Inheriting property in Greece when you live abroad

Short answer

Under Greek law the heir acquires the inheritance automatically at death, but may renounce it within four months, or within one year if the deceased last lived abroad or the heir was living abroad when the period began. Greek real estate passes to the heir only once a public acceptance document (or a certificate of inheritance) is registered, and the inheritance tax return is due within nine months, or one year in cross-border cases. Most steps can be handled from abroad with a Greek tax number (ΑΦΜ) and a power of attorney.

Which country's law decides who inherits

For deaths on or after 17 August 2015, the EU Succession Regulation 650/2012 decides which law governs the whole succession. The general rule is the law of the country where the deceased was habitually resident at death; a person may instead choose the law of a country whose nationality they hold. The chosen or designated law applies even if it is the law of a country outside the EU.

Whatever law governs the succession, recording rights in the Greek land registers, and the effect of recording or not recording them, follows Greek law. A family abroad therefore often has a foreign law deciding who inherits and Greek procedures deciding how the Greek property is put in the heirs' names.

The Greek steps, in order

In a typical case the work runs in this order. Some steps overlap, and a lawyer or notary in Greece can handle most of them on the heirs' behalf.

Obtain a Greek tax number (ΑΦΜ); non-residents apply online through myAADE.
Find out whether there is a will and have it published.
Decide whether to accept or renounce, within the renunciation deadline.
File the inheritance tax return within nine months, or one year if the deceased died abroad or the heir lived abroad at the time of death.
Sign a notarial acceptance of the inheritance and register it, together with the Greek property, in the land registry or cadastre.
To sell or transfer the property, the acceptance must first be registered; for deaths from 16 September 2026 the heir also needs court permission to sell estate assets, unless he has declared that he will administer the estate freely and so accepted unlimited liability.

Deaths before and after 16 September 2026

Law 5303/2026 rewrote large parts of the inheritance chapter of the Greek Civil Code. Its core rules apply to persons who die on or after 16 September 2026. For earlier deaths the previous rules continue to apply, with specific transitional exceptions, for example on how an estate is partitioned. Always start by fixing the exact date of death.

Acting from abroad

Heirs abroad usually sign one power of attorney, either at a Greek consular authority or before a local notary, with an apostille where the country is party to the Hague Apostille Convention or legalisation where it is not, so that a representative in Greece can obtain documents, file the tax return and sign the acceptance. A renunciation made through a representative needs a special power of attorney in notarial form.

Questions clients ask

Do I have to travel to Greece to inherit?

Not necessarily. The tax number can be requested online through myAADE, and the remaining steps can be carried out by a representative under a power of attorney signed abroad.

Is property the deceased owned outside Greece taxed in Greece?

Property located in Greece is taxed whatever the nationality of the deceased. Movable property abroad is also taxable if the deceased was a Greek national, wherever resident, or a foreign national resident in Greece; movables abroad of a Greek national settled abroad for at least ten consecutive years are exempt.

What if nobody does anything?

If the renunciation deadline passes, the inheritance is deemed accepted. Tax and registration obligations remain, and late filing has consequences.

Sources

This page is general information, not legal advice; the answer in any real case depends on its facts and dates.

L+A advises families, business owners and heirs living abroad on inheritance and succession in Greece.

Send us your question

Tell us about your case. A lawyer of the firm will reply by email.

Your message goes only to the lawyers of the firm and is used only to reply to you.

How does inheriting property in Greece work if I live outside Greece?