Documents Required to Sell Property in Greece

Chalkidiki Real Estate assembles this file for owners, coordinating the lawyer, engineer, surveyor, energy inspector, accountant and municipality so that the items arrive in a workable order. Each professional remains responsible within their own competence.

Requirements change and the exact list depends on the property and its history. This page is a planning guide, not individual legal or tax advice.

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Why the File Decides the Timetable

Two properties can be identical in every commercial respect and take radically different times to sell. The difference is almost always the file.

A prepared seller publishes with the technical and legal position already established. When an offer arrives, due diligence is a formality of one to three weeks and the deed follows. An unprepared seller publishes, accepts an offer, and only then discovers that the engineer needs six weeks, the E9 is wrong, and the municipality shows arrears. By the time it is fixed, the buyer has bought elsewhere — and the property carries a marketing history that the next buyer will read as a warning.

There is a second, less obvious cost. A seller who cannot produce documents negotiates from weakness. Every unanswered question becomes a risk the buyer prices, and buyers price risk generously in their own favour. A complete file is worth real money at the negotiating table, not just time on the calendar.

The practical rule is simple: start the document work at the same time as the valuation, before anything is photographed or published.

The Complete Checklist

Additional documents apply to inherited property, plots, apartments, company-owned property, new builds and sales by representative. Those are covered in the sections below.

Title Deed and Chain of Ownership

The title deed is the notarial document by which you acquired the property — purchase, inheritance, parental gift, donation or, in older cases, a distribution among family members. You need the deed itself and the evidence that it was registered, since in Greece registration is what makes ownership effective against third parties.

The buyer’s lawyer will not stop at your deed. They will trace the chain of ownership backwards, normally across at least twenty years and sometimes considerably further where the history is complicated, to confirm that each transfer in the chain was valid and properly registered.

Older Chalkidiki titles produce recurring problems: deeds describing the property by reference to neighbours rather than by measured boundaries, areas that differ from the modern survey, properties still registered in the name of a deceased parent, and gaps where a transfer was executed but never registered.

If you cannot find your deed, copies are obtainable from the notary who drafted it or from the notarial archive, and registration details from the land registry or cadastre. If the deed does not match the register, the correction should be started immediately — it is a lawyer’s procedure with a timetable measured in weeks or months, not days.

Cadastral Extract and Diagram

Chalkidiki has been progressively transferred from the old land registry system to the national cadastre. Where the cadastre is operational, the property has a unique cadastral number (KAEK) and a registered geometry, and the buyer’s lawyer will work from the cadastral record.

You need the cadastral extract, which shows the registered rights over the property, and the cadastral diagram, which shows its registered shape and position. Both are obtained from the cadastre, in most cases online.

Errors from the transition are common and worth checking before a buyer finds them. Typical examples are an area that differs from the deed, boundaries that do not match the fences on the ground, a parcel registered to a previous or deceased owner, a building shown on the wrong parcel, or a property declared twice.

Corrections follow a defined procedure and require a lawyer and, where geometry is involved, a surveyor. They take time, so a cadastral check belongs at the start of the sale preparation rather than at the end. Where the cadastre is not yet operational for a specific area, the equivalent evidence comes from the land registry.

The Topographic Plan

A topographic plan, prepared and signed by a licensed surveyor or civil engineer, shows the plot’s measured boundaries, area, frontage, position relative to roads and the settlement boundary, and the footprint of any buildings. It is prepared in the national coordinate system so that it can be reconciled with the cadastre.

It is required for plots and, in practice, for almost every detached house on its own land. It is normally not required for an apartment in a block, where the building’s own documentation covers the plot.

The plan is far more than a formality for a Chalkidiki seller. It establishes the actual area — frequently different from the deed — and it is the basis for calculating what may still be built, which is often the largest single component of value in a plot sale. It also settles boundary questions before a buyer raises them.

An old plan may need to be updated or redrawn to current standards and coordinates. Budget one to three weeks, more in summer when surveyors in Chalkidiki are heavily booked.

Building Permit and Drawings

For any building you need the building permit and the approved architectural drawings, together with any subsequent revisions, extension permits or legalisation decisions. These come from the archive of the competent planning authority, and increasingly from digital archives.

The permit file is the reference against which the engineer compares the building as it stands today. Every difference — an enclosed veranda, an extra room in the basement, a storage building, a pool, a change of use — has to be identified and either documented as previously legalised or regularised now.

Older Chalkidiki houses frequently have incomplete archives. Permits from the 1970s and 1980s may be partially lost, drawings may not reflect what was actually built, and successive owners may have altered the building without any record. Reconstructing the file is normal engineering work, but it takes time and it occasionally reveals a problem that must be settled before a sale.

