Greek wills: forms, and publishing a will from abroad

Short answer

Greek law recognises the handwritten (ιδιόγραφη) will, written entirely by hand, dated and signed; the public (δημόσια) will, made before a notary with two witnesses or a second notary and one witness; and the secret (μυστική) will. After death a will must be published: under the current Civil Code text a notary publishes it on the electronic Wills Register, and a person holding a handwritten will abroad may present it to the Greek consular authority instead. A handwritten will often also needs a declaration of validity, made by act of a notary (for deaths from 16 September 2026, a certified notary), before it takes effect.

The forms of will

Handwritten will: written entirely in the testator's own hand, dated with day, month and year, and signed. No other formality is required. The testator may deposit it with a notary for safekeeping.
Public will: the testator declares his last wishes before a notary in the presence of two witnesses, or of a second notary and one witness. A testator who does not know Greek uses a sworn interpreter of his choice.
Secret will: a written document handed to a notary closed and sealed, under a procedure the Code sets out.
A will must be made personally. A will made jointly by two people in the same act is void unless it qualifies as an inheritance contract, which is possible from 16 September 2026.

Wills made before the 2026 reform

A will drawn up or revoked before Law 5303/2026 came into force is judged, as to form and the testator's capacity, by the previous law, even if the testator dies afterwards. Existing wills therefore do not need to be redone simply because of the reform, though a review is often sensible.

Publication after death

Under the current text of the Civil Code, a notary who holds a will must publish it on the electronic platform "Wills Register" kept by the notarial associations as soon as he learns of the death, and anyone holding a handwritten will must present it to a notary for publication. The notary records the whole will in minutes and keeps the original; whether the will is valid is for the court to decide.

A Greek consular authority that holds a will publishes it in the same way. A person who lives abroad and holds a handwritten will may present it to the head of the Greek consular authority, who then publishes it.

When a handwritten will takes effect

A published handwritten will that the testator had deposited with a notary takes effect before it is declared valid. One that was not deposited takes effect immediately only if it benefits descendants or the spouse; otherwise it must first be declared valid by act of a notary: for deaths from 16 September 2026, a certified notary from the notarial associations' list; for earlier deaths, under the procedure in force since 1 November 2025, the notary who published the will. A handwritten will published more than two years after the death must always be declared valid first. Annulment of a will provision must be sought within two years from publication.

Questions clients ask

Can I write a handwritten will in English?

A handwritten will is valid in any language the testator writes. For a public will before a Greek notary, a testator who does not know Greek uses an interpreter, who also signs the deed.

Does publication start the renunciation deadline?

For heirs called by a will, the renunciation period does not begin before the will is published.

My parent made a will in another country. Is it valid in Greece?

Greece judges the formal validity of a will made abroad under the 1961 Hague Convention on the form of testamentary dispositions, in force for Greece since 1983, which the EU Succession Regulation leaves in place for the States party to it, instead of its own rule. Have it checked before relying on it.

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.

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What forms of will are valid in Greece, and how is a will published, including from abroad?