Moving to Greece From the UK: Tax, Residency and Setup in 2026

Short answer: Since Brexit, UK citizens need a residence permit to live in Greece for more than 90 days in any 180. Once you live in Greece for more than 183 days in a 12 month period, you become a Greek tax resident and Greece taxes your worldwide income. Most UK pensions are then taxed in Greece only, and many retirees can pay a flat 7% on all their foreign income instead of the normal Greek rates. UK civil service and military pensions are the main exception: they usually stay taxed in the UK.

This guide is the checklist we go through with every client moving from the UK. Each section links to a longer guide if you need the detail.

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1. The right to live in Greece

As a UK citizen you can stay in the Schengen area for up to 90 days in any 180 day period without a visa. Days spent in Greece on a Greek permit or long stay visa do not count towards that limit.¹ To stay longer, you need a permit. You get a national (Type D) visa from the Greek consulate before you travel, then apply for the permit once you arrive.²

The routes UK movers use most:

• Financially independent person. For retirees and people living on savings. You need at least €3,500 a month from a pension, savings or other lawful income, plus 20% for a spouse and 15% per child. You may not work in Greece.³
• Digital nomad. For people working remotely for employers or clients outside Greece. There is a monthly income test, and your work must stay outside Greece.³
• Golden Visa. For property buyers. €800,000 in Attica, Thessaloniki, Mykonos, Santorini and any island with more than 3,100 residents, and €400,000 elsewhere. It must be one property of at least 120 m². €250,000 is only for converting a commercial building to housing or restoring a listed building. Short term letting (Airbnb) is not allowed.⁴

Already living in Greece before 1 January 2021? You are covered by the Withdrawal Agreement. Make sure you hold the biometric residence document for UK nationals (Engrafo Diamonis 18(4)). It protects your rights and avoids problems at the border.²

Once you arrive, register your address with the police within 90 days. After 5 years of legal residence you can apply for permanent residence.²

2. When you become a Greek tax resident

The residence permit and tax residence are two different things. Greek tax law makes you a tax resident if you are physically in Greece for more than 183 days in total in any 12 month period. You are then resident from your first day in Greece. You can also be resident earlier if your permanent home or the centre of your life is already in Greece.⁵

As a tax resident you declare your worldwide income in Greece every year, on the E1 return. Our 183 day rule guide explains the test, and what happens if both countries think you are resident.

You also need a Greek tax number, the AFM. You need it for the permit, the bank, a lease, utilities and almost everything else, so it comes first. Our AFM guide covers the routes.

3. What to tell HMRC

Leaving the UK does not end your UK tax position by itself.

• If you do not file Self Assessment: send form P85 to HMRC after you leave. It also lets you claim back any PAYE tax overpaid in the year you left.⁶
• If you file Self Assessment: fill in the residence pages (SA109) with your return for the year you leave. These cannot be filed with HMRC’s online service, so the paper deadline of 31 October applies.⁷

Whether you are still UK resident is decided by the UK’s Statutory Residence Test, not by the Greek rules. In short: fewer than 16 days in the UK in a tax year makes you non-resident automatically, and 183 days or more makes you resident. Between the two, your ties to the UK decide.⁸ Plan your UK visits in the first year with this in mind.

4. How your UK pensions are taxed

The UK and Greece have had a tax treaty since 1953. It has never been amended.⁹ Two articles matter for pensions.¹⁰

Your income	Taxed in
UK State Pension	Greece
Private and workplace pensions, annuities	Greece
Civil service, military and other government service pensions	UK

• Private and workplace pensions: the UK exempts them as long as you are taxed on them in Greece.
• Government service pensions: taxed in the UK only, unless you are a Greek national who is not also British. In that case Greece can tax them too, with credit for the UK tax.

The UK State Pension is not a government service pension in this sense, so it is taxed in Greece like a private pension. Some public sector schemes, such as teachers’ or NHS pensions, are less clear cut. We check each pension against the treaty before you apply for anything.

If UK tax is still being taken from a private pension after you move, the treaty lets you ask HMRC to stop it and refund what was overpaid. We tell you which form applies to your pension.

Our double tax treaty guide covers the treaty in more depth.

5. The three Greek tax regimes worth checking

Greece has three special regimes for people who move their tax residence there. You can only use one.

• 7% flat tax for pensioners (Article 5B). For people with a pension from abroad who were not Greek tax residents in 5 of the last 6 years. 7% on all foreign income, for up to 15 years. The deadline to apply is now 31 October.¹¹ Read our 5B guide →
• 50% off tax on Greek work income (Article 5C). For people who take a job or start a business in Greece. Half of that income is tax free for 7 years.¹² Read our 5C guide →
• Non-dom flat tax (Article 5A). €100,000 a year covers all your foreign income, whatever the amount. Only worth it for high earners, and it needs a €500,000 investment in Greece.¹² Read our 5A guide →

For most UK retirees on a state pension plus a workplace pension, the 7% regime is the one that makes the biggest difference. It also covers UK rent, dividends and interest. One limit: if your main pension is a government service pension that the treaty keeps in the UK, the 7% regime does not change that.¹¹

6. Your UK State Pension in Greece

Your UK State Pension goes up every year while you live in Greece, the same as in the UK, because Greece is in the EEA.¹³ You can claim it from abroad through the International Pension Centre, from 4 months before your State Pension age.¹⁴

7. Healthcare

• If you get a UK State Pension: ask the NHS for an S1 form. You can apply online up to 90 days before you move. In Greece, get an AMKA (social security number) at a KEP citizen service centre, then register the S1 with EOPYY, the Greek health fund. You then use Greek public healthcare on the same terms as Greek pensioners, with the UK paying for it.¹⁵
• If you work in Greece: your Greek social security contributions give you access to public healthcare.¹⁶
• If you neither work nor have an S1: you will need private health insurance.¹⁶

Once your S1 is registered in Greece, you also get a UK issued GHIC for trips to other EU countries.¹⁵

8. Driving

You can drive on your UK licence for your first 6 months as a resident. After that you should switch to a Greek licence. You cannot renew a UK licence while you live in Greece.¹⁶

If you lived in Greece before 2021, you can exchange your UK licence without a test at your regional transport office.¹⁷ For people who arrived later, check with that office before your 6 months run out, as the rules for a test free exchange are less clear.

