EUROPAM

European Public Accountability Mechanisms

Greece

Country score (European Average*)
  • 94(66) Political Financing
  • 57(53) Financial Disclosure
  • 22(37) Conflict of Interest
  • 46(59) Freedom of Information
  • 58(62) Public Procurement

Country Facts

IncomeHigh
GNI per capita (2011 PPP $)24251.33
Population, total10746740.00
Urban population (% of total)78.33
Internet users (per 100 people)69.09
Life expectancy at birth (years)81.59
Mean years of schooling (years)10.5
Global Competitiveness Index4
Sources: World Bank, UNDP, WEF.

Political Financing

The main laws regulating the financing of political parties in Greece are Law 3202/2003, Law 3023.2002 (amended in 2014), Law 3242/2004 and Law 3274/2004. There was also a recent amending law (Law (4304/2014)).

There are comprehensive limits on the private income of political parties. There are bans on donations from foreign entities, corporations, trade unions and anonymous donors. There are also limits on the amount that can be donated to political parties and candidates both during and outside of election periods.

Public funding is available for political parties and is allocated based on the share of votes in the previous election, the representation in the elected body and the participation in the election. There is also free access to the media which is allocated based on the number of candidates and the share of votes in the previous election. Indirect public funding is available in the form of premises for campaign meetings and space for campaign materials.

There are regulations on spending which includes a ban on vote buying and a ban on state resources being used in favour or against a political party or candidate. There are limits on the amount political parties and candidates can spend.

Parties are required to regularly report on their finances. Reports must include details on finances in relation to election campaigns and must include the identity of donors in some cases. Reports must be made public. Reports are overseen by the Expenditure Audit Committee. There are sanctions for those breaching the provisions of the law in the form of fines, forfeiture, loss of elected office and sanctions under the criminal law.


Quantitative Data

Primary Metric

20122015201620172020Trend
Bans and limits on private income83100100100100
Public funding6275757575
Regulations on spending100100100100100
Reporting, oversight and sanctions92100100100100

Values lie in range between 0 and 100, higher values implying higher legislation comprehensiveness


Qualitative Data

We are frequently reviewing and refining our data, so in case you notice any mistake in our assessment, feel free to send us an email by clicking the button ()

Bans and limits on private income

Bans on donations from foreign interests

Is there a ban on donations from foreign interests to political parties? Yes. Article 7 (6), Law 3023/2002 (amended by art.5, Law 4304/2014). The following entities are banned to receive any kind of state resources: a) natural persons who don't have greek nationality and legal persons that are not established in greek territory; b) legal person governed by public law and working in public sector; c) organizations from local governance from all levels; d) natural persons who are owners or publishers of national or local press, magazines, television stations, and radio stations. (Article 7(6), Law 3023/2002, amended 2014)
Is there a ban on donations from foreign interests to candidates? Yes. Article 7 (6), Law 3023/2002 (amended by art.5, Law 4304/2014). The following entities are banned to receive any kind of state resources: a) natural persons who don't have greek nationality and legal persons that are not established in greek territory; b) legal person governed by public law and working in public sector; c) organizations from local governance from all levels; d) natural persons who are owners or publishers of national or local press, magazines, television stations, and radio stations. (Article 7(6), Law 3023/2002, amended 2014)

Bans on corporate donations

Is there a ban on corporate donations to political parties? Yes. Article 7 (6), Law 3023/2002 (amended by art.5, Law 4304/2014). The following entities are banned to receive any kind of state resources: a) natural persons who don't have greek nationality and legal persons that are not established in greek territory; b) legal person governed by public law and working in public sector; c) organizations from local governance from all levels; d) natural persons who are owners or publishers of national or local press, magazines, television stations, and radio stations. (Article 7(6), Law 3023/2002, amended 2014)
Is there a ban on corporate donations to candidates? Yes. Article 7 (6), Law 3023/2002 (amended by art.5, Law 4304/2014). The following entities are banned to receive any kind of state resources: a) natural persons who don't have greek nationality and legal persons that are not established in greek territory; b) legal person governed by public law and working in public sector; c) organizations from local governance from all levels; d) natural persons who are owners or publishers of national or local press, magazines, television stations, and radio stations. (Article 7(6), Law 3023/2002, amended 2014)
Is there a ban on donations from corporations with government contracts to political parties? Yes. Article 7 (6), Law 3023/2002 (amended by art.5, Law 4304/2014). The following entities are banned to receive any kind of state resources: a) natural persons who don't have greek nationality and legal persons that are not established in greek territory; b) legal person governed by public law and working in public sector; c) organizations from local governance from all levels; d) natural persons who are owners or publishers of national or local press, magazines, television stations, and radio stations. (Article 7(6), Law 3023/2002, amended 2014)
Is there a ban on donations from corporations of partial government ownership to political parties? Yes. Article 7 (6), Law 3023/2002 (amended by art.5, Law 4304/2014). The following entities are banned to receive any kind of state resources: a) natural persons who don't have greek nationality and legal persons that are not established in greek territory; b) legal person governed by public law and working in public sector; c) organizations from local governance from all levels; d) natural persons who are owners or publishers of national or local press, magazines, television stations, and radio stations. (Article 7(6), Law 3023/2002 (amended by art.5, Law 4304/ 2014))
Is there a ban on donations from corporations with government contracts to candidates? Yes. Article 7 (6), Law 3023/2002 (amended by art.5, Law 4304/2014). The following entities are banned to receive any kind of state resources: a) natural persons who don't have greek nationality and legal persons that are not established in greek territory; b) legal person governed by public law and working in public sector; c) organizations from local governance from all levels; d) natural persons who are owners or publishers of national or local press, magazines, television stations, and radio stations. (Article 7(6), Law 3023/2002, amended 2014)
Is there a ban on donations from corporations of partial government ownership to candidates? Yes. Article 7 (6), Law 3023/2002 (amended by art.5, Law 4304/2014). The following entities are banned to receive any kind of state resources: a) natural persons who don't have greek nationality and legal persons that are not established in greek territory; b) legal person governed by public law and working in public sector; c) organizations from local governance from all levels; d) natural persons who are owners or publishers of national or local press, magazines, television stations, and radio stations. (Article 7(6), Law 3023/2002, amended 2014)

Bans on donations from trade unions

Is there a ban on donations from Trade Unions to political parties? Yes. Article 7 (6), Law 3023/2002 (amended by art.5, Law 4304/2014). The following entities are banned to receive any kind of state resources: a) natural persons who don't have greek nationality and legal persons that are not established in greek territory; b) legal person governed by public law and working in public sector; c) organizations from local governance from all levels; d) natural persons who are owners or publishers of national or local press, magazines, television stations, and radio stations. (Article 7(6), Law 3023/2002, amended 2014)
Is there a ban on donations from Trade Unions to candidates? Yes. Article 7 (6), Law 3023/2002 (amended by art.5, Law 4304/2014). The following entities are banned to receive any kind of state resources: a) natural persons who don't have greek nationality and legal persons that are not established in greek territory; b) legal person governed by public law and working in public sector; c) organizations from local governance from all levels; d) natural persons who are owners or publishers of national or local press, magazines, television stations, and radio stations. (Article 7(6), Law 3023/2002, amended 2014)

Bans on anonymous donations

Is there a ban on anonymous donations to political parties? Yes. Funding can be performed by any other method allows connection of the offered amount by a natural or legal person who can be identified. (Article 7 bis, Law 3023/2002, amended 2014)
Is there a ban on anonymous donations to candidates? Yes. Funding can be performed by any other method allows connection of the offered amount by a natural or legal person who can be identified. (Article 7 bis, Law 3023/2002, amended 2014)

Other bans on donations

Is there a ban on state resources being given to or received by political parties or candidates (excluding regulated public funding)? Yes. Article 7 (6), Law 3023/2002 (amended by art.5, Law 4304/2014). The following entities are banned to receive any kind of state resources: a) natural persons who don't have greek nationality and legal persons that are not established in greek territory; b) legal person governed by public law and working in public sector; c) organizations from local governance from all levels; d) natural persons who are owners or publishers of national or local press, magazines, television stations, and radio stations. (Article 7(6), Law 3023/2002, amended 2014)

Donation limits

Is there a limit on the amount a donor can contribute to a political party over a time period (not election specific)? Yes. Funding of parties by the same person during the same year cannot exceed EUR20,000. (Article 8 (1), Law 3023/200 , amended 2014)
Is there a limit on the amount a donor can contribute to a political party in relation to an election? Yes. Funding of parties by the same person during the same year cannot exceed EUR20,000. (Article 8 (1), Law 3023/2002, amended 2014)
Is there a limit on the amount a donor can contribute to a candidate? Yes. Funding of a candidate by the same person during the same year cannot exceed EUR5,000 (Article 8 (2), Law 3023/2002, amended 2014)

Public funding

Eligibility criteria for direct public funding to political parties

Eligibility criteria for direct public funding to political parties: Share of votes in previous election Yes. Article 1(1)(f), Law 3023/2002 (amended by art.1, Law 4304/2014). Beneficiaries of state funding: a) Political parties and coalitions of parties represented in the Greek Parliament with elected representatives in the last general election of the combinations of the same party or coalition. b) Political parties and coalitions, which in the last general election nominated a full list of candidates at least 70% of the electoral districts of the country and obtained a number of votes at least equal to 1.5% of the total valid votes cast countrywide. c) Political parties and coalitions that have representatives in the European Parliament elected in the last elections. d) Political parties and coalitions, which in the last elections for Greek representatives in the European Parliament raised a number of votes at least equal to 1.5% of the total valid votes countrywide. (Article 1(1)(f), Law 3023/2002, amended 2014 )
Eligibility criteria for direct public funding to political parties: Representation in elected body Yes. Article 1(1)(f), Law 3023/2002 (amended by art.1, Law 4304/2014). Beneficiaries of state funding: a) Political parties and coalitions of parties represented in the Greek Parliament with elected representatives in the last general election of the combinations of the same party or coalition. b) Political parties and coalitions, which in the last general election nominated a full list of candidates at least 70% of the electoral districts of the country and obtained a number of votes at least equal to 1.5% of the total valid votes cast countrywide. c) Political parties and coalitions that have representatives in the European Parliament elected in the last elections. d) Political parties and coalitions, which in the last elections for Greek representatives in the European Parliament raised a number of votes at least equal to 1.5% of the total valid votes countrywide. (Article 1(1)(f), Law 3023/2002, amended 2014)
Eligibility criteria for direct public funding to political parties: Participation in election No. Absent from legal framework
Eligibility criteria for direct public funding to political parties: Number of candidates No. Absent from legal framework
Eligibility criteria for direct public funding to political parties: Share of seats in previous election No. Absent from legal framework
Eligibility criteria for direct public funding to political parties: Share of votes in next election No. Absent from legal framework
Eligibility criteria for direct public funding to political parties: Registration as a political party No. Absent from legal framework
Eligibility criteria for direct public funding to political parties: Share of seats in next election No. Absent from legal framework
Eligibility criteria for direct public funding to political parties: Number of members No. Absent from legal framework
Eligibility criteria for direct public funding to political parties: Other No. Absent from legal framework

Allocation calculations for direct public funding to political parties

Allocation calculations for direct public funding to political parties: Proportional to votes received Yes. Article 1(1)(f), Law 3023/2002 (amended by art.1, Law 4304/2014). Beneficiaries of state funding: a) Political parties and coalitions of parties represented in the Greek Parliament with elected representatives in the last general election of the combinations of the same party or coalition. b) Political parties and coalitions, which in the last general election nominated a full list of candidates at least 70% of the electoral districts of the country and obtained a number of votes at least equal to 1.5% of the total valid votes cast countrywide. c) Political parties and coalitions that have representatives in the European Parliament elected in the last elections. d) Political parties and coalitions, which in the last elections for Greek representatives in the European Parliament raised a number of votes at least equal to 1.5% of the total valid votes countrywide. Article 3, Law 3023/2002 (amended by art.2, Law 4304/2014). (1) The total amount of regular state funding is distributed to state funding beneficiaries as follows: (a) The 80% is paid to beneficiaries as indicated in article 1, paragraph 1 and distributed among them as defined in paragraph 3 of this Article. (b) The 10% is paid to parties elected in the European Parliament. (c) The 10 % is distributed to parties participating in electoral coalitions. (3) The allocation of regular state funfing between the beneficiaries listed in article 1 paragraph 1, is divided by the total number of valid ballots gahtered by parties and coalitions in the same category. (Article 1(1)(f), Article 3, Law 3023/2002, amended 2014)
Allocation calculations for direct public funding to political parties: Equal No. Absent from legal framework
Allocation calculations for direct public funding to political parties: Proportional to seats received No. Absent from legal framework
Allocation calculations for direct public funding to political parties: Flat rate by votes received No. Absent from legal framework
Allocation calculations for direct public funding to political parties: Share of expenses reimbursed No. Absent from legal framework
Allocation calculations for direct public funding to political parties: Proportional to candidates fielded No. Absent from legal framework
Allocation calculations for direct public funding to political parties: Number of members No. Absent from legal framework
Allocation calculations for direct public funding to political parties: Other No. Absent from legal framework

