Retirement visa in Greece

• The I.8 permit is for non-EU citizens who have enough stable yearly income to cover their living costs in Greece, which is how retirees and others living on money from abroad stay long term.
• It gives no right to dependent work or to any independent economic activity in Greece, for you, your spouse or partner, or your family members.
• The statute article and the 2024 ministerial decision set no minimum age. They accept a pension from abroad, a bank account, or own funds of lawful origin as proof.
• People who already live in Greece lawfully and receive a pension from a Greek public insurer, whatever its size, can renew as I.8 holders without the means test.
• We read the Migration Code in the Government Gazette issue of 1 April 2023 that the Ministry of Migration and Asylum publishes. The Code has been amended since, so confirm current rules with the Decentralised Administration.

Sources: Hellenic Republic, Ministry of Migration and Asylum (published in the Government Gazette). Checked 17 October 2026.

• The test is about €3,500 a month, assessed as net income or capital. To be safe, have more than €3,600 a month.
• The amount rises by 20% for a spouse and by 15% for each child, so about €4,200 a month for two people and about €4,725 for a couple with one child. To be safe, have more than €4,300 a month for two and more than €4,800 for three.
• Income that arrives regularly, such as a pension, salary or dividends from abroad, is assessed month by month. Other income, such as bank deposits, is assessed over a year, and the decision gives no separate yearly figure, so how large a savings balance must be is unknown.
• The means can be held by each family member or by the family together. An older Attica administration page prints €2,000 a month under the 2014 law, so the figures run from €2,000 to €3,500; the 2024 Gazette decision is the later one.

Sources: Ministry of Migration and Asylum (published in the Government Gazette), Hellenic Republic. Checked 17 October 2026.

• An Attica administration page, written under the 2014 law, lists a copy of the passport, the type D entry visa, a private insurance policy, proof of means (mainly a foreign pension or a Greek bank statement), photographs and a document showing place of birth if the passport does not.
• Supporting documents for each national visa and permit category are set by joint ministerial decision 7/95931/2024. We did not find its I.8 list, so confirm the current documents with the consulate.

Sources: Hellenic Republic. Checked 17 October 2026.

• You first apply for a national (D) visa, which covers more than 90 and up to 365 days, at the Greek mission in whose area you are legally located. Once in Greece you apply for the I.8 permit, which the Secretary General of the Decentralised Administration grants.
• Neither the statute nor the pages we read give a processing time for the visa or the I.8 permit, so how long a decision takes is unknown.

Sources: Hellenic Republic. Checked 17 October 2026.

• The permit fee for I.8 is €1,000, or €150 for people who receive or are entitled to a pension from a Greek public insurer. Re-issuing a permit costs €100.
• The Foreign Ministry's US missions page gives the Schengen visa fee of €80 for some applicants but no figure for the long-stay national visa, so that fee is unknown here.

Sources: Hellenic Republic. Checked 17 October 2026.

• The I.8 permit lasts three years and can be renewed for equal periods, while the means test is still met. Family members receive individual permits that end when yours does. The older Attica page says two years, so confirm the length with the Decentralised Administration.

Sources: Hellenic Republic. Checked 17 October 2026.

• Long-term resident status is permanent and needs five years of lawful, uninterrupted residence, income of at least the yearly pay of a minimum-wage worker plus 10% for dependants, full health insurance and a Greek language and history test.
• Time away does not reset the five years if each absence is shorter than six consecutive months and all absences together come to no more than ten months.
• The article on who cannot use long-term status excludes study and training permits, protection statuses, temporary stay and diplomatic status. It does not name I.8 permits, but whether years on an I.8 permit count towards the five is not stated, so it is unknown.

Sources: Hellenic Republic. Checked 17 October 2026.

• You are a Greek tax resident if your permanent or main home, habitual abode or centre of vital interests is in Greece, or if you are there for more than 183 days in any 12 months. Residents are taxed on worldwide income, and Greek tax on foreign income is reduced by the foreign tax paid, up to the Greek tax on that income.
• A 7% flat tax on all foreign income is open to pensioners who move their tax residence to Greece, if they were not Greek tax residents in five of the previous six years and move from a state with a tax administrative-cooperation agreement. It lasts up to 15 tax years. The sources we read do not list which countries have such a cooperation agreement, so whether yours qualifies is unknown.

