According to Greek labor law, the first 12 months of an indefinite employment agreement, counted from the date on which the agreement comes into force, are considered to be a probationary period. During this period, either party may terminate the employment relationship without notice and without severance pay, unless otherwise agreed by the parties.
After the first 12 months, the employer must give the following notice period before the termination of the employment contract:
An employer who gives an employee written notice according to the above pays only half of the statutory severance pay due to the dismissed employee.
A notice period is not required for fixed-term contracts.
Employers are required to formally report every type of employment termination to the national digital system ERGANI II within 4 working days. The notification must be submitted electronically using the official termination form specified by the Ministry of Labor.
Foreign nationals who wish to work in Greece must obtain a residence permit and a work visa. The foreign national must submit the employment contract showing that their remuneration is equal to Greece's minimum wage. The residence permit is issued for 3 years at a time. It can be renewed for 2 or 3 years if the following conditions are met:
Greece grants an EU Blue Card for highly qualified employment under Category E.1. The applicant must have a valid employment contract or binding job offer for highly skilled work with a minimum duration (typically at least 6 months) and meet a salary threshold (generally at least 1.5 times the average gross annual salary in Greece, subject to updates). The Blue Card is typically issued for up to 3 years, provides enhanced mobility within the EU, and allows family reunification.
Effective February 6, 2026, Greece has implemented a single permit system for residence and work authorization for certain categories under Law 5275/2026. Third-country nationals who wish to apply for a single permit for employment purposes must have a national long-stay visa (Type D). Those who entered Greece using a tourist visa type cannot apply for the single permit. After entering Greece, eligible persons can submit a single application for a Residence+Work permit. If approved, the permit is issued with 1 to 3 years validity.
In Greece, every employee on a fixed-term or a permanent contract is entitled to annual paid leave from the beginning of their employment. This leave is to be granted by the employer on a pro-rata basis, depending on how long the employer has employed the employee. The proportion is calculated based on 20 working days’ leave for a 5-working-day week or 24 working days’ leave for a 6-working-day week, corresponding to 12 months’ continuous employment.
The employer must grant the employee the correct proportion of the above regular leave by the end of the first calendar year in which the employee was hired. During the second calendar year, the employee is entitled to take regular paid annual leave in portions, according to the length of service. During leave, the employee is entitled to their normal pay and benefits. Leave is increased by 1 working day for each year of employment, beyond the first year, up to 26 working days or up to 22 days if the employee operates on a 5-working-day week basis.
During the third and subsequent calendar years, the employee is entitled to take all their annual leave at any time during the year. From October 2025, employees are allowed to split their annual leave under exceptional circumstances by requesting their employer. At least 1 part of the leave must include at least 6 working days in a 6-day workweek and 5 working days in a 5-day workweek or, in the case of minors, 12 working days. The employee's request, as well as the employer's decision, must be kept in the enterprise records for 5 years, in electronic or printed form.
Employers must electronically submit to the labor monitoring system, ERGANI II, the granting of the leave in inventory, within the next calendar month following the month of its granting.
Hours of Work
Greek labor law sets a hard ceiling of 8 hours per day and 48 hours per week. Standard full-time work is 40 hours per week, which employers may distribute over a 5-day schedule (8 hours per day) or a 6-day schedule (6 hours 40 minutes per day). Employers may adopt shorter full-time schedules through individual or collective agreements, and under working-time arrangement rules, a full-time week may also legally consist of 4 working days.
From October 2025, employers are allowed to arrange their working schedule so that employees can work 10 hours a day but not exceeding 40 hours a week, provided that the additional working hours per week are deducted from the working hours of another period of time (period of reduced employment) in the form of rest days or reduced working hours. This effectively allows a 4-day work week with 10 hours daily. The duration of such working hours cannot exceed a total of 12 months, and not less than 1 week. Employees have the right to refuse to provide this additional work. This law also permits employees to work up to 13 consecutive hours per day for a single employer, comprising 8 hours of regular work, 1 hour of overwork, and up to 4 hours of overtime. This can be used up to a maximum of 3 days per month and 37 days per year. Employees retain the right to refuse, and refusal cannot be grounds for dismissal or adverse treatment.
Breaks and Meal Periods
Employees must receive 11 consecutive hours of rest in every 24-hour period and at least 35 hours of uninterrupted weekly rest. If more than 4 continuous hours are worked, employees are entitled to a 15–30 minute unpaid break, which must be taken in the middle of the workday and not at its start or end.
Timekeeping
Private employers must use the Digital Work Card system connected to ERGANI, which records employees’ working hours in real time and enables the Labor Inspectorate to verify compliance.
Telework must be agreed upon between the employer and employee upon hiring or by amending the employment contract. Telework can also apply for public health protection or upon the employee's request in case of a documented health risk.
According to Greek labor law, the duration of maternity leave is set at 17 weeks for private-sector employees. Of this 17-week period, 8 weeks must be granted to the worker before confinement and 9 weeks after confinement. If the worker gives birth prematurely, the remaining maternity leave is to be granted after confinement, so that the maternity leave amounts to a total of 17 weeks. This leave is also extended to same-sex partners. Effective October 2025, adoptive and foster mothers for a child up to the age of 8 years are also entitled to postnatal maternity leave. If an employee fostering a child makes use of the leave provided for herein and subsequently adopts the child, she is not entitled to the leave again.
During maternity leave, employees are paid 100% of their earnings by the state social insurance fund and the Public Employment Service (DYPA), up to a cap set by the social insurance fund. To receive full maternity benefits, the mother must have worked 200 working days during the previous 2 years. After the basic maternity leave, mothers are entitled to another special leave of 6 months, during which time the state will provide a benefit equal to the statutory minimum wage.
Minimum wage is set annually by a Ministerial Decision after a consultation is carried out between the social partners and the government, with the technical and scientific support of specialized scientific, research, and related bodies and experts, on issues of economy and in particular labor economics, social policy, as well as labor relations. Wage rates are set taking into account the state of the Greek economy and its prospects for development in terms of productivity, prices, and competitiveness, employment, the unemployment rate, incomes, and wages.
Effective April 1, 2026, the minimum wage in Greece is EUR 920 (euros) per month for white-collar workers and EUR 41.09 per day for blue-collar workers.
The law states that salary must be paid regularly, determined by individual employment contracts.
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