Earmarking provisions for direct public funding to political parties

Earmarking provisions for direct public funding to political parties: Campaign spending Yes. The total amount of state-run electoral funding shall be distributed to beneficiaries as follows: a. In the case of parliamentary elections fifty per cent (50%) shall be paid to the beneficiaries referred to in paragraph 1 of Article 1 and ten per cent (10%) is paid to persons under its heading paragraph 1 of Article 1 of the beneficiaries. In the event of an election for the Election of Members of the European Parliament, fifty percent (50%) shall be paid to the beneficiaries referred to in paragraph 1 (1) of Article 1 and ten per cent (10%) is paid to the underlying item paragraph 1 of Article 1 of the beneficiaries. b. A percentage of forty percent (40%) is paid to the items fb and ff of Article 1 (1) of the beneficiaries and shall be allocated in accordance with the provisions laid down in paragraph 3 of this Article. The percentage of this share is shared the beneficiaries referred to in Article 1 (1) and (1). With decision of the Minister of the Interior, issued no later than eight (8) days after an announcement of the elections and published in the Government Gazette, the beneficiaries referred to in Article 1 (1) and (1) shall be determined and the amount of funding paid to each. In the case of a notice elections before the end of the parliamentary term is issued, with the above procedure, decision to fix the funding rate in eight (8) days after the notice, unless a decision has already been taken in accordance with the subparagraph. By a similar decision, issued no later than two (2) months after the elections are held, the parties and the coalitions that fall are defined in the case of b 'and the amount of funding paid to each. (Article 3(2), Law 3023/2002, amended 2014)
Earmarking provisions for direct public funding to political parties: Ongoing party activities Yes. For the allocation of ordinary government funding among the items under ' of Article 1 (1) of the beneficiaries and of the electoral financing, the amount available for each of the above categories is divided by the total the number of valid ballots collected by the parties and the coalition belong to the same category. This quotient is multiplied by the number of valid ballot papers gathered by each party or coalition and the product corresponds to the amount that the Party or Coalition is entitled to (Article 3(3), Law 3023/2002, amended 2014)
Earmarking provisions for direct public funding to political parties: Intra-party institution No. Absent from legal framework
Earmarking provisions for direct public funding to political parties: Other Yes. For the allocation of ordinary government funding among the items under ' of Article 1 (1) of the beneficiaries and of the electoral financing, the amount available for each of the above categories is divided by the total the number of valid ballots collected by the parties and the coalition belong to the same category. This quotient is multiplied by the number of valid ballot papers gathered by each party or coalition and the product corresponds to the amount that the Party or Coalition is entitled to (Article 3(3), Law 3023/2002, amended 2014)

Allocation criteria for free or subsidized access to media for political parties

Allocation criteria for free or subsidized access to media for political parties: Equal No. Absent from legal framework
Allocation criteria for free or subsidized access to media for political parties: Number of candidates Yes. By the joint ministerial decision of paragraph 1, in the same procedure and with proportionality criterion, determine the time spent on newscasts public and private radio and television stations for the presentation of the election of parties and party alliances (Article 10(2), Law 3023/2002, amended 2014)
Allocation criteria for free or subsidized access to media for political parties: Share of seats No. Absent from legal framework
Allocation criteria for free or subsidized access to media for political parties: Other Yes. "free broadcasting time on public and private radio and television channels is allocated to political parties in order for them to broadcast their positions and programmes. This free air time is allocated to the parties on a proportional basis, according to a joint ministerial declaration published in the Official Gazette and is not subject to taxation. The parties that are running in elections but are not represented in Parliament are allocated a minimum broadcasting time (Article 10, Law 3023/2002);" (p. 9) (GRECO (2010) Evaluation Report on Greece on Transparency of Party Funding, GRECO (Theme II)) (Article 10, Law 3023/2002, amended 2014)
Are there provisions for free or subsidized access to media for candidates? Yes. Public and private TV and radio stations are required to transmit messages of parties during specific times set by the relevant Ministries. The time is to be allocated equally to parties based on proportionality, and transmission is to be free of charge and all taxes. (Article 10, Law 3023/2002, amended 2014)

Are there provisions for any other form of indirect public funding?

Provisions for any other form of indirect public funding: Premises for campaign meetings Yes. Parties may use public areas as set out in law without requiring premission, or payment of dues and taxes or reimbursement for use. (Article 9(2), Law 3023/2002, amended 2014)
Provisions for any other form of indirect public funding: Space for campaign materials Yes. Parties may use public areas as set out in law without requiring premission, or payment of dues and taxes or reimbursement for use. (Article 9(2), Law 3023/2002, amended 2014)
Provisions for any other form of indirect public funding: Tax relief No. Absent from legal framework
Provisions for any other form of indirect public funding: Free or subsidised transport No. Absent from legal framework
Provisions for any other form of indirect public funding: Free or subsidised postage cost No. Absent from legal framework
Provisions for any other form of indirect public funding: Other No. Absent from legal framework
Is the provision of direct public funding to political parties related to gender equality among candidates? No. Absent from legal framework
Are there provisions for other financial advantages to encourage gender equality in political parties? No. Absent from legal framework

Regulations on spending 

Is there a ban on vote buying? Yes. "[T]he Greek penal legislation contains a provision in the penal code (art.165: Bribery during the Elections) that criminalizes offering gifts (of any kind) to voters with the aim to change the electoral result. The penalty is imprisonment up to two years and fines. Additionaly, during the Electoral period there come Presidential Decrees that mirror penal legislation and sometimes change the penalties of the penal code. The mirror recent Electoral Legislation of the article 165 of the penal code is the Presidential Decree 96/2007 which provides for the same act of bribery (with the aim to influence the result of the elections) the penalty of imprisonment for at least three months up to three years and as supplementary a monetary penalty (art. 114 par. 1 of the Decree)." (Expert input provided by Maria Archimandritou, Assistant Professor School of Law Aristotle University of Thessaloniki, 31 August 2011) (Penal Code Art. 165, amended 2014 Presidential Decree 96/2007, Art 114 (1))
Are there bans on state resources being used in favour or against a political party or candidate? Yes. Political manifestations of public officials are prohibited: Constitution Article 29 (3) Manifestations of any nature whatsoever in favor of or against a political party by magistrates and by those serving in the armed forces and the security corps, are absolutely prohibited. In the exercise of their duties, manifestations of any nature whatsoever in favor or against a political party bu public servants, employees of local government agencies, of other public law legal persons or of public enterprises or of enterprises of local government agencies or of enterprises whose management is directly or indirectly appointed by the State, by administrative act or by virtue of its capacity as shareholder, are absolutely prohibited. (Article 29 (3), Constitution of Greece, 1975, amended 2008)
Are there limits on the amount a political party can spend? Yes. The maximum amount a party can spend in General or European elections including the value of amenities and facilities may not exceed the amount of 20% of the last recurrent funding of all political parties. (Article 13, Law 3023/2002, amended 2014)
Are there limits on the amount a candidate can spend? Yes. The maximum amount a candidate can spend in each election including the value of the benefits and facilities is determined based on the number of seats in the constituency in which he is a candidate. In determining the amount, it is multiplied by fifteen thousand (15,000) euros a coefficient for each constituency. 2.The maximum election expenses allowed is determined for each constituency by decision of the relevant Ministries within five (5) days of the notice Election. 5. The maximum election expenses allowed for advertisements in the press for each candidate is determined to twenty percent (20%) of the maximum allowable amount of electoral expenditure, as defined in this article. (Article 14, Law 3023/2002, amended 2014)

Reporting, oversight and sanctions 

Reporting standards

Do political parties have to report regularly on their finances? Yes. Article 16 bis, Law 3023/2002 (introduced by art.13, Law 4304/2014). Political parties and coalitions shall annually submit to the Control Committee annual budgets, balance sheets and accounts. (Article 16 bis, law 3203/2002, amended 2014)
Do political parties have to report on their finances in relation to election campaigns? Yes. Article 16, Law 3023/2002 (amended by art.12, Law 4304/2014). Political parties and coalitions shall keep an accounting book, containinil the income and the expenditure for each year and the amounts collected during the election campaign and election expenses. The accounting book is annually audited by the Control Committee. Article 16 bis, Law 3023/2002 (introduced by art.13, Law 4304/2014). Political parties and coalitions shall annually submit to the Control Committee annual budgets, balance sheets and accounts. (Article 16 and 16bis, Law 3023/2002, amended 2014 )
Do candidates have to report on their campaign finances? Yes. Article 16 bis , Law 3023/2002 (introduced bu art.13, Law 4304/2014). (b) Candidates representiatives of the Greek Parliament and the European Parliament shall annually submit to the Control Committee detailed records, income and expenditure receipts and any other document significant for the management of their finances during the period of control of election expenses. (c) Elected representatives of the Greek Parliament and the European Parliament shall annually submit to the Control Committee detailed records, income and expenditure receipts and any other document significant for the management of their finances. (d) Furthermore, elected representatives of the Greek Parliament and the European Parliament shall submit to the Control Committee the full content and economic valuation of the trade they have made to the funding recipients. (e) Candidates of local elections shall submit to the Control Committee annual budgets, balance sheets, accounts and any kind of funding received by political parties and coalitions. Article 13, Law 3202/2003. Elected candidates in prefectural and municipal elections, as well as their first three substitutes, shall submit to the Control Committee within the same deadline a report on electoral income and expenditure. (Article 13 and 16bis, Law 3023/2002, amended 2014 )
Is information in reports from political parties and/​or candidates to be made public? Yes. Article 21(2)(n), Law 3023/2002. On the free and public official website administered and managed by the Control Comittee shall be publsihed the annual budgets, balance sheets and accounts of political parties and coalitions [...]. ( Article 21(2)(n), law 3023/2002, amended 2014)
Must reports from political parties and/​or candidates reveal the identity of donors? yes. Article 21(2)(n), Law 3023/2002. Information on each legal entity providing funding to political parties, coalitions, election candidates or members of parliament shall be published on the official website administered and managed by the Control Committee. Moreover, full details are also to be provided if the donations to political parties and coalitions are above 3,000 euros or if the donations to candidates to elections are above 5,000 euros, (Article 16 (2), Article 21(2)(n), law 3023/2002, amended 2014)
Institutions receiving financial reports from political parties and/​or candidates
Institutions receiving financial reports from political parties and/​or candidates: Electoral Management Board No. Absent from legal framework
Institutions receiving financial reports from political parties and/​or candidates: Auditing agency No. Absent from legal framework
Institutions receiving financial reports from political parties and/​or candidates: Ministry No. The Minister of Finance and the Minister of Interior receive informations regarding the financial reports of political parties and candidates indirectly through the Control Committee. Article 3 (4), Law 3023/2002 (amended by art.2 Law 4304/2014): The agreement between the parties of a coalition regarding the amount of government funding to be distributed between them, shall be comunicated to the Minsiter of Interior, within 1 month from the elections. Article 21 (2) (f) Law 3023/2002 (amended by art. 19 Law 4304/2014): The Control Committee shall report annually to the Committee on institutions and transparency activity of the Parliament and to the Ministers of Finance and of Interior. (Article 13, 3 (4), and 21(2)(f), Law 3023/2002, amended 2014 )
Institutions receiving financial reports from political parties and/​or candidates: Special institution Yes. Article 16 bis, Law 3023/2002 (added by art. 13 Law 4304/2014): Political parties, coalitions and all persons listed in article 1, paragraph 2, letter n, shall submit to the Control Committee annual budgets, balance sheets, accounts (letter a) and other documents (letter b to e). Article 21 (2) (f) Law 3023/2002 (amended by art. 19 Law 4304/2014): The Control Committee shall report annually to the Committee on institutions and transparency activity of the Parliament and to the Ministers of Finance and of Interior. Unsuccessful candidates are not subject to reporting obligations. Elected candidates in prefectural and municipal elections, as well as their first three substitutes, have to submit to the Expenditure Audit Committee within the same deadline a report on electoral income and expenditure (Article 13, Law 3202/2003)." (p. 12f) (GRECO (2010) Evaluation Report on Greece on Transparency of Party Funding, GRECO (Theme II)) (Article 16 bis, Article 21(2)(f), Law 3023/2002, amended 2014)
Institutions receiving financial reports from political parties and/​or candidates: Court No. Absent from legal framework
Institutions receiving financial reports from political parties and/​or candidates: Other No. Absent from legal framework

