Required Documents for
the Golden Visa

Most of the documents required for the Golden Visa
process are collected in Greece, however a few of them
should be collected and sent by the applicant’s country
of origin. Documents may vary depending on the
applicant’s citizenship or personal status, but these are
the basic documents used in different stages of the
process.

Proper collection of documents
may save important time to finalize
the total investment for the golden
visa process.

Documents Required to Open a Greek Bank Account

The documents required to open a bank account may vary depending on each bank’s internal policy or even the client’s profile (profession, age, etc.). It is recommended to discuss with your lawyers and cooperate with your bank to get a preapproval of the documents needed before starting the collection or sending the originals. Below is the common list of the documents required usually by the Greek banks.

Power of Attorney signed in front of Greek Consulate or Greek Notary

True copy of passport certified by Greek Consulate or Greek Lawyer

Greek Tax Identification Number (TIN)

Public document proving the country of tax residency, stating the relevant Tax ID Number (TIN)

Public document (municipality, tax authorities etc.) from the country of residency proving the current home address abroad

Utility Bills (e.g. water bills, electricity bills, mobile/landline bills) proving:
1. Current home address abroad
2. Mobile telephone number

Recent Documents proving: 1) Profession; 2) Annual Income; 3) Business Address; 4) Business Telephone

Recent Documents proving the existence of funds enough to cover the investment:
1. Bank statement going back at least 2 years with enough balance to cover the investment (from the bank account that will be used to transfer the funds in Greece)
2. Reference Letter from the client’s bank addressed to Varnavas Law Firm.

All documents must be:

recent (issued in the last 3 months);
translated in English language;
Public documents must be duly certified and apostilled for international use (Apostille Stamp, certification by the local Greek consulate etc.).

Documents Required for the Submission of the Golden Visa Application

Collected in the country of origin:

There are several documents required to be collected by the applicants on their country of origin, especially the ones proving the relationship between the main investor and other qualifying family members. A right and diligent certification should be done for a successful golden visa application.

The main documents that the applicants should collect on their country of origin are:

A valid passport recognized by Greece with at least two blank pages and issued within the previous ten years (original or full passport true copy).
Certificate of Family Status (including all family members who will apply).
Note: In case your country does not issue a family certificate, you will need a public document from your country proving that your country only issues marriage and/or birth certificates. In that case, you can replace the Certificate of Family Status with marriage certificates for spouses and birth certificates for descendants or/and ascendants.
Document proving the applicant’s CITY of birth (not Country or Region), in case it is not shown on your passports or the family status certificate.

Important Notes:

All documents must be recently certified for international use with Apostille Stamp from the country of issuance
(in the last 6 months).
Documents from Non-Apostille countries must be certified by the relevant Greek Consulate, operating in the country of issuance.
All documents must be translated in Greek language (this is managed by our law firm).

Collected and handled in Greece

Investment-related documents proving the correct investment implementation process. For investments in real estate, these documents can be the Sales Contract, the Title Deeds, the Land Registry Certificate and the Notary Certification. For investments in financial products, these documents are usually the Bank’s certificate or the Company’s certificate together with the approval of the investment by the Ministry for Development. These are the most important documents for the examination of the application and they are usually prepared by the law firm representing the applicants.
Government Fees/Stamp Duties (“e-paravolo” as they are called in Greek) which are issued electronically via an online platform, and each comes with a specific code for its payment at the Bank.
Health Insurance Contract for all applicants to cover the cost of hospitalization and medical care in Greece. Most of the applicants buy local health insurance packages, at a very low cost, especially designed to cover the Greek Immigration Code’s requirements.
Passport-type biometric photos for all applicants (4 printed photos plus digital files).

Collection of Biometric Data

An important part of the process, and the only requiring the physical presence of all applicants (main investor and family members) is the collection of the biometric data. The applicants may travel to give their biometric data within twelve (12) months after the submission of their application.

According to the EU legislation, the Greek Authorities must collect:

Biometric “passport type” photos of all applicants, including infants over 3 months old.
Fingerprints for all applicants, including children over 6 years old.
Specimen of signature for all applicants, including children over 12 years old.

Fingerprints of the index fingers and the thumbs are collected by both hands. In case of applicants who are not in a position to give their fingerprints, due to temporary or permanent inability then it is possible to submit a medical certificate stating the disease concerned.

The photos must be a close-up of the full head and upper shoulders/chest, contain no other objects or people and be in clear contrast to the background.