Properties built before the relevant statutory dates, and pre-1955 buildings in particular, are treated under specific rules; your engineer will identify which regime applies.

Electronic Building Identity

The electronic building identity (Ilektroniki Taftotita Ktiriou) is the digital technical file of the property, prepared and submitted by a licensed engineer. It consolidates the permit and drawings, plans of the property as it actually stands, the energy performance certificate, evidence of any legalisation of arbitrary works, and the engineer’s declarations.

For a transfer, the corresponding certificate is required by the notary. In practical terms this means an engineer must visit, measure, compare with the permit file and resolve differences before the deed can be drafted — which is why it is the single most common bottleneck in a Greek sale.

The cost falls on the seller and depends on the property type, its size and the completeness of the archive. A modern apartment with an intact file is quick and inexpensive; an older detached house with additions, a lost permit folder and undocumented works is neither.

Sequence matters: the energy performance certificate feeds into the building identity file, so instruct the energy inspector and the engineer together rather than one after the other.

Certificate on Arbitrary Constructions

Every transfer requires an engineer’s certification concerning unauthorised construction: either that none exists, or that what exists has been declared and settled under the applicable legalisation framework.

The framework distinguishes between categories of deviation. Minor items are treated lightly; substantial unauthorised buildings or changes of use attract higher fees and, in some cases, cannot be settled at all — for example where the construction sits in a protected zone, on a beach setback, in a forest area or on public land.

Where settlement is possible, the process is an engineer’s assessment and filing, followed by payment of a statutory fee that depends on the size and nature of the deviation. The result is documented and attached to the technical file, and the buyer’s lawyer will check it.

Sellers occasionally hope that a modest deviation will pass unnoticed. It will not: the engineer signs a declaration and carries professional liability for it, and the buyer’s own engineer frequently inspects as well. Disclose early, price accordingly, and settle it before marketing.

Energy Performance Certificate

The energy performance certificate is mandatory for the transfer of a building and is issued by a certified energy inspector after an on-site assessment of insulation, glazing, heating, cooling, hot water and any renewable installations. The certificate number must also appear in property advertisements.

It is valid for ten years unless the building is substantially altered, so a certificate issued when you bought or renovated the property may still be usable. Check the date before commissioning a new one.

Most older Chalkidiki holiday homes rate poorly, which is normal for the stock and does not block a sale. It does shape the conversation with northern European buyers, who read the certificate as a running-cost forecast and as a renovation budget.

The inspector needs access to the property, the building permit and drawings, and details of the installed systems. Where the property is empty and remote, arranging access is usually the slowest part; a caretaker or key held locally solves it.

ENFIA Certificate and the E9

The ENFIA certificate confirms that the property was included in the owner’s E9 property declaration for the relevant preceding years and that the property tax has been settled. It is issued by the tax authority and is required for the deed.

The certificate is only as good as the E9 behind it, and this is where non-resident owners are most often caught out. Common problems are a property that was never declared, an area or description that does not match the deed, an inheritance that was never reflected, a building added or demolished without updating the declaration, and co-ownership shares recorded incorrectly.

Each of these must be corrected before the certificate can be issued, which means amended declarations, possibly for several years, and possibly additional tax. An accountant handles it; allow weeks rather than days.

Outstanding ENFIA must also be paid. Properties that have stood empty frequently carry arrears, and the amount surfaces at exactly the moment the certificate is requested — usually when a deed date has already been agreed. Check the position at the start.

Municipal Tax (TAP) Clearance

The municipality issues a clearance confirming that municipal property charges have been paid. TAP and related municipal charges are normally collected through the electricity bill, so the clearance is usually straightforward for a property with an active, paid electricity account.

It is not straightforward where the electricity has been disconnected, where the account is in the name of a deceased owner or a previous owner, or where the property is not correctly recorded in the municipal register — for instance because an extension was never declared for municipal purposes.

Municipalities in Chalkidiki also differ in practice and in processing times, and summer is their busiest period. Where the property is in an area with seasonal administration, allow more time.

Request the clearance early enough to discover a problem, but not so early that it expires before the deed. Coordinating the timing is normally the lawyer’s job.

Tax and Social Security Clearance

Depending on the seller’s circumstances, a tax clearance certificate and, where applicable, a social security clearance are required. These confirm that the seller has no outstanding liabilities that would prevent the transaction.

For an individual non-resident seller with no Greek business activity, this is usually a formality provided the property taxes are settled. For sellers with Greek business activity, employees or a professional practice, it can require more work and should be checked early with the accountant.

These certificates have limited validity, so they are requested once the deed date is in sight rather than at the beginning of the process.