Political finance oversight

Is it specified that a particular institution(s) is responsible for examining financial reports and/​or investigating violations?
Institution responsible for examining financial reports and/or investigating violations: Court No. Absent from legal framework
Institution responsible for examining financial reports and/or investigating violations: Ministry No. Absent from legal framework
Institution responsible for examining financial reports and/or investigating violations: Auditing agency Yes. Control Committee for the financial accounts of parties and parliament members, Special Investigative Service under the Ministry of Economy an Finance (YPEE), Local Committees, Chartered Auditors under the Control Committee. "During the monitoring process, both the chartered auditors and the Control Committee may have access to all necessary data and documents, including confidential information held by banks, tax authorities and stock exchange (Article 21 (4), Law 3023/2002)." (p. 15) "The Control Committee may also carry out investigations ex officio or upon receiving complaints by citizens, members of local committees or public officials concerning alleged infringements of political financing regulations regarding a party or a candidate for election. It may also ask the Special Investigative Service under the Ministry of Economy and Finance (YPEE) to carry out further investigations on its behalf, although the GET was informed that, until recently, this possibility had never been used in practice." (p. 15) "Local Committees may receive complaints submitted in writing before the completion of the voting process by the representative of any political party, coalition or any candidate for election. They may carry out investigations and hearings. The Local Committees then compile the results of their investigations in a report, which they forward to the Control Committee within 15 days after the elections. The Control Committee may use the content of this report at its discretion (Article 21 (9), Law 3023/2002, Article 15, Law 3202/2003)." (p. 16) (GRECO (2010) Evaluation Report on Greece on Transparency of Party Funding, GRECO (Theme II)) (Article 21 (4) and (9),Article 15, Article 21 (2)(a) and (b), Law 3023/2002, amended 2014)
Institution responsible for examining financial reports and/or investigating violations: Electoral Management Body No. Absent from legal framework
Institution responsible for examining financial reports and/or investigating violations: Institution for this purpose No. Absent from legal framework
Institution responsible for examining financial reports and/or investigating violations: Other Yes. Control Committee for the financial accounts of parties and parliament members, Special Investigative Service under the Ministry of Economy an Finance (YPEE), Local Committees, Chartered Auditors under the Control Committee. "During the monitoring process, both the chartered auditors and the Control Committee may have access to all necessary data and documents, including confidential information held by banks, tax authorities and stock exchange (Article 21 (4), Law 3023/2002)." (p. 15) "The Control Committee may also carry out investigations ex officio or upon receiving complaints by citizens, members of local committees or public officials concerning alleged infringements of political financing regulations regarding a party or a candidate for election. It may also ask the Special Investigative Service under the Ministry of Economy and Finance (YPEE) to carry out further investigations on its behalf, although the GET was informed that, until recently, this possibility had never been used in practice." (p. 15) "Local Committees may receive complaints submitted in writing before the completion of the voting process by the representative of any political party, coalition or any candidate for election. They may carry out investigations and hearings. The Local Committees then compile the results of their investigations in a report, which they forward to the Control Committee within 15 days after the elections. The Control Committee may use the content of this report at its discretion (Article 21 (9), Law 3023/2002, Article 15, Law 3202/2003)." (p. 16) (GRECO (2010) Evaluation Report on Greece on Transparency of Party Funding, GRECO (Theme II)) (Article 21 (2)(a) and (b), Law 3023/2002, amended 2014)
Other institutions with a formal role in political finance oversight
Institutions with a formal role in political finance oversight: Court No. Absent from legal framework
Institutions with a formal role in political finance oversight: Ministry No. Absent from legal framework
Institutions with a formal role in political finance oversight: Auditing agency No. Absent from legal framework
Institutions with a formal role in political finance oversight: EMB No. Absent from legal framework
Institutions with a formal role in political finance oversight: Institution for this purpose No. Absent from legal framework
Institutions with a formal role in political finance oversight: Other Yes. "[T]he Control Committee is assisted in its tasks by the Special Service of the Control Committee of the Parliament. This Service is composed of civil servants, specialised in economic and financial matters, appointed by the President of the Parliament (Article 21 (7), Law 3023/2002). The Special Service, the budget of which is part of the Parliament’s budget, currently has a total staff of 18 persons. It consists of three separate departments, dealing with the monitoring of the declaration of assets of members of the Hellenic and European Parliament, the monitoring of resources and expenditure of political parties and party coalitions and the monitoring of resources and expenditure of candidates for national and European elections. These three departments are assisted by a Secretariat." (p. 15) (GRECO (2010) Evaluation Report on Greece on Transparency of Party Funding, GRECO (Theme II)) Art.21(2)(g). The work of the Control Committee is assisted by a public prosecutor which shall provide to the Committee all the specific competences necessary to carry out the functions confert by article 21 of Law 3023/2002. (Article 21 (7), Article 21 (2)(g), Law 3023/2002, amended 2014)
Sanctions for political finance infractions
Sanctions for political finance infractions: Fines Yes. Art. 8 (3), Law 3023/2002 (amended by art.7 Law 4304/2014): Violations of the provision contained in the 1st and 2nd paragraph of art. 8, concerning fundings provided by private donors, are punishable with imprisonment up to one year and a fine. Article 21 (2) (m), Law 3023/2002 (amended by art 19 of Law 4304/2014).The Control Commitee shall verify that the legal entities indicated in article 1, paragraph 1, letter n, use the amount of funding received for statutory activities. If not, these legal entities are punishable with the a fine equivalent to the double of the amount of the funding received. Article 24 (2), Law 3023/2002: "Late or non publication by a party or coalition receiving public funding of the yearly balance sheet or the specific electoral income / expenditure report is punishable with a fine equal to 5% of the latest regular or electoral public funding given to the party or coalition. Article 24 (3), Law 3023/2002. [...] Incomplete or irregular keeping and updating of books, of the balance sheet, or the specific report of electoral income / expenditure is punishable with a fine up to 10% of the latest regular or electoral funding given to the party or coalition Article 24 (4), Law 3023/2002. [...] Political parties or coalitions which accept donations or any other service from unauthorised sources are punishable with a fine equal to 50% of the latest regular funding given to them or by a fine up to 150,000 Euros when the party has not received any regular funding. Article 24 (6), Law 3023/200). [...] Exceeding the amount of permitted electoral expenditure is punishable with a fine equal to double the amount that was exceeded. When the exceeding amount is more than 50% of the maximum permitted amount, the party or coalition is sanctioned with both the above fine and a deprivation of regular public funding for the following year. Article 24 (7), Law 3023/2002: A political party or coalition which receives donations in violations of art.8 paragraph 1 is punishable with a fine up to 20% of the latest regular funding given to them or by a fine up to 75,000 Euros when the party or coalition has not received any public funding. Art.24 (8), Law 3023/2002: The violations of article 11, paragrapgh 1, case a), are punishable with a fine equal to 5% of the last regular funding paid to the party or the coalition, or a fine equal to 15,000 euro when the party or coalition has not received any public funding. Art.24 (9) Law 3023/2002 (amended by art.14 Law 4304/2014): Violations of article 11, paragrraph 1, case b) and c), are punishable with a fine equal to 10% of the last regular funding paid to the party or the coalition, or a fine equal to 15,000 when the party or coalition has not received any public funding. Article 25 (1), Law 3023/2002. [...] Late or non-submission by a candidate for election of a report on electoral income/expenditure or submission of an irregular or incomplete report is punishable with a fine up to 10% of the yearly parliamentary compensation. Article 25 (2), Law 3023/2002. [...] A candidate for election who has accepted a contribution or other form of services from unauthorised sources, is punishable with a fine up to 50% of the yearly parliamentary compensation. (Article 25 (3), Law 3023/2002). [...] A candidate for election who has received a contribution by the same donor exceeding the ceiling of 3,000 Euros is punishable with a fine up to 20% of the yearly parliamentary compensation. Art. 25 (4), Law 3023/2002: In case of violation of the provision of art.12, paragraph , cases a) and b), a fine shall be applied to the parliamentary candidate up to the value of the yearl parliament member compensation [...]. Art.25 bis, Law 3023/2002 (introduced by art.16, Law 4304/2014): All the members of political parties or coalitions and all elected candidate of the Hellenic Parliament or of the European Parliament that omit, slow, hide about the obligation provided in art. 16 bis, are punishable with imprisonment up to 2 years and a fine, if not prescribed more severely in another Law. The donators that violate art.5 paragraph 1 are punishable with imprisonment up to 2 years and a fine. Members of political parties or coalition which are aware of the olbigations and accepted the financing, are punishable with imprisonment up to 2 years and a fine. Art.27 (3), Law 3023/2002 (amended by art.18 of Law 4304/2014): The owner of the publication that violated article 11, paragraph 1, case d), and of article 12, paragraph 1, case f) shall be subject, under a joint decision [...] to a fine up to 150,000 euros. Article 3 (2), Law 3202/2003. Candidates to local elections who accepted a contribution or other service from unauthorised sources are punishable with imprisonment up to one year and a fine of up to 50,000 Euros. Article 4, Law 3202/2003. Donors exceeding the allowed amounts of funding in local elections are punishable with the same imprisonment sanction and a fine between 2,000 and 10,000 Euros. (p. 17ff) (GRECO (2010) Evaluation Report on Greece on Transparency of Party Funding, GRECO (Theme II)) Article 17 (1), Law 3202/2003. Inadequate or improper keeping of books and records on electoral income and expenditure of a list of candidates in local elections, as well as exceeding the allowed expenditure for that list, is punishable by a fine between half and double the amount of the permissible electoral expenditure for that list. Article 17 (2), Law 3202/2003. [...] Acceptance of funding from unauthorised sources is punishable by a fine between 30,000 and 100,000 Euros. Article 17 (3), Law 3202/2003. [...] A list of candidates who knowingly accepted a contribution in excess of the allowed ceilings is punishable with a fine between 20,000 and 70,000 Euros. Article 17 (5), Law 3202/2003. [...] Late or non-submission by a coalition of a report on electoral income/expenditure or submission of an irregular or incomplete report, is punishable with a fine up to 6.000 Euros. Article 17 (7), Law 3202/2003. When a fine is imposed upon a list of candidates, the responsibility for its payment belongs to the head of this list. [...] Candidates for prefectoral and municipal elections. Article 18 (1), Law 3202/2003. [...] Late or non-submission by a candidate for election of a report on electoral income/expenditure or submission of an irregular or incomplete report, is punishable with a fine up to 3.000 Euros. Article 18 (2), Law 3202/2003. [...] A candidate for election who has accepted a contribution or other form of services from unauthorised sources is punishable with a fine up to 5,000 Euros. Article 18 (3), Law 3202/2003. [...] A candidate for election who has received a contribution by the same donor exceeding the ceiling of 500 Euros is punishable with a fine up to 3,000 Euros. Articles 18 (5) and 19 (1), Law 3202/2003. [...] A candidate for election who knowingly accepted a contribution in excess of the allowed ceilings is punishable with a fine up ten times the excess amount and forfeiture from office after a disciplinary procedure. Article 19 (1), Law 3202/2003. [...] A candidate for election who exceeded twice the amount of allowed electoral expenditure is punishable with forfeiture from office after a disciplinary procedure. (Provisions of Law 3023/2002, amended 2014: art. 8 (3), art.21 (2) (m), art. 24, art. 25, art. 25 bis, art. 27 (3). )
Sanctions for political finance infractions: Loss of public funding Yes. Article 24 (2), Law 3023/2002. "Late or non publication by a party or coalition receiving public funding of the yearly balance sheet or the specific electoral income / expenditure report is punishable with a fine equal to 5% of the latest regular or electoral public funding given to the party or coalition. Article 24 (3), Law 3023/2002. [...] Incomplete or irregular keeping and updating of books, of the balance sheet, or the specific report of electoral income / expenditure is punishable with a fine up to 10% of the latest regular or electoral funding given to the party or coalition Article 24 (4), Law 3023/2002. [...] Political parties or coalitions which accept donations or any other service from unauthorised sources (see paragraph 34) are punishable with a fine equal to 50% of the latest regular funding given to them or by a fine up to 150,000 Euros when the party has not received any regular funding. Article 24 (6), Law 3023/2002. Exceeding the amount of permitted electoral expenditure is punishable with a fine equal to double the amount that was exceeded. When the exceeding amount is more than 50% of the maximum permitted amount, the party or coalition is sanctioned with both the above fine and a deprivation of regular public funding for the following year. Article 24 (7), Law 3023/2002. A political party or coalition which receives donations from the same donor in excess of the allowed ceilings of 15,000 Euros is punishable with a fine up to 20% of the latest regular funding given to them or by a fine up to 75,000 Euros when the party or coalition has not received any public funding. Article 25 (1), Law 3023/2002. Late or non-submission by a candidate for election of a report on electoral income/expenditure or submission of an irregular or incomplete report is punishable with a fine up to 10% of the yearly parliamentary compensation. Article 25 (2), Law 3023/2002. [...] A candidate for election who has accepted a contribution or other form of services from unauthorised sources (see paragraph 34) is punishable with a fine up to 50% of the yearly parliamentary compensation (Article 25 (3), Law 3023/2002). [...] A candidate for election who has received a contribution by the same donor exceeding the ceiling of 3,000 Euros is punishable with a fine up to 20% of the yearly parliamentary compensation. (Article 24 (2) - (4), Article 24 (6) - (7), Article 25 (1) - (3), Law 3023/2002, amended 2014)
Sanctions for political finance infractions: Penal/Criminal Yes. Art. 8 (3), Law 3023/2002 (amended by art.7 Law 4304/2014): Violations of the provision contained in the 1st and 2nd paragraph of art. 8, concerning fundings provided by private donors, are punishable with imprisonment up to one year and a fine. Art.25 bis, Law 3023/2002 (introduced by art.16, Law 4304/2014): All the members of political parties or coalitions and all elected candidate of the Hellenic Parliament or of the European Parliament that omit, slow, hide about the obligation provided in art. 16 bis, are punishable with imprisonment up to 2 years and a fine, if not prescribed more severely in another Law. The donators that violate art.5 paragraph 1 are punishable with imprisonment up to 2 years and a fine. Members of political parties or coalition which are aware of the olbigations and accepted the financing, are punishable with imprisonment up to 2 years and a fine. Article 3 (2), Law 3202/2003. [...] Violation of the funding prohibitions of Law 3202/2003 on local elections is punishable with imprisonment up to one year and a fine of up to 50,000 Euros. Article 4, Law 3202/2003. They are punishable with a fine up to 10,000 Euros for accepting funding in excess of the authorised limitation. Article 4, Law 3202/2003. Donors exceeding the allowed amounts of funding in local elections are punishable with the same imprisonment sanction and a fine between 2,000 and 10,000 Euros. (p. 17ff) (GRECO (2010) Evaluation Report on Greece on Transparency of Party Funding, GRECO (Theme II)) (Article 8 (3), Article 25 bis, Law 3023/2002, amended 2014 )
Sanctions for political finance infractions: Forfeiture Yes. Exceeding the amount of permitted electoral expenditure is punishable with a fine equal to double the amount that was exceeded. When the exceeding amount is more than 50% of the maximum permitted amount, the party or coalition is sanctioned with both the above fine and a deprivation of regular public funding for the following year (Article 24 (6), Law 3023/2002). A candidate for election who knowingly accepted a contribution in excess of the allowed ceilings is punishable with a fine up ten times the excess amount and forfeiture from office after a disciplinary procedure (Articles 18 (5) and 19 (1), Law 3202/2003) (Article 24 (6), Law 3023/2002, amended 2014)
Sanctions for political finance infractions: Deregistration of party No. Absent from legal framework
Sanctions for political finance infractions: Loss of elected office Yes. Article 26 (1), Law 3023/2002. "Removal from parliamentary office may be imposed by a decision of the Special Highest Court defined in Article 100 of the Greek Constitution" (Article 100 of Constitution of Greece, 1975, amended 2008 Article 26 (1), Law 3023/2002, amended 2014)
Sanctions for political finance infractions: Suspension of political party No. Absent from legal framework
Sanctions for political finance infractions: Loss of nomination of candidate No. Absent from legal framework
Sanctions for political finance infractions: Loss of political rights No. Absent from legal framework
Sanctions for political finance infractions: Other No. Absent from legal framework