9. Bringing your money over

Greek tax law tests your spending against your declared income. If you buy a property or a car in Greece, the tax office expects your declared income or documented savings to cover it.¹⁸ The proceeds of selling your UK home count, as long as you can show where they came from.

Keep the paperwork: the completion statement for any UK sale, bank statements, and pension statements. Your Greek bank will ask where the money comes from too. Our guide to bringing money into Greece explains how to do this without problems later.

10. Your first year, in order

1. Choose your residence route and apply for the visa in the UK.
2. Get your AFM. If you are buying property first, see our AFM guide for non-residents.
3. Open a Greek bank account.
4. Arrive, register your address with the police, and apply for the permit.
5. Register your tax residency with AADE, and get your AMKA.
6. Tell HMRC you have left (P85 or SA109).
7. Apply for the 7% or 50% regime if one fits. Watch the 31 October deadline for the 7% regime.
8. Register your S1 with EOPYY if you have one.
9. File your first Greek tax return the following spring.

Common mistakes

1. Thinking the permit settles your tax. It does not. Tax residence follows the Greek tests: more than 183 days, or having your permanent home or main ties in Greece.
2. Assuming every UK pension is taxed in Greece. Government service pensions usually stay in the UK.
3. Missing the 7% deadline. If you moved by 2 July, you can still have 7% for the year you arrived, but only if you apply by 31 October that year.
4. Not telling HMRC. You may keep paying UK tax you do not owe.
5. Arriving without paper trails for your savings. It makes the bank and the tax office harder to deal with.

Want us to handle the Greek side?

We get your AFM, register your tax residency, check your pensions against the treaty, apply for the right regime and file your first return through our licensed accountant. You deal with us in English, by email.

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Frequently asked questions

I am British and Greek. Do I need a permit? No. As a Greek citizen you are an EU citizen and do not need a residence permit. The tax rules in this guide still apply to you. For government service pensions, the treaty treats dual nationals as British, so those pensions stay taxed in the UK.

Do I pay tax in both countries in my first year? Usually not on the same income. The UK may treat you as resident for part of the year and Greece from the day you arrived. The treaty decides which country taxes what. This is the year to get advice.

Can I keep my UK bank account? Yes. As a Greek tax resident you declare the interest on your Greek return.

Do I still need to file in the UK? Only if you still have UK income that is taxable in the UK, such as UK rent or a government service pension. Otherwise, once you are non-resident and have told HMRC, you usually do not.

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This article is for general information only and does not constitute tax or legal advice. It reflects Greek and UK rules and official sources as of October 2026. Rules change; check your own case before acting.

Footnotes

1. GOV.UK, Greece travel advice: entry requirements. ↩

2. GOV.UK, Living in Greece. ↩ ↩² ↩³

3. Joint Ministerial Decision 225679/2024, ΦΕΚ Β’ 5223/17.09.2024, issued under Article 163(8) of the Migration Code (Law 5038/2023). ↩ ↩²

4. Law 5038/2023, Article 100, as replaced by Law 5100/2024, Article 64. Consolidated text published by the Ministry of Migration. ↩

5. Income Tax Code (Law 4172/2013), Article 4; AADE FAQ for people living abroad. ↩

6. GOV.UK, Get your Income Tax right if you’re leaving the UK (P85). ↩

7. GOV.UK, Tax if you leave the UK to live abroad. ↩

8. GOV.UK, Tax on foreign income: residence; HMRC RDR3, Statutory Residence Test guidance. ↩

9. HMRC Double Taxation Relief Manual, DT8253. ↩

10. UK and Greece Double Taxation Convention, 1953, Article VIII (government service) and Article X (pensions and annuities). ↩

11. Income Tax Code, Article 5B; AADE Decision Α.1192/2026, ΦΕΚ Β’ 5767/24.09.2026, Articles 4 and 5. ↩ ↩²

12. Income Tax Code, Articles 5A and 5C; AADE guide to the tax incentives for new tax residents. ↩ ↩²

13. GOV.UK, Benefits and pensions for UK nationals in the EEA or Switzerland. ↩

14. GOV.UK, State Pension if you retire abroad. ↩

15. NHSBSA, Applying for healthcare cover if you live abroad; GOV.UK, Healthcare in Greece. ↩ ↩²

16. GOV.UK, Living in Greece; GOV.UK, Healthcare in Greece. ↩ ↩² ↩³

17. Greek National Registry of Administrative Procedures (mitos.gov.gr): exchange of a UK driving licence, under Joint Ministerial Decision Δ30/Α3/24136, ΦΕΚ Β’ 368/2021. ↩

18. Income Tax Code, Articles 32 and 34; AADE circular Ε.2008/2019. ↩