Sources: Independent Authority for Public Revenue (AADE), Hellenic Republic. Checked 17 October 2026.

• Digital nomad visa in Greece
• Work permit in Greece
• Family visa in Greece
• Golden visa in Greece

• Visas in Greece
• Greece

1. Visas (Foreign Ministry): short stay and the Schengen area (as recorded by the Atlas Visa Map), Hellenic Republic, Ministry of Foreign Affairs. Checked 27 May 2026. As recorded by the Atlas Visa Map: US passport holders visa-free, 90 days in any 180-day period in the Schengen area (map refreshed 13 May 2026, verified 27 May 2026).
2. Visas (Greece in the USA), Internet Archive copy of 20 April 2026, Hellenic Republic, Ministry of Foreign Affairs (Greek missions in the USA). Checked 15 October 2026. National (D) visa: longer than 90 and up to 365 days; the mission where the applicant is legally located handles it; no digital nomad checklist on this page.
3. Contact our Missions in the USA, Internet Archive copy of 3 October 2026, Hellenic Republic, Ministry of Foreign Affairs (Greek missions in the USA). Checked 15 October 2026. Lists the Washington embassy and the consulates general in San Francisco, Boston, Los Angeles, New York, Chicago and Tampa and the consulates in Atlanta and Houston, with the states each covers.
4. Identity History Summary checks: frequently asked questions, United States Federal Bureau of Investigation. Checked 16 October 2026. Fee 18 dollars; the FBI authenticates results and you then send them to the State Department for an apostille.
5. Status table: Convention of 5 October 1961 abolishing the requirement of legalisation for foreign public documents (Apostille Convention), Hague Conference on Private International Law (HCCH). Checked 16 October 2026. In force for Greece from 18 May 1985, the United States from 15 October 1981, Canada from 11 January 2024, Australia from 16 March 1995 and New Zealand from 22 November 2001.
6. US citizens abroad: filing requirements, Internal Revenue Service. Checked 15 October 2026. US citizens abroad file as they would at home.
7. US-Greece income tax convention of 1950 and protocol of 1953 (PDF), Internal Revenue Service. Checked 15 October 2026. Article XIV: each country may tax its own citizens as if the convention did not exist; Greece credits US tax on US-source income; private pensions from one country to a resident of the other are exempt in the source country; article XVIII exchanges information.
8. US international Social Security agreements, US Social Security Administration; Internet Archive copy. Checked 15 October 2026. Internet Archive capture of 4 October 2026, read on 15 October 2026. Ecuador is not on the list of agreements in force.
9. Greece in Canada: home page with the list of Greek missions, Internet Archive copy of 17 June 2026, Hellenic Republic, Ministry of Foreign Affairs (Embassy of Greece in Ottawa). Checked 15 October 2026. Lists the embassy in Ottawa, the consulates general in Montreal, Toronto and Vancouver and an honorary consulate in Winnipeg; the link to the consulates' areas of jurisdiction did not open.
10. Visas (Greece in Canada), Internet Archive copy of 25 September 2026, Hellenic Republic, Ministry of Foreign Affairs (Embassy of Greece in Ottawa and its consulates general). Checked 15 October 2026. Long-stay national visa from a mission in Canada: appear in person before the mission covering where you legally live, be interviewed, file the general documents; prices in euros converted monthly; cash in Canadian dollars only (Ottawa, Toronto and Montreal also take debit cards); no digital nomad or I.8 checklist on the page.
11. Greece: pensions and benefits (Canada-Greece social security agreement), Government of Canada (Service Canada). Checked 15 October 2026. Agreement in force since 1 May 1983, replaced by a revised agreement in force since 1 December 1997; covers CPP and OAS, not the QPP; Greek schemes named.
12. Entry into force of the tax convention between Canada and the Hellenic Republic (notice), Department of Finance Canada. Checked 15 October 2026. Entered into force on 16 December 2010; applies to withholding on or after 1 January 2011 and to other taxes for taxation years beginning on or after 1 January 2011; archived notice.
13. Criminal record checks: processing times and fees, Royal Canadian Mounted Police. Checked 16 October 2026. Federal fee 25 Canadian dollars per check (waived for Canadian immigration applicants, not for a Greek visa), collected with any local fingerprinting charge; 3 business days or less with no match, up to 120 business days if manual processing is needed.