Legislation

Law 3023 on State Financing of Political Parties, 2002, amended 2014 (Greek)pdf
Constitution, 1975, amended 2008 (English)pdf

*Last update: 2017


Financial Disclosure

Greece has expanded the legislation for financial disclosure through law 3213/2003 and its ensuing amendments in 2010, 2011, 2012 and 2016 as much as possible, possible because of the economic situation in Greece.

However the Constitution grants wide immunity for the President, Ministers, and Members of Parliament, making it more difficult to prosecute violations under the present laws. Nevertheless, ministers and Members of Parliament are required to submit declarations of assets, which include real estate, movable assets, bank deposits, debt obligations, income from outside employment. Concealment of property that exceeds 300.000 euro could lead to imprisonment of up to 10 years and a fine ranging between 20.000 and 1.000.000 euro.

The basic law and ensuing amendments however have expanded in scope the offices and posts that are required to submit financial statements, making it mandatory for essentially everyone who works in the public service. For the interests of further transparency, it has been made illegal to publish any information in part, and any disclosures can only be published in full, excluding personal and sensitive information.

Civil servants are required under the Civil Service Code (3528/2007) to also submit their personal information including any changes. These disclosures are annual and include spouse and children’s information (if they cohabit).


Quantitative Data

Primary Metric

20122015201620172020Trend
Disclosure items7667675856
Filing frequency8169695050
Sanctions5858585858
Monitoring and Oversight9494946969
Public access to declarations3844445050

Alternative Metric

20122015201620172020Trend
Head of State78727211
Ministers7473739191
Members of Parliament7378789191
Civil servants5342424645

Values lie in range between 0 and 100, higher values implying higher legislation comprehensiveness


Qualitative Data

We are frequently reviewing and refining our data, so in case you notice any mistake in our assessment, feel free to send us an email by clicking the button ()

Head of State

Disclosure items

Spouses and children included in disclosure No. Absent from the legal framework.
Income and Assets
Real estate No. Absent from the legal framework.
Movable assets No. Absent from the legal framework.
Cash No. Absent from the legal framework.
Loans and Debts No. Absent from the legal framework.
Income from outside employment/assets No. Absent from the legal framework.
Incompatibilities
Gifts received as a public official No. Absent from the legal framework.
Private firm ownership and/or stock holdings No. Absent from the legal framework.
Ownership of state-owned enterprises (SOEs) No. Absent from the legal framework.
Holding government contracts No. Absent from the legal framework.
Board member, advisor, or company officer of private firm No. Absent from the legal framework.
Post-employment No. Absent from the legal framework.
Simultaneously holding policy-making position and policy-executing position Yes. Absent from the legal framework.
Participating in official decision-making processes that affect private interests No. Absent from the legal framework.
Concurrent employment of family members in public sector No. Absent from the legal framework.

Filing frequency

Filing required upon taking office No. Absent from the legal framework. (General)
Filing required upon leaving office No. Absent from the legal framework. (General)
Filing required annually No. Absent from the legal framework. (General)
Ad hoc filing required upon change in assets or conflicts of interest No. Absent from the legal framework. (General)

Sanctions

Sanctions stipulated for late filing (fines, administrative, and/or criminal) No. Absent from the legal framework. (General)
Sanctions stipulated for non-filing (fines, administrative, and/or criminal) No. Absent from the legal framework. (General)
Sanctions stipulated for false disclosure (fines, administrative, and/or criminal) No. Absent from the legal framework. (General)

Monitoring and Oversight

Depository body explicitly identified No. Absent from the legal framework. (General)
Enforcement body explicitly identified No. Absent from the legal framework. (General)
Some agency assigned responsibility for verifying submission No. Absent from the legal framework. (General)
Some agency assigned responsibility for verifying accuracy No. Absent from the legal framework. (General)

Public access to declarations

Public availability No. Absent from the legal framework. (General)
Timing of information release specified No. Absent from the legal framework. (General)
Location(s) of access specified No. Absent from the legal framework. (General)
Cost of access specified No. Absent from the legal framework. (General)

Ministers

Disclosure items

Spouses and children included in disclosure Yes. The Prime minister, ministers and deputy ministers shall submit a statement of their own, their spouse and their minor children's property. (Article 1(1) (a) (c), Law 3213/2003 on Declaration and Audit of Assets of Public Officials, Media Owners, and Other Individuals (last amended 2019))
Income and Assets
Real estate Yes. Immovable property and the rights thereon are considered assets. (Article 2(1)(a)(ii), Law 3213/2003 on Declaration and Audit of Assets of Public Officials, Media Owners, and Other Individuals (last amended 2019))
Movable assets Yes. High value mobile phones (over 30.000 euros), vessels, airborne vessels and all-purpose vehicles are declared (Article 2(1)(a)(vi)(vii), Law 3213/2003 on Declaration and Audit of Assets of Public Officials, Media Owners, and Other Individuals (last amended 2019))
Cash Yes. Deposits in banks, savings banks, domestic or foreign credit institutions are considered assets. (Article 2(1)(a)(iv), Law 3213/2003 on Declaration and Audit of Assets of Public Officials, Media Owners, and Other Individuals (last amended 2019))
Loans and Debts Yes. The declaration also includes debt obligations to demestic and foreign credit and banking institutions. (Article 2(1)(a)(ix), Law 3213/2003 on Declaration and Audit of Assets of Public Officials, Media Owners, and Other Individuals (last amended 2019))
Income from outside employment/assets Yes. Income from every source, during the last three financial years before the disclosure of the initial statement, and each year after the disclosure of the initial statement. (Article 2(1)(a)(i), Law 3213/2003 on Declaration and Audit of Assets of Public Officials, Media Owners, and Other Individuals (last amended 2019))
Incompatibilities
Gifts received as a public official No. Absent from the legal framework. (General)
Private firm ownership and/or stock holdings Yes. Participation in any kind of business must be declared. The ministers are prohibited from taking part in the administration or the capital of companies that have been constituted abroad either by them or by surrogate persons. (Article 2(1)(a)(vi) and Article 8 (1), Law 3213/2003 on Declaration and Audit of Assets of Public Officials, Media Owners, and Other Individuals (last amended 2019))
Ownership of state-owned enterprises (SOEs) Yes. Participation in any kind of business must be declared. (Article 2(1)(a)(vi), Law 3213/2003 on Declaration and Audit of Assets of Public Officials, Media Owners, and Other Individuals (last amended 2019))
Holding government contracts No. Absent from the legal framework. (General)
Board member, advisor, or company officer of private firm Yes. Participation in any kind of business must be declared. The ministers are prohibited from taking part in the administration or the capital of companies that have been constituted abroad either by them or by surrogate persons. (Article 2(1)(a)(vi) and Article 8 (1), Law 3213/2003 on Declaration and Audit of Assets of Public Officials, Media Owners, and Other Individuals (last amended 2019))
Post-employment No. Absent from the legal framework. (General)
Simultaneously holding policy-making position and policy-executing position No. Absent from the legal framework. (General)
Participating in official decision-making processes that affect private interests No. Absent from the legal framework. (General)
Concurrent employment of family members in public sector No. Absent from the legal framework. (General)

Filing frequency

Filing required upon taking office Yes. The disclosure is required within 90 days of taking the oath of office, or commencing their duties. (Article 1 (2), Law 3213/2003 on Declaration and Audit of Assets of Public Officials, Media Owners, and Other Individuals (last amended 2019))
Filing required upon leaving office Yes. The disclosure is required each year for three years after the expiration of the mandate or loss of seat no later than three months after the deadline for submitting the income tax return (Article 1 (2), Law 3213/2003 on Declaration and Audit of Assets of Public Officials, Media Owners, and Other Individuals (last amended 2019))
Filing required annually Yes. The disclosure is required every year during the mandate or holding of seat or office or term. (Article 1 (2), Law 3213/2003 on Declaration and Audit of Assets of Public Officials, Media Owners, and Other Individuals (last amended 2019))
Ad hoc filing required upon change in assets or conflicts of interest No. After the initial disclosure, in their annual statement individuals are only required to state any changes that occurred to their assets for the period of time for which the statement is concerned. (Article 2(1)(c), Law 3213/2003 on Declaration and Audit of Assets of Public Officials, Media Owners, and Other Individuals (last amended 2019))

Sanctions

Sanctions stipulated for late filing (fines, administrative, and/or criminal) Yes. An administrative fine of 150 to 400 euro shall be imposed on anyone who submits the declaration after the prescribed time limit. (Article 6 (1) Law 3213/2003 on Declaration and Audit of Assets of Public Officials, Media Owners, and Other Individuals (last amended 2019))
Sanctions stipulated for non-filing (fines, administrative, and/or criminal) Yes. A person who fails to make a statement after 30 days from the expiry of the period or makes an incorrect or incomplete declaration shall be punished by imprisonment and a fine of up to 100.000 euro. In the event of the offender is trying to conceal a property acquired by him, he is punished by imprisonment of at least 2 years and with a fine of 10.000 euro to 500.000 euro. The perpetrator shall be punished by imprisonment of up to 10 years and by a fine of 20.000 euros up to 1.000.000 euro if the total value of his or her hiding exceeds 300.000 euros (Article 6 (2) (3) Law 3213/2003 on Declaration and Audit of Assets of Public Officials, Media Owners, and Other Individuals (last amended 2019))
Sanctions stipulated for false disclosure (fines, administrative, and/or criminal) Yes. A person who fails to make a statement after 30 days from the expiry of the period or makes an incorrect or incomplete declaration shall be punished by imprisonment and a fine of up to 100.000 euro. In the event of the offender is trying to conceal a property acquired by him, he is punished by imprisonment of at least 2 years and with a fine of 10.000 euro to 500.000 euro. The perpetrator shall be punished by imprisonment of up to 10 years and by a fine of 20.000 euros up to 1.000.000 euro if the total value of his or her hiding exceeds 300.000 euros (Article 6 (2) (3) Law 3213/2003 on Declaration and Audit of Assets of Public Officials, Media Owners, and Other Individuals (last amended 2019))

