five years, three months from five to ten years and four months from ten years.
• Severance, after twelve months. An employer that dismisses without notice pays severance on a statutory scale: two months' pay after one completed year, rising to twelve months' pay after sixteen completed years. With notice, half that amount is due. Severance is calculated on the regular pay of the last month under full-time employment, up to a statutory ceiling on the monthly pay taken into account.
• Payment. Where severance exceeds two months' pay, two months' pay is paid on dismissal and the rest in two-monthly instalments. It is paid through a payment account.

Posting workers to Greece from another EU state

An undertaking established in another member state of the European Union or of the European Economic Area may post its own employees to Greece to perform a contract with a customer here, to work at an establishment or company of its group, or through a temporary employment agency. The employment relationship with the posting undertaking continues during the posting. Greece transposed Directive 96/71/EC, as amended by Directive (EU) 2018/957, by Presidential Decree 30/2021; the rules are now articles 256 to 265 of the Code, and articles 266 to 282 implement Directive 2014/67/EU on enforcement.

• Whatever law governs the employment contract, the posting undertaking must guarantee the Greek terms of employment on maximum work and minimum rest periods, paid annual leave, remuneration, health and safety, the protection of pregnant women, new mothers and young workers, equal treatment, accommodation provided by the employer, and travel, board and lodging allowances.
• Where the posting lasts more than twelve months, all other Greek terms of employment apply as well, except the rules on concluding and ending the contract, including non-competition clauses, and supplementary pension schemes. The twelve months are extended to eighteen if the undertaking files a reasoned notification with the Labour Inspectorate before they expire.
• At the latest when the service begins, the posting undertaking files with the Labour Inspectorate of the place of work, in Greek, a written declaration and a list of the posted workers. The declaration names the undertaking, its representative in Greece, who acts as contact for the authorities, the places of work and the recipient of the service, the start date and likely duration, and the activity.
• During the posting, copies of the employment contract or equivalent document, payslips, time sheets and proof of payment of wages are kept at the place of work. For two years after the posting they must be sent to the authorities within fifteen days of a request, in Greek or in English.
• Breaches of these duties are punished with administrative fines.

Employees who are not EU citizens

A national of a country outside the European Union may be hired and employed only if he or she resides lawfully in Greece and holds a residence permit or visa that gives access to the labour market (Law 5038/2023, art. 23). Residence permits and visas are not covered on this page.

How L+A works with employers

L+A acts for employers. We draft employment contracts and the terms that go into the Digital Announcement of Start of Employment, including management contracts, fixed-term and part-time arrangements and confidentiality and non-competition terms. We prepare the internal policies and work rules an employer needs, and review the company's ΕΡΓΑΝΗ ΙΙ practice together with the accountant or payroll provider the client has chosen, who makes the filings. We advise on dismissals before they are made, prepare the termination documents, and represent the employer in disputes before the Labour Inspectorate and the Greek courts.

The work is led by senior lawyers of the firm, which has its seat in Piraeus and a presence in Alimos, Athens, in English and Greek, by email. This page is general information, not legal advice. It does not deal with payroll calculations, tax, residence permits, collective agreements in particular sectors, or the case of a foreign employer that hires in Greece without a Greek company or branch, which needs separate advice. Reviewed on 11 November 2026.

Sources

Statutes and official sources for the facts on this page:

• Labour Code (Κώδικας Εργατικού Δικαίου), Presidential Decree 62/2025 (Gazette Α' 121/11.7.2025), as amended, in particular by Law 5239/2025 (Gazette Α' 178/17.10.2025) and, for art. 577, by Law 5316/2026 (Gazette Α' 105/6.7.2026): art. 2 (probation), arts 70, 73, 75, 78 and 81 (information on the terms of employment; art. 73 par. 1 and art. 75 par. 1 as amended by arts 4 and 5 of Law 5239/2025), arts 95, 98 and 102 (fixed-term contracts), art. 113 (part-time work; par. 1 and 3 as amended by art. 6 of Law 5239/2025), art. 140 (presumption of employment), arts 141 and 141Α (minimum wage), arts 187 to 189 and 194 (working time and overtime; art. 194 par. 2 and 3 as amended by art. 7 of Law 5239/2025), arts 256 to 259, 272 and 281 (posted workers), arts 323, 325, 330, 331, 333, 334, 336 to 338, 340, 341 and 350 (termination; art. 330 as amended by art. 14 and art. 350 by art. 16 of Law 5239/2025), art. 577 (ΕΡΓΑΝΗ ΙΙ; par. 1 as amended by art. 18 of Law 5239/2025, par. 2 by art. 33 of Law 5316/2026), art. 578 (Digital Announcement of Start of Employment, as replaced by art. 20 of Law 5239/2025), art. 580 (digital work card, as amended by art. 22 of Law 5239/2025), art. 586 par. 5 (ministerial decisions on the card).
• Law 5239/2025 (Gazette Α' 178/17.10.2025), art. 24 par. 2 (abolition of the annual staff table from 1 January 2026) and art. 103 (entry into force).
• Provisions codified in the Labour Code, as listed in its table of codified provisions: Law 5053/2023 (Gazette Α' 158/26.9.2023), arts 3, 5, 6, 14 and 21, transposing Directive (EU) 2019/1152; Law 4808/2021 (Gazette Α' 101/19.6.2021), arts 55, 66 and 74; Law 2112/1920 (Α' 67), arts 1 and 3, and Law 3198/1955 (Α' 98), as amended by Law 4093/2012 (subpar. ΙΑ.12) and Law 4111/2013; Presidential Decree 81/2003 (Α' 77), art. 5, as amended by Law 3986/2011, art. 41; Law 1892/1990 (Α' 101), art. 38; Law 5163/2024 (Gazette Α' 199/6.12.2024), arts 6 and 15; Presidential Decree 30/2021 (Α' 75), transposing Directive (EU) 2018/957.
• Joint ministerial decision 8934/27.3.2026, statutory minimum wage and daily wage (Gazette Β' 1759/27.3.2026).
• Ministerial decision 49758/26.5.2022 on the digital work card (Gazette Β' 2668/31.5.2022), as amended, most recently by decisions 15441/2026 (Gazette Β' 3051/2.6.2026) and 18047/2026 (Gazette Β' 3791/29.6.2026).
• Law 4919/2022 (Gazette Α' 71/7.4.2022), art. 11 (Employers' Register of e-ΕΦΚΑ; par. 3 added by Law 5019/2023, Gazette Α' 27/14.2.2023, art. 66): https://www.latsoudislaw.com/law/?law=GEMI4919
• Law 4387/2016 (Gazette Α' 85/12.5.2016), art. 38 (contributions of employees and employers).
• Law 4554/2018 (Α' 130), art. 5 (sanctions for undeclared work), as referred to in art. 578 par. 4 of the Labour Code.
• Law 5038/2023 (Migration Code, Gazette Α' 81/1.4.2023), art. 23, as replaced by Law 5078/2023 (Gazette Α' 211/20.12.2023), art. 190.