Where a seller has outstanding debts to the tax authority, the position must be resolved before the transfer, and in some cases the debt is settled from the proceeds at the deed. That arrangement has to be organised in advance with the accountant, the lawyer and the notary.

Identity, AFM and Personal Documents

Every seller needs valid identification — passport or national identity card — and a Greek tax number (AFM). If you bought the property you already have an AFM, but it may be dormant, attached to an outdated foreign address, or registered at the wrong tax office; all of these must be corrected before the deed.

Non-residents are generally registered with the tax office for non-residents and, where required, appoint a tax representative in Greece. The representative is a formal point of contact for filings and correspondence, not a person with power over your property.

Married sellers may be asked for a marriage certificate, and the matrimonial property regime can matter where it affects the ability to dispose of the property. Sellers who have changed their name since acquiring the property need documentation of the change, translated and legalised.

Finally, the bank account that will receive the price should be identified in advance — particularly where the sale is completed by a representative under a power of attorney, since the document must authorise receipt into that account. See selling property in Greece as a non-resident.

Your local contact in Chalkidiki

Get in Touch with Hans-Jürgen Bahner

Not sure which documents your property still needs before it can be sold? Send me what you have and I will tell you what is missing — by phone, WhatsApp or email.

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We assemble the complete seller file for owners in Chalkidiki, including for owners who cannot travel to Greece.

Inherited Property

Inherited property carries an additional layer of documents, and until they exist the heirs cannot sell at all, because they are not yet the registered owners.

The core items are the death certificate; a certificate of next of kin or the equivalent evidence of heirs; the will, if there is one, together with the court publication and any certificate that it has not been contested; a certificate that no renunciation of the inheritance has been filed; the notarial acceptance of inheritance deed; evidence of its registration with the land registry or cadastre; and the inheritance tax declaration together with proof of payment or of exemption within the allowances.

Foreign heirs add further requirements: documents issued abroad must be apostilled and officially translated, and where the deceased or an heir lived outside Greece, the applicable succession law needs to be established rather than assumed.

All co-heirs must consent to a sale and all must sign, personally or by power of attorney. Where an heir has died since the original succession, that second succession must be settled first. The full sequence is on selling inherited property in Greece.

Property Held by a Company

Where the owner is a legal entity — a Greek IKE or AE, or a foreign company — the file includes the company’s constitutional documents, a current certificate from the commercial register (GEMI in Greece, or the foreign equivalent), evidence of the representation powers of the person signing, and a corporate resolution authorising the sale.

Foreign corporate documents require apostille and official translation, and the notary will examine representation powers carefully. Where the signatory acts under a foreign power of attorney, the chain of authority must be documented all the way through.

The tax treatment also differs. The suspension of capital gains tax applies to individuals; a sale by a company is dealt with under corporate income tax rules, and a transaction that forms part of a business activity in real estate is treated as business income. Take accounting advice before agreeing terms, not after.

Companies also need their own tax and social security clearances, and the position of any employees or outstanding liabilities has to be settled.

Plots and Land

A plot sale is a technical sale, and the file is correspondingly heavier. In addition to the title, cadastral documents and a current topographic plan, buyers and their lawyers will expect clarity on the planning position and any restrictions.

That typically means evidence of whether the plot lies inside or outside a settlement boundary, the applicable building coefficients and coverage, road frontage and legal access, and confirmation of buildability. Depending on location it also means a forestry certificate or the position under the forest maps, the position relative to the coastal setback line and any beach zone, any archaeological or protection zone restrictions, and the presence of streams, easements or utility crossings.

Agricultural land, land acquired by long possession, and parcels with unclear frontage need particular attention, and in border and other designated zones there are additional formalities for certain foreign buyers that affect who can buy from you.

These items are not bureaucratic detail — they determine what the plot is worth. The full picture is on selling land in Chalkidiki.

Off-Plan and New Builds

Recently built or unfinished property brings its own documents: the current building permit and any revisions, the engineer’s certificates for the works carried out, evidence of connection or applications for electricity, water and drainage, and — where the property was built by a developer — the contractual position between the developer and the plot owner.

First sales of newly built property by a developer can fall under a VAT regime rather than the transfer tax regime, which changes the buyer’s costs and the notary’s treatment. Whether that applies depends on the permit date and the seller’s status, and it must be established before terms are agreed.

Where the building is incomplete, the sale needs to define precisely what is being transferred, what the seller will still complete, to what standard and by when, with the consequences of non-completion.

Buyers of this type of property are usually well advised and will ask detailed questions; the corresponding buyer’s guide is buying off-plan and new-build property in Greece.

Apartments and Shared Buildings

An apartment sale requires the documents of the building as well as of the unit. The horizontal property deed and the building regulation define what belongs to the apartment, the co-ownership percentages (chiliosta), the shares of the plot, and the rules governing shared areas.