Monitoring and Oversight

Depository body explicitly identified Yes. Audit Committee of the Parliament for Financial Statement Declarations (Article 3(1)(a) and Article 3a Law 3213/2003 on Declaration and Audit of Assets of Public Officials, Media Owners, and Other Individuals (last amended 2019))
Enforcement body explicitly identified Yes. Audit Committee of the Parliament for Financial Statement Declarations (Article 3(1)(a) and Article 3b Law 3213/2003 on Declaration and Audit of Assets of Public Officials, Media Owners, and Other Individuals (last amended 2019))
Some agency assigned responsibility for verifying submission Yes. Audit Committee of the Parliament for Financial Statement Declarations (Article 3(1)(a) and Article 3b Law 3213/2003 on Declaration and Audit of Assets of Public Officials, Media Owners, and Other Individuals (last amended 2019))
Some agency assigned responsibility for verifying accuracy Yes. Audit Committee of the Parliament for Financial Statement Declarations (Article 3(1)(a) and Article 3b Law 3213/2003 on Declaration and Audit of Assets of Public Officials, Media Owners, and Other Individuals (last amended 2019))

Public access to declarations

Public availability Yes. Statements of the assets of the persons referred to in Article 1 (1) (a) to (e) shall be published on the Parliament's website (Article 2(3), Law 3213/2003 on Declaration and Audit of Assets of Public Officials, Media Owners, and Other Individuals (last amended 2019))
Timing of information release specified Yes. No later than 3 months after submission (Article 2(3), Law 3213/2003 on Declaration and Audit of Assets of Public Officials, Media Owners, and Other Individuals (last amended 2019))
Location(s) of access specified Yes. Parliament's website (Article 2(3), Law 3213/2003 on Declaration and Audit of Assets of Public Officials, Media Owners, and Other Individuals (last amended 2019))
Cost of access specified Yes. Publicly available without any costs of access (Article 2(3), Law 3213/2003 on Declaration and Audit of Assets of Public Officials, Media Owners, and Other Individuals (last amended 2019))

Members of Parliament

Disclosure items

Spouses and children included in disclosure Yes. Members of Parliament shall submit a statement of their own, their spouse and their minor children's property. (Article 1(1) (d), Law 3213/2003 on Declaration and Audit of Assets of Public Officials, Media Owners, and Other Individuals (last amended 2019))
Income and Assets
Real estate Yes. Immovable property and the rights thereon are considered assets. (Article 2(1)(a)(ii), Law 3213/2003 on Declaration and Audit of Assets of Public Officials, Media Owners, and Other Individuals (last amended 2019))
Movable assets Yes. High value mobile phones (over 30.000 euros), vessels, airborne vessels and all-purpose vehicles are declared (Article 2(1)(a)(vi)(vii), Law 3213/2003 on Declaration and Audit of Assets of Public Officials, Media Owners, and Other Individuals (last amended 2019))
Cash Yes. Deposits in banks, savings banks, domestic or foreign credit institutions are considered assets. (Article 2(1)(a)(iv), Law 3213/2003 on Declaration and Audit of Assets of Public Officials, Media Owners, and Other Individuals (last amended 2019))
Loans and Debts Yes. The declaration also includes debt obligations to demestic and foreign credit and banking institutions. (Article 2(1)(a)(ix), Law 3213/2003 on Declaration and Audit of Assets of Public Officials, Media Owners, and Other Individuals (last amended 2019))
Income from outside employment/assets Yes. Income from every source, during the last three financial years before the disclosure of the initial statement, and each year after the disclosure of the initial statement. (Article 2(1)(a)(i), Law 3213/2003 on Declaration and Audit of Assets of Public Officials, Media Owners, and Other Individuals (last amended 2019))
Incompatibilities
Gifts received as a public official No. Absent from the legal framework. (General)
Private firm ownership and/or stock holdings Yes. Participation in any kind of business must be declared. The MEPs are prohibited from taking part in the administration or the capital of companies that have been constituted abroad either by them or by surrogate persons. (Article 2(1)(a)(vi) and Article 8 (1), Law 3213/2003 on Declaration and Audit of Assets of Public Officials, Media Owners, and Other Individuals (last amended 2019))
Ownership of state-owned enterprises (SOEs) Yes. Participation in any kind of business must be declared. (Article 2(1)(a)(vi), Law 3213/2003 on Declaration and Audit of Assets of Public Officials, Media Owners, and Other Individuals (last amended 2019))
Holding government contracts No. Absent from the legal framework. (General)
Board member, advisor, or company officer of private firm Yes. Participation in any kind of business must be declared. The MEPs are prohibited from taking part in the administration or the capital of companies that have been constituted abroad either by them or by surrogate persons. (Article 2(1)(a)(vi) and Article 8 (1), Law 3213/2003 on Declaration and Audit of Assets of Public Officials, Media Owners, and Other Individuals (last amended 2019))
Post-employment No. Absent from the legal framework. (General)
Simultaneously holding policy-making position and policy-executing position No. Absent from the legal framework. (General)
Participating in official decision-making processes that affect private interests No. Absent from the legal framework. (General)
Concurrent employment of family members in public sector No. Absent from the legal framework. (General)

Filing frequency

Filing required upon taking office Yes. The disclosure is required within 90 days of taking the oath of office, or commencing their duties. (Article 1 (2), Law 3213/2003 on Declaration and Audit of Assets of Public Officials, Media Owners, and Other Individuals (last amended 2019))
Filing required upon leaving office Yes. The disclosure is required each year for three years after the expiration of the mandate or loss of seat no later than three months after the deadline for submitting the income tax return (Article 1 (2), Law 3213/2003 on Declaration and Audit of Assets of Public Officials, Media Owners, and Other Individuals (last amended 2019))
Filing required annually Yes. The disclosure is required every year during the mandate or holding of seat or office or term. (Article 1 (2), Law 3213/2003 on Declaration and Audit of Assets of Public Officials, Media Owners, and Other Individuals (last amended 2019))
Ad hoc filing required upon change in assets or conflicts of interest No. After the initial disclosure, in their annual statement individuals are only required to state any changes that occurred to their assets for the period of time for which the statement is concerned. (Article 2(1)(c), Law 3213/2003 on Declaration and Audit of Assets of Public Officials, Media Owners, and Other Individuals (last amended 2019))

Sanctions

Sanctions stipulated for late filing (fines, administrative, and/or criminal) Yes. An administrative fine of 150 to 400 euro shall be imposed on anyone who submits the declaration after the prescribed time limit. (Article 6 (1) Law 3213/2003 on Declaration and Audit of Assets of Public Officials, Media Owners, and Other Individuals (last amended 2019))
Sanctions stipulated for non-filing (fines, administrative, and/or criminal) Yes. A person who fails to make a statement after 30 days from the expiry of the period or makes an incorrect or incomplete declaration shall be punished by imprisonment and a fine of up to 100.000 euro. In the event of the offender is trying to conceal a property acquired by him, he is punished by imprisonment of at least 2 years and with a fine of 10.000 euro to 500.000 euro. The perpetrator shall be punished by imprisonment of up to 10 years and by a fine of 20.000 euros up to 1.000.000 euro if the total value of his or her hiding exceeds 300.000 euros (Article 6 (2) (3) Law 3213/2003 on Declaration and Audit of Assets of Public Officials, Media Owners, and Other Individuals (last amended 2019))
Sanctions stipulated for false disclosure (fines, administrative, and/or criminal) Yes. A person who fails to make a statement after 30 days from the expiry of the period or makes an incorrect or incomplete declaration shall be punished by imprisonment and a fine of up to 100.000 euro. In the event of the offender is trying to conceal a property acquired by him, he is punished by imprisonment of at least 2 years and with a fine of 10.000 euro to 500.000 euro. The perpetrator shall be punished by imprisonment of up to 10 years and by a fine of 20.000 euros up to 1.000.000 euro if the total value of his or her hiding exceeds 300.000 euros (Article 6 (2) (3) Law 3213/2003 on Declaration and Audit of Assets of Public Officials, Media Owners, and Other Individuals (last amended 2019))

Monitoring and Oversight

Depository body explicitly identified Yes. Audit Committee of the Parliament for Financial Statement Declarations (Article 3(1)(a) and Article 3a Law 3213/2003 on Declaration and Audit of Assets of Public Officials, Media Owners, and Other Individuals (last amended 2019))
Enforcement body explicitly identified Yes. Audit Committee of the Parliament for Financial Statement Declarations (Article 3(1)(a) and Article 3b Law 3213/2003 on Declaration and Audit of Assets of Public Officials, Media Owners, and Other Individuals (last amended 2019))
Some agency assigned responsibility for verifying submission Yes. Audit Committee of the Parliament for Financial Statement Declarations (Article 3(1)(a) and Article 3b Law 3213/2003 on Declaration and Audit of Assets of Public Officials, Media Owners, and Other Individuals (last amended 2019))
Some agency assigned responsibility for verifying accuracy Yes. Audit Committee of the Parliament for Financial Statement Declarations (Article 3(1)(a) and Article 3b Law 3213/2003 on Declaration and Audit of Assets of Public Officials, Media Owners, and Other Individuals (last amended 2019))

Public access to declarations

Public availability Yes. Statements of the assets of the persons referred to in Article 1 (1) (a) to (e) shall be published on the Parliament's website (Article 2(3), Law 3213/2003 on Declaration and Audit of Assets of Public Officials, Media Owners, and Other Individuals (last amended 2019))
Timing of information release specified Yes. No later than 3 months after submission (Article 2(3), Law 3213/2003 on Declaration and Audit of Assets of Public Officials, Media Owners, and Other Individuals (last amended 2019))
Location(s) of access specified Yes. Parliament's website (Article 2(3), Law 3213/2003 on Declaration and Audit of Assets of Public Officials, Media Owners, and Other Individuals (last amended 2019))
Cost of access specified Yes. Publicly available without any costs of access (Article 2(3), Law 3213/2003 on Declaration and Audit of Assets of Public Officials, Media Owners, and Other Individuals (last amended 2019))

Civil servants

Disclosure items

Spouses and children included in disclosure Yes. Civil servants shall declare in writing at the time of appointment, his wealth, as well as that of his spouse and children, provided that they cohabitate, and all subsequent material changes. (Article 28(1), Law 3528/2007, Civil Service Code (amended in 2020))
Income and Assets
Real estate Yes. Real estate is included (Article 28(4), Law 3528/2007, Civil Service Code (amended in 2020); Joint decision of the Ministers of the Interior, Public Administration and Decentralization and Economy and Finance)
Movable assets Yes. Movable assets are included (Article 28(4), Law 3528/2007, Civil Service Code (amended in 2020); Joint decision of the Ministers of the Interior, Public Administration and Decentralization and Economy and Finance)
Cash Yes. Savings are included (Article 28(4), Law 3528/2007, Civil Service Code (amended in 2020); Joint decision of the Ministers of the Interior, Public Administration and Decentralization and Economy and Finance)
Loans and Debts No. Absent from the legal framework. (General)
Income from outside employment/assets No. After an authorization, the official may perform a private work or work on a fee basis, provided that it is compatible with the duties of his post and does not hinder the smooth performance of his service (Article 31(1) Law 3528/2007, Civil Service Code (amended in 2020))
Incompatibilities
Gifts received as a public official No. Absent from the legal framework. (General)
Private firm ownership and/or stock holdings Yes. An official shall be required to declare to his service his participation in legal entities of private law of any kind, other than trade unions and charitable foundations. It is forbidden for an employee to engage in any private, limited liability or joint venture, or to be a manager or agent of a public limited company or a manager of any commercial company. (Article 32 (1) (2), Law 3528/2007, Civil Service Code (amended in 2020))
Ownership of state-owned enterprises (SOEs) Yes. Following a permit, the employee may participate in the management of a public limited company or agricultural cooperative. It is forbidden to obtain from an employee, his or her spouse or minor children the shares of public limited companies subject to special control of his service. (Article 32 (2) (3), Law 3528/2007, Civil Service Code (amended in 2020))
Holding government contracts No. Absent from the legal framework. (General)
Board member, advisor, or company officer of private firm Yes. An official shall be required to declare to his service his participation in legal entities of private law of any kind, other than trade unions and charitable foundations. It is forbidden for an employee to engage in any private, limited liability or joint venture, or to be a manager or agent of a public limited company or a manager of any commercial company. (Article 32 (1) (2), Law 3528/2007, Civil Service Code (amended in 2020))
Post-employment No. Absent from the legal framework. (General)
Simultaneously holding policy-making position and policy-executing position No. Absent from the legal framework. (General)
Participating in official decision-making processes that affect private interests No. Absent from the legal framework. (General)
Concurrent employment of family members in public sector No. Absent from the legal framework. (General)

Filing frequency

Filing required upon taking office Yes. Civil Servants are required to submit in writing a statement of his wealth upon taking office. (Article 28(1), Law 3528/2007, Civil Service Code (amended in 2020))
Filing required upon leaving office No. Absent from the legal framework. (General)
Filing required annually No. Every two years, the competent authority for staff is required to request of employees a statement reflecting any significant changes or not in his wealth. (Article 28(1), Law 3528/2007, Civil Service Code (amended in 2020))
Ad hoc filing required upon change in assets or conflicts of interest Yes. Absent from the legal framework.