14. Consular Section, Embassy of Greece in Canberra, Internet Archive copy of 24 August 2025, Hellenic Republic, Ministry of Foreign Affairs (Embassy of Greece in Canberra). Checked 15 October 2026. Address 9 Turrana Street, Yarralumla ACT; public hours Monday to Wednesday 09:30 to 14:30; an appointment is mandatory.
15. Honorary Consulates (Greece in Australia), Internet Archive copy of 10 May 2026, Hellenic Republic, Ministry of Foreign Affairs (Embassy of Greece in Canberra). Checked 15 October 2026. Brisbane honorary consulate page says its consulate can help with a Schengen visa but all visa matters are handled by the Embassy of Greece in Canberra; also lists honorary consulates in Darwin, Newcastle and Hobart.
16. Greece travel advice, Internet Archive copy of 12 October 2026, Smartraveller (Australian Government, Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade). Checked 15 October 2026. Page updated 30 September 2026: Greece is in the Schengen area; Australian passport holders register biometrics under the EES; Schengen duration rules apply; no confirmed ETIAS date.
17. National police checks, Australian Federal Police. Checked 16 October 2026. Fee 57 Australian dollars (114 with fingerprints); most checks posted within 48 hours, fingerprint checks 15 to 30 business days; lists visa applications for some countries and working overseas as purposes.
18. Australia and Greece: Social Security Agreement (press release of 1 October 2008), Internet Archive copy of 20 November 2025, Australian Embassy, Athens. Checked 15 October 2026. Says the agreement was signed on 23 May 2007 and entered into force on 1 October 2008.
19. Income tax treaties: treaties in force (Australia), Australian Treasury. Checked 15 October 2026. Table last updated 24 March 2026: the only Greece entry is an Airline Profits Agreement signed 5 May 1977, in force from 7 April 1981; there is no double tax agreement with Greece.
20. Greece and New Zealand (bilateral relations), Internet Archive copy of 16 May 2026, Hellenic Republic, Ministry of Foreign Affairs. Checked 15 October 2026. The Embassy of Greece in Canberra is accredited to and represents Greece in New Zealand; a Greek embassy in Wellington operated from 1999 to 2015; the Honorary Consulate in Wellington (3-5 Hania Street, Mount Victoria) names the Embassy in Canberra as its competent authority.
21. Exchange of Notes between New Zealand and Greece concerning visas, 6 December 1961 (record and treaty text), New Zealand Ministry of Foreign Affairs and Trade (New Zealand Treaties Online). Checked 15 October 2026. In force since 6 January 1962, no termination. New Zealand citizens may enter Greece without a visa if they do not intend to stay longer than three months or take up gainful employment; those who wish to work or stay longer, once approved, get visas free of charge; the agreement does not exempt anyone from Greek law on entry, residence and employment.
22. List of Member States' bilateral visa waiver agreements with third countries allowing an extension of the period of stay (2019/C 130/07), European Commission (Official Journal of the European Union, C 130, 8 April 2019). Checked 15 October 2026. Greece's section lists New Zealand: entry into force 6.12.1961, authorised length of stay 90 days, ordinary passports. This is the April 2019 list; we found no newer one.
23. New Zealand's social security agreement with Greece, Work and Income (Ministry of Social Development). Checked 15 October 2026. Page updated 23 June 2026: covers New Zealand Super, Veteran's Pension, Supported Living Payment, Sole Parent Support for widows and widowers, Orphan's Benefit and Funeral Grant, and Greek old age, invalidity, survivors and funeral benefits; residence periods can be added together; it describes payments, not contributions.
24. Double tax agreements (New Zealand tax treaties), Inland Revenue (New Zealand), Tax Policy. Checked 15 October 2026. 41 agreements in force, signed or under negotiation: Greece is on none of the lists.
25. Criminal records: request your own record, New Zealand Ministry of Justice. Checked 16 October 2026. Online request through the criminal records service; the Ministry aims to answer within 20 working days; the page gives no fee and does not mention overseas visas or apostilles.
