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The cost of buying property in Greece on a €400,000 resale comes to about €17,990, or 4.5% of the price, in taxes and official fees alone. Lawyer, engineer and agent fees come on top and are agreed case by case. This guide breaks the costs down line by line and explains how the Greek notary and the Greek property lawyer set their fees.
Last verified: October 2026Three costs are fixed by law: transfer tax, the notary’s scale fee and registration. Everything else is a professional fee you agree in advance.
According to AADE, the tax is 3% of the property’s taxable value, with a 3% surcharge on the tax for municipalities. The taxable value is the higher of the market value and the tax authority’s objective value (antikeimeniki axia), according to a PwC Greece summary.
Buyer and seller file a joint declaration before the deed, and the buyer pays within 3 working days.
The deed must be registered for your ownership to be protected against third parties. At the Hellenic Cadastre, the proportional fee for a sale is 0.5% of the property’s value, plus small fixed fees. This comes from the Cadastre’s decision 2/12-01-2026, published in Government Gazette B’ 64/13-01-2026.
Where the cadastre is not yet operating, the deed goes to the local land registry, which charges its own fees. Our cadastre checks guide explains the certificates to order first.
An engineer checks building legality and any past unpermitted works. The fee is priced per property. Budget also for translations, certificates and utility connections.
A Greek notary (symvolaiografos) drafts and certifies the deed that transfers ownership. The fee follows an official scale and is not open to negotiation in the same way as a lawyer’s fee.
Notaries in Greece are unpaid civil servants whose main duty is to prepare and keep documents that prove legal acts, according to the European Commission’s e-Justice portal. There are nine notary associations, supervised by the Ministry of Justice.
In a purchase, the notary:
The notary is neutral and does not act for the buyer. Checking that the title is sound and the price is fair is the job of your own advisers.
The fee is set by Ministerial Decision 111376/2011. It is a percentage of the value in the contract, or of the higher value set by the authorities, charged in bands.
| Part of the value | Rate |
|---|---|
| Up to €120,000 | 0.80% |
| €120,000.01 to €380,000 | 0.70% |
| €380,000.01 to €2,000,000 | 0.65% |
| €2,000,000.01 to €5,000,000 | 0.55% |
| €5,000,000.01 to €8,000,000 | 0.50% |
Lower rates apply above €8,000,000. On top come a fixed fee of €20, €5 for each extra sheet of the deed and €4 for each sheet of copies issued at signing. VAT at 24% is added. Ask the notary for a written estimate before the signing date.
A Greek property lawyer acts only for you. A lawyer is not legally required, but most foreign buyers hire one for the title and legal checks.
Compulsory lawyer attendance at property contracts ended on 1 January 2014 under Law 4093/2012, as noted by Taxheaven. Since then, the buyer chooses whether to hire one.
A typical brief covers:
Lawyers in Greece are members of one of 63 bar associations, one at the seat of each court of first instance, according to the e-Justice portal. Ask which bar your lawyer belongs to.
The fee is agreed freely in writing, under Article 74 of the Lawyers’ Code (Law 4194/2013). If there is no written agreement, the Code says the fee is calculated as a percentage of the transaction’s value, using the rates in its Annex II.
In practice, buyers should agree a written fee before work starts. It can be a fixed sum, an hourly rate or a percentage. VAT at 24% is added. Check what the fee covers, for example the tax number, the power of attorney and registration.
Assumptions: price €400,000, objective value lower than the price, property in an area covered by the Hellenic Cadastre. The fees set by law are calculated below. Lawyer, engineer and agent fees are agreed case by case and are listed without an amount.
| Cost | Basis | Amount (€) |
|---|---|---|
| Transfer tax | 3% of €400,000 | 12,000 |
| Municipal surcharge | 3% of the tax | 360 |
| Notary fee | 0.80% / 0.70% / 0.65% bands + €20 | 2,930 |
| VAT on notary fee | 24% | 703 |
| Cadastre registration | 0.5% | 2,000 |
| Subtotal set by law | 17,993 (4.5%) | |
| Lawyer | Agreed in writing, plus 24% VAT | Case by case |
| Engineer | Priced per property | Case by case |
| Estate agent or buyer’s agent | Agreed case by case, plus 24% VAT | Case by case |
The notary fee works out as 0.80% of €120,000 (€960), 0.70% of €260,000 (€1,820) and 0.65% of €20,000 (€130), plus €20. Extra sheets, copies and the Cadastre’s fixed fees are not included.
VAT adds €240 for every €1,000 of agreed professional fees. Run your own figures in the buying cost calculator.
Properties sold by developers normally carry 24% VAT rather than transfer tax. The VAT is suspended until 31 December 2026 under Law 5246/2025, according to KPMG, and buyers pay transfer tax instead.
A draft bill in consultation to 1 November 2026 extends the suspension for 2027. It is not yet law. Ask whether a quoted new-build price includes VAT. See our off-plan checklist.
A draft bill sets a higher transfer tax on homes bought by individuals who are not tax residents of the EU or EEA, from 1 July 2027. It is in public consultation to 1 November 2026, according to the Ministry of National Economy and Finance, and is not law.
The government announced the rate at 15%. On our €400,000 example, with the 3% surcharge, the tax would rise from €12,360 to about €61,800. The test is tax residence, not nationality, and the summary refers to natural persons buying homes. Read our report on the bill.
On a €400,000 resale, taxes and official fees come to about €17,990, or 4.5%. Lawyer, engineer and agent fees are added on top and are agreed case by case.
A Greek notary charges on an official scale: 0.80% up to €120,000, 0.70% to €380,000 and 0.65% to €2,000,000, plus €20, page charges and 24% VAT. On €400,000 the scale fee is €2,930 before VAT.
You are not legally required to hire one, but most foreign buyers do. The lawyer runs the title and debt checks that the neutral notary does not do for you.
They are agreed freely in writing under Law 4194/2013. Without a written agreement, a percentage scale in the Code’s Annex II applies.
The buyer pays the transfer tax, according to AADE.
No. Resales pay transfer tax. VAT applies to sales by developers, and it is suspended until 31 December 2026.
Related: how to buy property in Greece, real estate agents in Greece and ENFIA for non-resident owners.
Thinking about buying in Greece? Give your brief to an independent buyer’s agency. It can search the market for exactly what you are looking for and advise you through the purchase.
These figures are estimates from published rates. Buyers should confirm how this applies to them with a Greek lawyer or accountant.