Sanctions

Sanctions stipulated for late filing (fines, administrative, and/or criminal) No. Absent from the legal framework. (General)
Sanctions stipulated for non-filing (fines, administrative, and/or criminal) No. Absent from the legal framework. (General)
Sanctions stipulated for false disclosure (fines, administrative, and/or criminal) Yes. Criminal or disciplinary action can be taken if found that any change in the level of assets in the disclosure of the civil servant is incompatible to his earnings and his overall financial situation. The competent service is required to conduct a search into the origins of such resources and the competent minister shall make the necessary arrangements for the criminal or disciplinary action and refer employees to the relevant service board. (Article 28(3), Law 3528/2007, Civil Service Code (amended in 2020))

Monitoring and Oversight

Depository body explicitly identified Yes. The content of the statements are compulsory and are processed electronically to the Secretariat of Information Technology of the Ministry of Finance. The Secretariat maintains a registry of the persons required to submit a statement, and ensures the electronic processing of the statements and the anonymization of the information contain therein. (Article 28(4), Law 3528/2007, Civil Service Code (amended in 2020))
Enforcement body explicitly identified No. Absent from the legal framework. (General)
Some agency assigned responsibility for verifying submission Yes. The content of the statements are compulsory and are processed electronically to the Secretariat of Information Technology of the Ministry of Finance. The Secretariat maintains a registry of the persons required to submit a statement, and ensures the electronic processing of the statements and the anonymization of the information contain therein. (Article 28(4), Law 3528/2007, Civil Service Code (amended in 2020))
Some agency assigned responsibility for verifying accuracy Yes. Verification of statements can be carried out either ex officio or at the employee's service request or following a complaint, by a service of the Ministry of Finance which is determined by a joint decision of the Ministers of the Interior, Public Administration and Decentralization, and Finance. (Article 28(5), Law 3528/2007, Civil Service Code (amended in 2020))

Public access to declarations

Public availability No. The Secretariat of Information Technology in the Ministry of Finance ensures the processing of the information in each employee's record, and the establishment of anonymity of all personal information in each statement and the information contained therein. (Law 3528/2007, Civil Service Code (amended in 2020), Article 28(4))
Timing of information release specified No. Absent from the legal framework. (General)
Location(s) of access specified No. Absent from the legal framework. (General)
Cost of access specified No. Absent from the legal framework. (General)

Legislation

Law No. 3213 of 2003_GRE (Greek)pdf
Law No. 3528 of 2007_GRE (Greek)pdf

*Last update: 2017


Conflict of Interest

The two main sources of law for the four categories of persons are the Constitution (regarding the President, Ministers, and MPs) and law 3528/2007 (the Civil Service Code). The latter has been amended to refine and tighten the guidelines on offenses of civil employees.

However there remain few points where legislation does not explicitly cover such as accepting gifts and helping family members obtain employment in the public sector. These should be covered however by the existing legislation against corruption which has been enhanced with the ratification of the UN Convention against Corruption.

As the Greco report explains: “The legal framework for fighting corruption thus appears to be fairly comprehensive. In spite of this, corruption is widely perceived as a pervasive phenomenon in Greece, a reality recently acknowledged by the Greek authorities at the highest level of the State”.


Quantitative Data

Primary Metric

20122015201620172020Trend
Restrictions3838383838
Sanctions1717171717
Monitoring and Oversight1225252512

Alternative Metric

20122015201620172020Trend
Head of State33333
Ministers2020202020
Members of Parliament1313131313
Civil servants5269696952

Values lie in range between 0 and 100, higher values implying higher legislation comprehensiveness


Qualitative Data

We are frequently reviewing and refining our data, so in case you notice any mistake in our assessment, feel free to send us an email by clicking the button ()

Head of State

Restrictions

General restriction on conflict of interest No. Absent from legal framework. (General)
Accepting gifts No. Absent from legal framework. (General)
Private firm ownership and/or stock holdings No. Absent from legal framework. (General)
Ownership of state-owned enterprises (SOEs) No. Absent from legal framework. (General)
Holding government contracts No. Absent from legal framework. (General)
Board member, advisor, or company officer of private firm No. Absent from legal framework. (General)
Post-employment No. Absent from legal framework. (General)
Simultaneously holding policy-making position and policy-executing position Yes. The office of the President shall be incompatible with any other office, position or function. (Greek Constitution, Section II, Art. 30(2))
Participating in official decision-making processes that affect private interests No. Absent from legal framework. (General)
Assisting family or friends in obtaining employment in public sector No. Absent from legal framework. (General)

Sanctions

Fines are stipulated for violations of COI regulations restricting behavior No. Absent from legal framework. (General)
Administrative sanctions are stipulated for violations of COI regulations restricting behavior No. Absent from legal framework. (General)
Penal sanctions are stipulated for violations of COI regulations restricting behavior No. Absent from legal framework. (General)

Monitoring and Oversight

Monitoring body specified (guidance, training, data tracking) No. Absent from legal framework. (General)
Enforcement body specified (sanctions, hearings) No. Absent from legal framework. (General)

Ministers

Restrictions

General restriction on conflict of interest No. Absent from legal framework. (General)
Accepting gifts Yes. Active and passive bribery as defined in the UN Convention against Corruption, are punishable by imprisonment for not less than a year. (Articles 235, 236 of the Penal Code, as amended by the Second Article of Law 3666/2008)
Private firm ownership and/or stock holdings Yes. Any professional activity whatsoever of members of the Government, must be suspended during the discharge of their duties. / The conclusion of stock exchange transactions is prohibited. the sale does not include the cash transactions as well as the purchase or sale of mutual fund shares. (Greek Constitution, Section III, Art. 81(3) / Law 2843/2000 Article 32)
Ownership of state-owned enterprises (SOEs) Yes. Any professional activity whatsoever of members of the Government, must be suspended during the discharge of their duties. (Greek Constitution, Section III, Art. 81(3))
Holding government contracts Yes. Members of Parliament may not undertake commissions, studies, or the execution of works for the State, local government agencies or other public law legal persons or of public or municipal enterprises or leases of public or municipal taxes or rent real estate owned by the aforementioned bodies or accept any form of concessions on such real estate. (Greek Constitution, Section III, Art. 57(4))
Board member, advisor, or company officer of private firm Yes. The duties of Members of Parliament shall be incompatible with the duties or the capacity of member of a board of directors, governor, general manager or their alternates, or those of employee of commercial company or enterprise enjoying special privileges or subsidies by the State, or to which concession of public enterprise has been granted. / Members must state their choice between their parliamentary office and other duties. (Greek Constitution, Section III, Art. 57(1), (2))
Post-employment No. Absent from legal framework. (General)
Simultaneously holding policy-making position and policy-executing position Yes. (Only in relation to MPs in the Presiding Bureau of the Parliament): The office of member of the bureau is incompatible with the office of Minister or Deputy Minister. Acceptance of the position of Minister or Deputy Minister is considered as automatic resignation from the office of MP. (Art. 6(3), Regulations of the Business of the House of Representatives 2010)
Participating in official decision-making processes that affect private interests No. Absent from legal framework. (General)
Assisting family or friends in obtaining employment in public sector No. Absent from legal framework. (General)

Sanctions

Fines are stipulated for violations of COI regulations restricting behavior No. Absent from legal framework. (General)
Administrative sanctions are stipulated for violations of COI regulations restricting behavior No. Absent from legal framework. (General)
Penal sanctions are stipulated for violations of COI regulations restricting behavior No. Absent from legal framework. (General)

Monitoring and Oversight

Monitoring body specified (guidance, training, data tracking) No. Absent from legal framework. (General)
Enforcement body specified (sanctions, hearings) No. Absent from legal framework. (General)

Members of Parliament

Restrictions

General restriction on conflict of interest No. Absent from legal framework. (General)
Accepting gifts No. Absent from legal framework. (General)
Private firm ownership and/or stock holdings Yes. The conclusion of stock exchange transactions is prohibited. the sale does not include the cash transactions as well as the purchase or sale of mutual fund shares. (Law 3849/2010 amending law 3213/2003 on Declaration and Audit of Assets of Public Officials, Media Owners and Other Individuals, Article 11)
Ownership of state-owned enterprises (SOEs) Yes. The duties of Members of Parliament shall be incompatible with the duties or the capacity of member of a board of directors, governor, general manager or their alternates, or those of employee of commercial company or enterprise enjoying special privileges or subsidies by the State, or to which concession of public enterprise has been granted. (Greek Constitution, Article 57 (1))
Holding government contracts Yes. Members of Parliament may not undertake commissions, studies, or the execution of works for the State, local government agencies or other public law legal persons or of public or municipal enterprises or leases of public or municipal taxes or rent real estate owned by the aforementioned bodies or accept any form of concessions on such real estate. (Greek Constitution, Article 57 (4))
Board member, advisor, or company officer of private firm No. Absent from legal framework. (General)
Post-employment No. Absent from legal framework. (General)
Simultaneously holding policy-making position and policy-executing position Yes. (Only in relation to MPs in the Presiding Bureau of the Parliament): The office of member of the bureau is incompatible with the office of Minister or Deputy Minister. Acceptance of the position of Minister or Deputy Minister is considered as automatic resignation from the office of MP. (Art. 6(3), Regulations of the Business of the House of Representatives 2010)
Participating in official decision-making processes that affect private interests No. Absent from legal framework. (General)
Assisting family or friends in obtaining employment in public sector No. Absent from legal framework. (General)

Sanctions

Fines are stipulated for violations of COI regulations restricting behavior No. Absent from legal framework. (General)
Administrative sanctions are stipulated for violations of COI regulations restricting behavior No. Absent from legal framework. (General)
Penal sanctions are stipulated for violations of COI regulations restricting behavior No. Absent from legal framework. (General)

Monitoring and Oversight

Monitoring body specified (guidance, training, data tracking) No. Absent from legal framework. (General)
Enforcement body specified (sanctions, hearings) No. Absent from legal framework. (General)

Civil servants

Restrictions

General restriction on conflict of interest No. Absent from legal framework. (General)
Accepting gifts No. Absent from legal framework. (General)
Private firm ownership and/or stock holdings Yes. The acquisition by the employee, his spouse, or minor children of shares of public limited companies under the special control of his service is prohibited. (Law 3528 of 2007, Civil Service Code, Article 32(3))
Ownership of state-owned enterprises (SOEs) No. Employees are allowed to participate under their official capacity in companies which are controlled by the State, legal public bodies, the local government and public enterprises. (Law 3528 of 2007, Civil Service Code, Article 32(5))
Holding government contracts No. Absent from legal framework. (General)
Board member, advisor, or company officer of private firm Yes. Employees are prohibited from participating in any personal trading company, limited liability company, or joint venture or be director or manager or any commercial company. (Law 3528 of 2007, Civil Service Code, Article 32(2))
Post-employment No. Absent from legal framework. (General)
Simultaneously holding policy-making position and policy-executing position Yes. The exercise of power is incompatible with the Parliamentary mandate, except as prescribed in the provision for participation of state-owned enterprises. (Law 3528 of 2007, Civil Service Code, Article 33)
Participating in official decision-making processes that affect private interests Yes. Employees may not participate in the decision-making either individually or of a collective body if himself or his spouse or family member up to the third degree have an interest in the case. (Law 3528 of 2007, Civil Service Code, Article 36(1))
Assisting family or friends in obtaining employment in public sector No. Absent from legal framework. (General)

Sanctions

Fines are stipulated for violations of COI regulations restricting behavior Yes. Disciplinary penalties imposed for any disciplinary offense can include a fine equalling three (3) times the monthly income of an employee. (Law 3528 of 2007, the Civil Service Code, Article 109(1))
Administrative sanctions are stipulated for violations of COI regulations restricting behavior Yes. Disciplinary penalties that may be imposed on officers are: a) written reprimand, b) the penalty to pay three (3) months, c) deprivation of the right to promotion from one (1) to five (5) years, d) relegation by one point, e) Temporary suspension of three (3) to six (6) months with full pay and deprivation f) discontinuation. / Discontinuation may only be imposed in the following offenses which include acceptance of any material favor or consideration for the handling of the case by staff in the performance of his duties, and directly or through a third party participation in an auction carried out by the authority in which he is employed, or a committe of which he is a member. (Law 3528 of 2007, the Civil Service Code, Article 109(2))
Penal sanctions are stipulated for violations of COI regulations restricting behavior No. Absent from legal framework. (General)

Monitoring and Oversight

Monitoring body specified (guidance, training, data tracking) No. Absent from legal framework. (General)
Enforcement body specified (sanctions, hearings) Yes. Depending on the position of each civil servant (whether employed in central and regional services, or in a public body) there are different Disciplinary Supervisors who conduct monitoring and may issue a written reprimant for breach of duty in relation to any disciplinary offense. (Law 3528 of 2007, Civil Service Code, Article 116)

Legislation

Constitution of Greece (Greek)pdf
Code of Conduct of Members of the Hellenic Parliament (Greek)pdf
Standing Orders of the Hellenic Parliament (Greek)pdf
Law No. 3528 of 2007, establishing the Code of Status of Public Civil Servants (Greek)pdf
Law No. 3859 of 2010, with the Amendment of Law 3213/2003 (Greek)pdf
Law No. 2843 of 2000 (Greek)pdf

*Last update: 2017


Freedom of Information

The legal framework for access to information in Greece is formed by 3 laws: Law No. 2472/1997 on Protection of persons from the processing of personal information, the Administrative Procedure Code 2690/1999, and Law No. 3448/2006 on Further use of information of the public sector. In 2015, Presidential Decree 28/2015 established the framework for the implementation of procedures for the right to access to information.