26. Migration Code (Law 5038/2023), Government Gazette A 81 of 1 April 2023: text as first published, Hellenic Republic, Ministry of Migration and Asylum (publishes the Government Gazette issue). Checked 17 October 2026. Article 163(8) (I.8 permit for people with sufficient means: stable yearly income, three years, renewable, family permits, no right to work, renewal without the means test for people with a Greek public pension), article 171 (permit fees: I.8 1,000 euros or 150 euros with a Greek public pension; re-issue 100 euros), articles 143 to 145 (long-term resident status: five years, income, insurance, language test; absences under six months each and ten months in total count; excluded permits listed in article 143). This is the text as first published on 1 April 2023; later amendments are not in this file. Greek text.
27. Joint ministerial decision 225679/2024: amount and proof of sufficient means (Government Gazette B 5223, 17 September 2024), Ministry of Migration and Asylum (published in the Government Gazette). Checked 17 October 2026. Opened 17 October 2026. Article 1(1)(ι): at least EUR 3,500 a month for the type I.8 permit and the matching national visa, plus 20% for a spouse and 15% for each child, shown by a foreign pension, a bank account or own funds of lawful origin, assessed monthly for periodic income and yearly for other income; article 1(1)(β): Australian work and holiday participants EUR 3,000; article 2: income test for family reunification (the yearly net pay of a minimum-wage worker, monthly pay times 14); article 3: income test for long-term resident status.
28. Residence permit documents: financially independent persons (Attica Decentralised Administration), Hellenic Republic, Decentralised Administration of Attica. Checked 15 October 2026. Written under Law 4251/2014: 2,000 euros a month (+20%, +15%) and a 1,000 euro fee; older than the 2024 decision, so not used for the figure.
29. Residence permit following approval of an invitation for dependent employment: initial granting (E.4), Hellenic Republic, National Registry of Administrative Public Services (mitos.gov.gr). Checked 17 October 2026. Opened 17 October 2026; last update shown 31 July 2026. Online application after entry on the national visa; fee EUR 150 plus EUR 16 for the printed permit; 50 to 80 days estimated; documents listed by joint ministerial decision 7/95931/2024. The page still says an employment contract of at least one year, while article 61 as amended by Law 5275/2026 says six months.
30. Tax residence for natural persons (Income Tax Code, article 4), Independent Authority for Public Revenue (AADE). Checked 17 October 2026. Greek tax resident if the permanent or main home, habitual abode or centre of vital interests is in Greece, or if present in Greece more than 183 days in any twelve-month period; the 183-day test is not applied to people there only for tourism, medical, therapeutic or similar private reasons for no more than 365 days.
31. Taxation of non-Greek-sourced income obtained by Greek tax residents (as recorded by the Atlas Tax Map), Independent Authority for Public Revenue (AADE). Checked 30 May 2026. As recorded by the Atlas Tax Map: Greek tax residents are taxed on worldwide income (checked 30 May 2026).
32. Income taxation (Tax Guide), Hellenic Republic, Ministry of National Economy and Finance. Checked 17 October 2026. Greek tax residents are taxed on income arising in Greece and abroad; scale for employment, pension and business income from tax year 2026: 9%, 20%, 26%, 34%, 39% and 44%, with lower rates in the second and third bands for dependent children; the guide also notes that incentives exist for foreign tax residents who transfer their tax residence to Greece, under conditions (articles 5A, 5B and 5C of the Income Tax Code).
33. Tax incentives for attracting new tax residents under articles 5A, 5B and 5C of the Income Tax Code (guide of 12 November 2025), Independent Authority for Public Revenue (AADE). Checked 17 October 2026. 5A: not Greek tax resident in 7 of the previous 8 years, investment of at least 500,000 euros within three years, 100,000 euros a year for 15 years; 5B: pension from abroad, not Greek tax resident in 5 of the previous 6 years, move from a state with a tax administrative cooperation agreement, 7% on foreign income, 15 tax years; 5C: 50% exemption for 7 tax years on employment or business income earned in Greece, not Greek tax resident in 5 of the previous 6 years, stay at least two years.