Hire employees in Greece
What a foreign company needs to know before employing people in Greece: whether you need a local entity, what an employee costs once 14 salaries and EFKA contributions are added, how the 2026 tax scale and minimum wage work, what ERGANI II and the digital work card require, and how notice and severance are calculated. Written for CHROs, CFOs, General Counsel and founders.
Quick answers
The questions leadership teams ask first.
Do I need a local entity in Greece to hire?
No. There are three routes:
- Employer of Record. Dryft Global employs the person in Greece through a compliant local employer, declares the hire on ERGANI II, registers them with e-EFKA and runs the 14 salary payroll. You direct the work.
- Direct local entity. You form a private company (IKE), then register with AADE, e-EFKA and ERGANI II: several weeks before the first payroll.
- Independent contractor. Lawful only for genuinely independent work. A freelancer working personally and mainly for you for 9 consecutive months is presumed to be an employee.
When should I use an EOR instead of registering locally?
Use an EOR for your first engineers, support or sales staff in Greece, when you want to start in days and do not want to build ERGANI II filings, the digital work card and a 14 salary payroll yourself. Your own entity earns its keep for a sustained team or a sales office signing Greek contracts.
What does an employee actually cost beyond salary?
Employer EFKA contributions are 21.79% on all 14 annual payments, up to EUR 7,761.94 of monthly earnings. Because salaries are paid 14 times a year, total cost works out at about 43% above 12 times the monthly salary. Budget roughly 1.43 times the monthly salary multiplied by 12.
How difficult is termination in Greece?
In the first 12 months of an indefinite contract the employer can terminate without notice or severance unless agreed otherwise. After that, the employer either gives 1 to 4 months' notice and pays half the statutory severance, or dismisses without notice and pays full severance of 2 to 12 months' pay. Severance must be paid on the termination date, and the termination filed on ERGANI II within 4 days.
Can Dryft Global legally employ my team in Greece?
Yes. Dryft Global employs your team in Greece through a compliant local employer, structured with the temporary agency work rules in mind. We declare hires on ERGANI II, run e-EFKA and AADE filings, pay the Christmas, Easter and leave bonuses, handle the digital work card, and manage notice and severance.
Hiring routes compared
Speed, set-up burden and liability differ by route.
| Factor | Direct local entity | Dryft Global EOR | Independent contractor |
|---|---|---|---|
| Time to first payroll | Several weeks | Days to 2 weeks | Days |
| Local entity required | Yes, IKE, AE or branch | No | No |
| ERGANI II, e-EFKA and AADE | Your registrations | Handled by Dryft Global | Contractor's own |
| Digital work card | Your obligation | Handled by Dryft Global | Not applicable |
| Statutory liability | Direct corporate exposure | Assumed by Dryft Global | High after 9 months of personal work |
| Best fit | Sustained team, local sales | First hires, engineering teams | Short independent projects |
What an employee costs in Greece
Greek employer cost is driven by EFKA contributions, paid on each of the 14 annual salary payments. The model below is an Athens software engineer on EUR 2,500 a month in 2026.
| Component | Annual (EUR) | Notes |
|---|---|---|
| 12 monthly salaries | 30,000 | EUR 2,500 a month |
| Christmas bonus | 2,604 | About 1 month, paid by 21 December |
| Easter bonus | 1,302 | Half a month, paid by Holy Wednesday |
| Leave allowance | 1,250 | Half a month |
| Annual gross (14.0625 salaries) | 35,156 | The real salary cost |
| Employer EFKA | 7,661 | 21.79%; employee pays 13.37% |
| Total employer cost | 42,817 | About 43% above 12 x monthly salary |
Two ways to read this: employer contributions add 21.79% on top of the 14 payments, and the full cost is about 42.7% above 12 times the monthly salary, or about EUR 3,568 for each month worked, before the EOR fee. The employee takes home about EUR 25,200 a year after EFKA and tax if single and over 30, and more if under 30. Ask us for a cost model with current rates applied.
Payroll and tax
Salaries are stated monthly and paid into a bank account, with three extra payments a year: the Christmas bonus, the Easter bonus and the leave allowance. The employer files an analytical periodic declaration (APD) to e-EFKA and pays contributions by the end of the following month, and files and pays income tax withholding through myAADE by the end of the second month after payment. Hires must be declared on ERGANI II before the first working day, and written terms given within one week.
Income tax withholding
From 2026 employment income is taxed at 9% up to EUR 10,000, then 20%, 26%, 34%, 39% and 44% above EUR 60,000. Employees aged 25 and under pay 0% on income up to EUR 20,000, those aged 26 to 30 pay 9%, and parents pay lower rates in the middle bands. Withholding is calculated on 14 salaries. Qualifying relocating hires can have 50% of their employment income exempted for 7 years under the Art. 5C regime.
Minimum wage 2026
The minimum wage is EUR 920 a month for salaried employees and EUR 41.09 a day for manual workers from 1 April 2026, up from EUR 880. The government has announced a target of EUR 1,000 a month by January 2028, which is not yet law.
Leave and mandatory benefits
- 14 salaries. Christmas bonus, Easter bonus and leave allowance are mandatory, adding about two months' pay a year.