This decree also established the right to information from public bodies, the process for appeals, as well as the process for obtaining information.

There is no specific body that serves as an independent appeals mechanism for the resolution of conflicts arising from the non-disclosure of information from authorities. However, requesters have an ultimate recourse to the General Inspector of Public Administration (not specifically established for Freedom of Information Legislation), who considers each case in the second instance. After this, applicants may file for claims for damages before the competent court, according to civil liability provisions.


Quantitative Data

Primary Metric

20122015201620172020Trend
Scope and Coverage2424363682
Information access and release100100100100100
Exceptions and Overrides5050505050
Sanctions for non-compliance00000
Monitoring and Oversight00000

Values lie in range between 0 and 100, higher values implying higher legislation comprehensiveness


Qualitative Data

We are frequently reviewing and refining our data, so in case you notice any mistake in our assessment, feel free to send us an email by clicking the button ()

Scope and Coverage

Scope of disclosure

Existence of legal right to access Yes. 1. Each person, acting on his own or together with others, shall have the right, observing the laws of the State, to petition in writing public authorities, who shall be obliged to take prompt action in accordance with provisions in force, and to give a written and reasoned reply to the petitioner as provided by law. / 3. A request for information shall oblige the competent authority to reply, provided that the law stipulates. (Constitution of Greece, Article 10)
"Information" or "Documents" is defined Yes. “interested persons” may request administrative documents which are defined as “all documents produced by public authorities such as reports, studies, minutes statistics, administrative circulars, responses opinions and decisions. If the documents are not available online, in accordance with the provisions of Article 61, any interested party may submit a request for documents for re-use. The requests are submitted in writing or in electronic form to the service, which has issued or is in possession of the document. (Article 5(1), Law 2690/1999 on the Ratification of the Administrative Procedure Code, last amended 2020 Article 62(1) Law 4727/2020 on Digital Governance)
Proactive disclosure is specified No. The documents of the bodies of this Chapter are available from the moment of their posting, publication or initial distribution, free for further use and utilization for commercial or non-commercial purposes, without requiring any action of the interested party or act of the administration (principle of open disclosure and re-use of public information), without prejudice to Articles 64 to 66, 69 and 70. (Article 61(3) Law 4727/2020 on Digital Governance)

Coverage of public and private sectors

Executive branch Yes. The provisions of this Chapter shall apply to: (a) documents held by public sector bodies; (b) documents held by public undertakings which: (ba) are active in the areas defined in Directive (EU) 2014/25 (Book II of Law 4412/2016 ), (bb) operate as public service operators in accordance with Article 2 of Regulation (EC) 1370/2007; (bc) operate as air carriers fulfilling public service obligations in accordance with Article 16 of Regulation (EC) 1008/2008; or (bd) operate as shipowners fulfilling their public service obligations in accordance with Article 4 of Regulation (EEC) No 3577/1992; and (c) research data, in accordance with the conditions laid down in Article 68. ( Article 59(3), Law 4727/2020 on Digital Governance)
Legislative branch Yes. The provisions of this Chapter shall apply to: (a) documents held by public sector bodies; (b) documents held by public undertakings which: (ba) are active in the areas defined in Directive (EU) 2014/25 (Book II of Law 4412/2016 ), (bb) operate as public service operators in accordance with Article 2 of Regulation (EC) 1370/2007; (bc) operate as air carriers fulfilling public service obligations in accordance with Article 16 of Regulation (EC) 1008/2008; or (bd) operate as shipowners fulfilling their public service obligations in accordance with Article 4 of Regulation (EEC) No 3577/1992; and (c) research data, in accordance with the conditions laid down in Article 68. ( Article 59(3), Law 4727/2020 on Digital Governance)
Judicial branch Yes. The provisions of this Chapter shall apply to: (a) documents held by public sector bodies; (b) documents held by public undertakings which: (ba) are active in the areas defined in Directive (EU) 2014/25 (Book II of Law 4412/2016 ), (bb) operate as public service operators in accordance with Article 2 of Regulation (EC) 1370/2007; (bc) operate as air carriers fulfilling public service obligations in accordance with Article 16 of Regulation (EC) 1008/2008; or (bd) operate as shipowners fulfilling their public service obligations in accordance with Article 4 of Regulation (EEC) No 3577/1992; and (c) research data, in accordance with the conditions laid down in Article 68. ( Article 59(3), Law 4727/2020 on Digital Governance)
Other public bodies Yes. The provisions of this Chapter shall apply to: (a) documents held by public sector bodies; (b) documents held by public undertakings which: (ba) are active in the areas defined in Directive (EU) 2014/25 (Book II of Law 4412/2016 ), (bb) operate as public service operators in accordance with Article 2 of Regulation (EC) 1370/2007; (bc) operate as air carriers fulfilling public service obligations in accordance with Article 16 of Regulation (EC) 1008/2008; or (bd) operate as shipowners fulfilling their public service obligations in accordance with Article 4 of Regulation (EEC) No 3577/1992; and (c) research data, in accordance with the conditions laid down in Article 68. ( Article 59(3), Law 4727/2020 on Digital Governance)
Private sector No. Absent from legal framework

Access to specific documents (subject to reactive and/or proactive disclosure)

Draft legal instruments Yes. "Document" means any document or part of a document, information or data, issued or assigned to the bodies of this Chapter within the scope of their responsibilities or, in the case of a public undertaking within the meaning of paragraph 3, in the context of the obligation to provide services of general interest, in particular studies, minutes, statistics, circulars, responses from administrative authorities, opinions, decisions, reports, regardless of the means of recording used (eg paper, electronic storage) or audio, visual or audiovisual recording). "Documents" for the implementation of this law are also considered private documents, which are in files (files) of public sector bodies and were used or taken into account in the exercise of their responsibilities, ( Article 60(5), Law 4727/2020 on Digital Governance)
Enacted legal instruments Yes. "Document" means any document or part of a document, information or data, issued or assigned to the bodies of this Chapter within the scope of their responsibilities or, in the case of a public undertaking within the meaning of paragraph 3, in the context of the obligation to provide services of general interest, in particular studies, minutes, statistics, circulars, responses from administrative authorities, opinions, decisions, reports, regardless of the means of recording used (eg paper, electronic storage) or audio, visual or audiovisual recording). "Documents" for the implementation of this law are also considered private documents, which are in files (files) of public sector bodies and were used or taken into account in the exercise of their responsibilities, ( Article 60(5), Law 4727/2020 on Digital Governance)
Annual budgets Yes. "Document" means any document or part of a document, information or data, issued or assigned to the bodies of this Chapter within the scope of their responsibilities or, in the case of a public undertaking within the meaning of paragraph 3, in the context of the obligation to provide services of general interest, in particular studies, minutes, statistics, circulars, responses from administrative authorities, opinions, decisions, reports, regardless of the means of recording used (eg paper, electronic storage) or audio, visual or audiovisual recording). "Documents" for the implementation of this law are also considered private documents, which are in files (files) of public sector bodies and were used or taken into account in the exercise of their responsibilities, ( Article 60(5), Law 4727/2020 on Digital Governance)
Annual chart of accounts (actual expenditures) Yes. "Document" means any document or part of a document, information or data, issued or assigned to the bodies of this Chapter within the scope of their responsibilities or, in the case of a public undertaking within the meaning of paragraph 3, in the context of the obligation to provide services of general interest, in particular studies, minutes, statistics, circulars, responses from administrative authorities, opinions, decisions, reports, regardless of the means of recording used (eg paper, electronic storage) or audio, visual or audiovisual recording). "Documents" for the implementation of this law are also considered private documents, which are in files (files) of public sector bodies and were used or taken into account in the exercise of their responsibilities, ( Article 60(5), Law 4727/2020 on Digital Governance)
Annual reports of public entities and programs Yes. "Document" means any document or part of a document, information or data, issued or assigned to the bodies of this Chapter within the scope of their responsibilities or, in the case of a public undertaking within the meaning of paragraph 3, in the context of the obligation to provide services of general interest, in particular studies, minutes, statistics, circulars, responses from administrative authorities, opinions, decisions, reports, regardless of the means of recording used (eg paper, electronic storage) or audio, visual or audiovisual recording). "Documents" for the implementation of this law are also considered private documents, which are in files (files) of public sector bodies and were used or taken into account in the exercise of their responsibilities, ( Article 60(5), Law 4727/2020 on Digital Governance)

Information access and release

Procedural access

Universal access (agencies, citizens and non-citizens) Yes. 2. Any person having special legal interest is entitled, by written application, to be informed of private documents kept in public services that are related to his/her case pending before them or handled by them. (Article 5, Law 2690/1999 on the Ratification of the Administrative Procedure Code, last amended 2020)
Type of request is specified (written, electronic, oral) Yes. If the documents are not available online, in accordance with the provisions of Article 61, any interested party may submit a request for documents for re-use. The requests are submitted in writing or in electronic form to the service, which has issued or is in possession of the document ( Article 62, Law 4727/2020 on Digital Governance)
Assistance to requesters must be provided by law (includes barriers due to language differences, illiteracy, complexity of requests, etc.) Yes. 3….If the interested party states that she cannot write, the competent public servant, following an oral account of the request of the interested party, is obliged to draw up the application himself/herself. (Article 3, Law 2690/1999 on the Ratification of the Administrative Procedure Code, last amended 2020)
Cost of access is specified (free, request fees, photocopying costs, other administrative costs) Yes. 1. The re-use of documents is in principle free of charge. Exceptionally, it is allowed to recover the marginal costs for the reproduction, provision and dissemination of documents, the nonymization of personal data, as well as the measures taken to protect trade confidential information by charging fees to those concerned. 2. As an exception, par. 1 does not apply: (a) public sector entities, for which they are expected to cover a substantial part of the cost of carrying out their public mission from their own revenue; (b) libraries, including Higher Education libraries, museums and archives; (c) in public undertakings within the meaning of Article 60 (3). (Article 64, Law 4727/2020 on Digital Governance)

Deadlines for release of information

20-day response deadline Yes. If no provision is stipulated for the release of documents, the relevant authorities release the information within 20 working days from the date of receipt of the request. ( Article 62(3), Law 4727/2020 on Digital Governance)
Agency granted right to extend response time Yes. The deadline of 20 working days may be extended by a further 20 working days in the cases of large or complex requests. In this case, the applicant is notified, within ten (10) days of receipt of the application, of the classification of the application as complex or large-scale and the expiration date of the new deadline for the issuance of the document. No administrative appeal is provided against the above designation decision. ( Article 62(3), Law 4727/2020 on Digital Governance)
Maximum total response time of no more than 40 days Yes. The deadline of 20 working days may be extended by a further 20 working days in the cases of large or complex requests. In this case, the applicant is notified, within ten (10) days of receipt of the application, of the classification of the application as complex or large-scale and the expiration date of the new deadline for the issuance of the document. No administrative appeal is provided against the above designation decision. ( Article 62(3), Law 4727/2020 on Digital Governance)

Exceptions and Overrides

Exemptions to disclosure

Existence of secrecy/states secrets law No. Absent from legal framework
Existence of personal privacy/data law Yes. Law 2472/1997 on the Protection of Individuals with regard to the Processing of Personal Data (Law No. 4624 of 2019 on the Protection of Personal Data and Measures for the Implementation of the GDPR)
Specific exemptions to disclosure Yes. The provisions of this Chapter shall not apply to documents: (a) the disposal of which constitutes an activity which does not fall within the scope of the public mission of the respective public sector bodies, as defined by the relevant provisions of each body; (b) held by public undertakings within the meaning of Article 60 (3): (ba) produced outside the scope of services of general interest governing the public undertaking concerned; (bb) related to activities that have a direct exposure to competition and, therefore, according to article 251 of law 4412/2016 ( AD 147), are not subject to rules on contracts, (c) for which third parties have intellectual property rights; (d) to which access is excluded, in accordance with paragraphs 3 and 5 of article 5 of Law 2690/1999 ( AD 45), as well as in accordance with any other relevant provision, and in particular for reasons concerning: (da) national security, defense, public policy, foreign policy or information systems security; (db) statistical, commercial, industrial, business, professional, corporate, customs or fiscal secrecy; (dc) the protection of the cultural heritage from theft, looting, vandalism, illegal excavation, antiquities, and in general the avoidance of exposure to danger of movable and immovable monuments and places protected under Law 3028/2002 ( AD 153), (e) to which access is prohibited or restricted due to sensitive information regarding the protection of critical infrastructure, as delimited in cases a) and d) of article 2 of p.d. 39/2011 ( AD 104), (f) access to which proof of specific legal interest is required; (g) logos, badges and badges; (h) to which access is either restricted or restricted for reasons of protection of personal data, or access is permitted, but their re-use is contrary to either the laws on the protection of personal data or the provisions protecting privacy life and integrity of the individual, (i) held by public service broadcasters and their subsidiaries and other entities or their subsidiaries for the purpose of fulfilling a public service broadcasting mission; (j) held by cultural institutions, with the exception of libraries, including higher education libraries, museums and archives; (k) held by secondary or lower education institutions, and, in the case of other educational institutions, in documents other than those relating to research data; and (l) which are in the possession of public research organizations, technological or research bodies of Law 4310/2014 (A '258) or research funding organizations, including organizations established for the transfer of research results other than documents refer to research data. ( Article 59(4), Law 4727/2020 on Digital Governance)
Public Interest test: Specified exemptions to disclosure may be overridden in cases where disclosure of information benefits the public interest.