You will also need documentation of anything used exclusively by the apartment — a parking space, a storage room, a roof terrace, a garden area — because exclusive use that exists only by custom is not exclusive use in law, and the notary will not record it.

Practical items that buyers ask for and that speed up a sale: a statement from the building manager confirming that shared charges are paid, the amount of the annual shared costs, the position of the common reserve fund, and any pending decisions on major works such as roof, facade, lift or pool.

Where the building has undertaken energy or facade upgrades, the associated approvals and the allocation of costs should also be documented.

Selling by Power of Attorney

If you will not attend the notary in person, the file includes the power of attorney itself. It should be drafted by your Greek lawyer or notary so that its scope matches what the notary will require, executed before a notary abroad or at a Greek consulate, apostilled where executed in a Hague Convention country, and officially translated into Greek.

The document should name the property, list the specific acts authorised — signing the deed, submitting filings, requesting certificates, receiving the price into a named account, handing over possession — and state an expiry date. Powers of attorney that are too narrow force a second document and a second appointment; ones that are too broad are an unnecessary risk.

Each co-owner grants their own document. For inherited property with heirs in several countries this is regularly the longest step in the transaction and should start as early as possible.

The full procedure, including consular execution and typical timelines, is on selling property in Greece remotely.

Translations and Apostilles

Any document issued outside Greece that will be used in the transaction generally needs to be legalised and translated. For countries party to the Hague Apostille Convention, legalisation means an apostille from the competent authority in the issuing country; for other countries, consular legalisation applies.

Translation into Greek must be official — by a lawyer entitled to certify translations, by the Ministry of Foreign Affairs translation service, or by a certified translator, according to what the notary accepts. A translation by a friend or an agency without certification will be rejected.

Documents that commonly need this treatment are foreign powers of attorney, foreign death and marriage certificates, certificates of heirs, foreign company documents, and name-change documents.

Plan the sequence: obtain the document, apostille it, then translate it, since the translation must cover the apostille as well. Doing it in the wrong order means paying twice.

Validity Periods and Sequencing

Not every certificate should be obtained as early as possible. Some are effectively permanent, some expire, and ordering them in the wrong sequence wastes money.

The rule of thumb: everything that reveals a problem should be obtained at the start; everything that merely confirms a current status should be obtained near the end.

When Documents Are Missing

Missing documents are normal, particularly for properties acquired decades ago, and almost all of them are recoverable.

Lost title deed: obtain a copy from the notary who drafted it or from the notarial archive, and the registration details from the land registry or cadastre.

Lost building permit: the planning authority archive holds the file; where the archive is incomplete, an engineer reconstructs the position from what exists and from the applicable regime for the construction period.

No topographic plan: commission a new one from a licensed surveyor.

Property not in the E9, or declared wrongly: an accountant files corrective declarations, potentially for several years, and any resulting tax is settled.

Inheritance never accepted: a lawyer and notary execute and register the acceptance, and the inheritance tax declaration is filed. This is the longest of the standard fixes.

Cadastral error: a correction procedure through the cadastre, with a lawyer and, where geometry is involved, a surveyor.

None of these is a reason not to sell. All of them are a reason to start before the property is published rather than after an offer is on the table.

How Chalkidiki Real Estate Can Help

We assemble seller files as a standard part of every instruction, and for owners abroad we do it end to end. That means reviewing what you already have, identifying what is missing, and instructing and coordinating the professionals who produce the rest: the lawyer for title and registry work, the surveyor for the topographic plan, the engineer for the building identity and any legalisation, the certified inspector for the energy certificate, and the accountant for the E9, ENFIA and tax clearances.

Where the property is empty or remote we handle access for every inspection, take and record meter readings, and deal with the municipality and utility providers, so that none of it requires you to travel.

We also tell you at the start what the file is going to cost and how long it will take, because those two numbers determine both the launch date and the price. An owner who knows in week one that the engineer needs six weeks and that a veranda must be settled can plan around it; one who discovers it in month four cannot.

The document check is part of our free valuation. Nothing is instructed without your approval.

Official Sources and Important Notice

Documentary requirements, validity periods and administrative practice change, and the exact list depends on the property, its title history and the parties involved. Confirm the current requirements with your lawyer, engineer and accountant before relying on any list.

• gov.gr – Hellenic Cadastre, land registration and forest maps
• AADE – Independent Authority for Public Revenue (E9, ENFIA, clearances)
• gov.gr – Greek government digital services portal

Professional notice: This guide provides general information about the documents required to sell property in Greece and is not individual legal, tax or engineering advice. Use a qualified Greek lawyer, engineer and accountant for your own transaction.