- Annual leave. 20 working days in the first full year, 21 in the second and 22 from the third, rising to 25 and 26 with long service. At least one 5-day block must be granted.
- Public holidays. Nine mandatory paid holidays, including 25 March, Easter Monday, 15 August and 28 October. Other days are widely observed by agreement or practice.
- Sick pay. The employer pays 50% for the first 3 days, then EFKA pays sickness benefit and the employer tops up to full pay for half a month or a month depending on service.
- Maternity. 17 weeks, followed by 9 months of special maternity protection paid by DYPA at the minimum wage.
- Paternity. 14 working days paid by the employer.
- Working time. 40 hours a week. Overtime above 45 hours pays 40% extra, capped at 150 hours a year; Sunday and holiday work pays 75% extra.
- Digital work card. Real-time recording of working hours on ERGANI II, being extended across the economy.
Termination and notice periods
Probation can last up to 6 months, and in the first 12 months of an indefinite contract termination needs no notice or severance. After that, notice and severance work as follows.
| Service | Notice | Severance without notice |
|---|---|---|
| 12 months to under 2 years | 1 month | 2 months' pay |
| 2 to under 4 years | 2 months | 2 months' pay |
| 4 to under 5 years | 2 months | 3 months' pay |
| 5 to under 10 years | 3 months | 3 to 5 months' pay |
| 10 years or more | 4 months | 6 months' pay, rising to 12 at 16 years |
- Notice halves severance. With notice, the employer pays half the statutory severance; without notice, the full amount.
- Formal conditions. Written notice, severance paid in full on the termination date, and the employee registered with EFKA. Missing any of these can make the dismissal invalid.
- File within 4 days. Termination is filed on ERGANI II with form E6.
- Abusive dismissal. Courts can award at least 3 months' pay and up to twice the statutory severance, or reinstatement where the dismissal is void.
- Protected employees. Mothers for 18 months after birth, fathers for 6 months, union officials and employees on leave have added protection.
Can I use independent contractors?
Only for genuinely independent work. Greek law presumes that a contract for services conceals employment where the person works personally, exclusively or mainly for the same client for 9 consecutive months, including remote work. Reclassification brings back EFKA contributions, the 14 salary entitlements, severance rights and fines. Placing a worker under another company's direction is regulated as temporary agency work, which requires a Ministry of Labour licence, so the employing structure matters. For anyone who works like an employee, an EOR set up through a compliant local employer is the safe route.
The legal framework in brief
Greece is a civil law system where statute sets most terms, collective agreements can improve on them, and nearly every employment event is filed on ERGANI II. The instruments you will hear most:
- Labour Law Code, P.D. 62/2025. Consolidates contracts, working time, leave, the 14 salary rule and termination.
- Laws 4808/2021, 5053/2023 and 5239/2025. Notice periods, the digital work card, probation, the first 12 months rule and working time flexibility.
- Law 4093/2012. The statutory severance scale.
- Income Tax Code, Law 4172/2013. Withholding, the 2026 scale under Law 5246/2025 and the Art. 5C relocation regime.
- Social security. e-EFKA contributions of 21.79% employer and 13.37% employee, up to EUR 7,761.94 a month.
- Data protection. GDPR and Law 4624/2019, enforced by the Hellenic Data Protection Authority; webcam monitoring of teleworkers is banned.
- Immigration and right to work. EU nationals work freely. Others use the single permit under Law 5275/2026 or the EU Blue Card, with a 90-day decision limit.
- Authorities. Ministry of Labour, e-EFKA, AADE, ERGANI II, DYPA, the Labour Inspectorate and the Ministry of Migration and Asylum.
Where the talent is
About 10.4 million people, with unemployment of 7.6% in September 2026. Greece ranked 20th in the world for English proficiency in 2025, and the lower 2026 tax rates for under 30s and the Art. 5C relief make it easier to attract young and returning professionals. Time is UTC+2 (UTC+3 in summer), and Greece is in the EU, the eurozone, Schengen and NATO.
| Region | Talent and industry concentration |
|---|---|
| Athens and Attica | Headquarters, software, fintech, shipping and finance |
| Thessaloniki | Second technology hub, with corporate digital centres and universities |
| Patras | University city with engineering talent |
| Heraklion, Crete | University, research centres and tourism |
Greece Implementation Kit
This page tells you the rules. The kit tells you what to do, in what order, and what goes wrong when you skip a step.
- Step-by-step checklist, from route selection to first payroll
- ERGANI II hiring declaration and written terms within one week
- 14 salary payroll calendar: Christmas, Easter and leave bonuses
- e-EFKA and AADE filing deadlines
- Freelancer 9 month presumption and agency work risk checklist
- Notice, severance and ERGANI E6 termination pack
- Every official Greek authority with direct links
This guide is general information, not legal, tax or immigration advice. The minimum wage is reviewed each April, the EFKA ceiling each January, and the 2026 tax scale, the Labour Law Code and the digital work card rollout are new. Confirm current figures and the employment structure with a qualified adviser or with Dryft. Last reviewed November 2026.
Ready to hire in Greece?
Tell us who you want to hire and where they sit. You will get a cost model and a compliant route within a day, from a person who has done this before.