Appeals

Appeals allowed within public entities No. Absent from legal framework
Independent, non-judicial appeals mechanism, e.g., information commissioner. Does not include Ombudsman unless appeals decisions are binding. Yes. Against the rejection decision or the omission of its issuance by the relevant body within the deadlines of par. 3, an appeal is envisaged before the National Transparency Authority, which is submitted by the interested party in writing or sent electronically to the service from which the document was requested. The above appeal is filed within an exclusive period of ten (10) days from the notification of the rejection decision to the applicant or the effect of the omission. The National Transparency Authority must rule on the appeal within twenty (20) days of its transmission to it. The deadlines of par. 3, regarding the documents that fall within the scope of this chapter and come from public enterprises, within the meaning of circumstance 3 of article 60, from Higher Education Institutions, public research organizations, technological or research research funding bodies or organizations are doubled. ( Article 62(4), Law 4727/2020 on Digital Governance)
Judicial appeals mechanism No. Absent from legal framework

Sanctions for non-compliance

Administrative sanctions are specified for violations of disclosure requirements No. Absent from legal framework
Fines are specified for violations of disclosure requirements No. Absent from legal framework
Criminal sanctions are specified for violations of disclosure requirements No. Absent from legal framework

Monitoring and Oversight

Information officers must be appointed in public agencies No. Absent from legal framework
Public body that is responsible for applying sanctions No. Absent from legal framework
Public body that is responsible for public outreach (raising public awareness) No. Absent from legal framework
Nodal agency for RTI (implementation support/compliance within public sector). Does not include Ombudsman. No. Absent from legal framework
Ombudsman involvement in implementation is specified by law No. Absent from legal framework
Reporting of data and/or implementation is required No. Absent from legal framework

Legislation

Constitution of Greece of 1974_GRE (Greek)pdf
Code of Administrative Procedure of 1999_GRE (Greek)pdf
Law No. 3448 on further use of information of the public sector of 2006_GRE (Greek)pdf
Law No. 4624 of 2019_GRE (Greek)pdf

*Last update: 2017


Public Procurement

The Greek public procurement system is regulated by several legal acts, such as the Law 2286/1995 (on public procurement), PD 118/2007 (on public supplies) and other decrees special legislation. The public procurement body is the Independent Authority for Public Procurement.

The lowest minimum thresholds for conducting a public procurement tender are:

▪         EUR 135,000 for goods

▪         EUR 5,225,000 for works

▪         EUR 135,000 for services

The minimum number of bidders is 5 for restricted procedures and 3 for negotiated procedures and competitive dialogue. The minimum submission period is 35 days for open procedures, 30 days for restricted procedures and 30 for negotiated procedures from dispatch date. The final beneficial owners do not have to be disclosed when placing a bid.

There is a possibility for preferential treatment, as sustainability can be considered during the procedure. There are options for bid exclusion: participation in a criminal organization, bribery, fraud, money laundering.

In the bid evaluation phase, there is no separate conflict of interest regulation on the composition of the evaluation committee.


Quantitative Data

Primary Metric

20122015201620172020Trend
Scope23903791
Information availability83968333
Evaluation88949475
Open competition83837556
Institutional arrangements36433636

Values lie in range between 0 and 100, higher values implying higher legislation comprehensiveness


Qualitative Data

We are frequently reviewing and refining our data, so in case you notice any mistake in our assessment, feel free to send us an email by clicking the button ()

Scope

Threshold - lowest PP

What is the minimum contract value above which the public procurement law is applied? (Product type GOODS) EUR 20000. The Public Procurement Law applies to contracts above and below the EU threshold. Direct awards (i.e. contracts awarded outside of the scope of the procurement procedures listed by the Law) are allowed when the estimated value of the contract, excluding VAT, is equal to or less than EUR 20,000. Additionally, recourse to the summary tender procedure is allowed when the estimated value of the contract is equal to or less than the amount of EUR 60,000, excluding VAT. Applicable EU thresholds, as of 2020, are: 1. EUR 139,000 for the procurement of goods and services awarded by central government authorities and for design contests organized by those authorities; the same threshold applies to selected contracts in the defence sector; 2. EUR 214,000 for the procurement of goods and services as well as for design contests awarded by sub central contracting authorities; 3. EUR 5,350,000 for public works. (Law No. 4412 of 2016, as amended in 2020, Arts. 5 (a) (b) (c), 116, 117 (1), 118, 326 and 328)
What is the minimum contract value above which the public procurement law is applied? (Product type WORKS) EUR 20000. (Law No. 4412 of 2016, as amended in 2020, Arts. 5 (a) (b) (c), 116, 117 (1), 118, 326 and 328)
What is the minimum contract value above which the public procurement law is applied? (Product type SERVICES) EUR 20000. (Law No. 4412 of 2016, as amended in 2020, Arts. 5 (a) (b) (c), 116, 117 (1), 118, 326 and 328)

Threshold - by PP type

What are the minimum application thresholds for the procurement type? (Entity: PUBLIC SECTOR) EUR 20000. The Public Procurement Law applies to contracts above and below the EU threshold. Direct awards (i.e. contracts awarded outside of the scope of the procurement procedures listed by the Law) are allowed when the estimated value of the contract, excluding VAT, is equal to or less than EUR 20,000. Additionally, recourse to the summary tender procedure is allowed when the estimated value of the contract is equal to or less than the amount of EUR 60,000, excluding VAT. Applicable EU thresholds, as of 2020, are: 1. EUR 139,000 for the procurement of goods and services awarded by central government authorities and for design contests organized by those authorities; the same threshold applies to selected contracts in the defence sector; 2. EUR 214,000 for the procurement of goods and services as well as for design contests awarded by sub central contracting authorities; 3. EUR 5,350,000 for public works. (Law No. 4412 of 2016, as amended in 2020, Arts. 5 (a) (b) (c), 116, 117 (1), 118, 326 and 328)
What are the minimum application thresholds for the procurement type? (Entity: UTILITIES) EUR 428000. In the utility sector, applicable thresholds are (as of 2020): EUR 428,000 for the supply of goods, services and design contests, and EUR 5,350,00 for works. Additionally, recourse to the summary tender procedure is allowed when the estimated value of the contract is equal to or less than the amount of EUR 60,000, excluding VAT. (Law No. 4412 of 2016, as amended in 2020, Arts. 235 a) b), 326, 327 and 328)
What are the minimum application thresholds for the procurement type? (Entity: DEFENCE) EUR 139000. In the defence sector, the lowest threshold is EUR 139,000 for the supply of goods and services of contracts relating to the products listed in Annex III, Part A of the Law. For goods and services not listed in Annex III, Part A, the threshold of EUR 214,000 for the procurement of goods and services applies. (Law No. 4412 of 2016, as amended in 2020, Art. 5 (b) (c))

Threshold - by product type

What are the minimum application thresholds for the procurement type? (Product type GOODS) EUR 20000. (Law No. 4412 of 2016, as amended in 2020, Arts. 5 (a) (b) (c), 116, 117 (1), 118, 326 and 328)
What are the minimum application thresholds for the procurement type? (Product type WORKS) EUR 20000. (Law No. 4412 of 2016, as amended in 2020, Arts. 5 (a) (b) (c), 116, 117 (1), 118, 326 and 328)
What are the minimum application thresholds for the procurement type? (Product type SERVICES) EUR 20000. (Law No. 4412 of 2016, as amended in 2020, Arts. 5 (a) (b) (c), 116, 117 (1), 118, 326 and 328)

Information availability

Publishing and record keeping

Is there a requirement that tender documents must published in full? Yes. For contracts above and below EU thresholds, contracting authorities shall offer complete, direct and free electronic access to the contract documents from the date of publication of the notice in accordance with Art. 65 of the Public Procurement Law, or the date on which the invitation to confirm interest was sent. (Law No. 4412 of 2016, as amended in 2020, Arts. 63, 64 (5), 65 (7), 67 (3) and 123 (1), and )
Are any of these documents published online at a central place? Yes. Documents can be found in the Central Electronic Register of Public Procurement (KIMDIS) - Κεντρικό Ηλεκτρονικό Μητρώο Δημοσίων Συμβάσεων (ΚΗΜΔΗΣ) - portal (www.promitheus.gov.gr). (Law No. 4412 of 2016, as amended in 2020, Art. 2 (1) 34.)
Is it mandatory to keep all of these records? -Public notices of bidding opportunities, -Bidding documents and addenda, -Bid opening records, -Bid evaluation reports, -Formal appeals by bidders and outcomes, -Final signed contract documents and addenda and amendments, -Claims and dispute resolutions, -Final payments, -Disbursement data (as required by the country’s financial management system) Yes. For contracts whose values are above EU thresholds it is mandatory to keep all these records. The Law is unclear about the obligation to keep these documents in case of public contracts below EU thresholds. (Law No. 4412 of 2016, as amended in 2020, Arts. 45 and 22 (2), 115 (3) (6), 146, 277, 340 (2), 341 (2) and 342)
Are contracts awarded within a framework agreement published (ie mini contracts)? No. Above EU thresholds, contracting authorities are exempt from the obligation to send notification of the results of the contracting procedure for each contract based on the framework agreement (mini contracts). They may, however, collect these disclosures on a quarterly basis (optional). In this case, they send the collected notifications no later than 30 days after the end of each quarter. Below EU thresholds, the Law is silent about an obligation to publish information on mini contracts. (Law No. 4412 of 2016, as amended in 2020, Arts. 64 (2) (5) and 294 (2))

Sub-contracting

Is it mandatory to publish information on subcontractors (ie names) in some cases? No. For contracts above EU thresholds, information on subcontractors may be published in the award notice, in line with the Directives. For contracts below the EU threshold it is not clear whether information is published. There is, however, a general requirement to document subcontractors' participation, including their names, contacting details, legal representatives, etc. (Law No. 4412 of 2016, as amended in 2020, Arts. 58, 131, 341 (1) (d) and Annexes on information to be included in the notifications of concluded contracts (as referred to in Arts. 64 and 294))
If yes, what is the threshold for publication (i.e. the % of total contract value subcontracted)? For example, if the threshold is 75%, and you have subcontracted out only 40% of your contract, no disclosure is required. Consultant will insert 75% in the short answer column. General.

Evaluation

Preferential treatment

Is there a ban on mentioning specific companies or brands in tender specification/call for tender? Yes. Technical specifications shall afford equal acces of economic operators to the procurement procedure and shall not have the effect of creating unjustified obstacles to the opening up of procurement to competition. Unless justified by the subject-matter of the contract, technical specifications shall not refer to a specific make or source, or a particular process which characterises the products or services provided by a specific economic operator, or to trade marks, patents, types or a specific origin or production with the effect of favouring or eliminating certain undertakings or certain products. Such reference shall be permitted on an exceptional basis, where a sufficiently precise and intelligible description of the subject-matter of the contract is not possible. Such reference shall be accompanied by the words ‘or equivalent’. (Law No. 4412 of 2016, as amended in 2020, Arts. 54 (4) and 283 (4))
Is there a preferential treatment for small-to-medium enterprises (SMEs)? No. The only relevant provision states that the Single Independent Public Procurement Authority shall inform and guide for free the SMEs regarding the interpretation and application of European legislation in the domain of public procurements. (Law No. 4412 of 2016, as amended in 2020, Art. 340 (3) (a))
Is there a preferential treatment for local/national companies? (companies from other EU MS are considered foreign companies) Νο. Contracting authorities shall treat economic operators equally and without discrimination and shall act in a transparent manner, respecting the principles of proportionality, mutual recognition, protection of the public interest, protection of the rights of individuals, freedom of competition, protection of the environment and sustainable development. (Law No. 4412 of 2016, as amended in 2020, Art. 18 (1))
Is there a specific set of rules for green/sustainable procurement? Yes. Contracting authorities shall base the award of public contracts on the most economically advantageous tender. Among other criteria, the most economically advantageous tender shall be assessed on the basis of environmental aspects, since contracting authorities may lay down special conditions relating to the performance of a contract, such as innovation-related and environmental considerations. (Law No. 4412 of 2016, as amended in 2020, Arts. 18 (1) (2), 49, 51, 54 (3), 55, 82, 86, 130, 142 (1), 253, 283, 309 and 311 (2))

Bid evaluation

Are there restrictions on allowable grounds for tenderer exclusion? Yes. Candidates are excluded from participating in a call for tenders if there is a final conviction known to the contracting authority for one or more of the following reasons: a) participation in a criminal organisation; b) corruption; c) fraud; d) terrorist offences or offences linked to terrorist activities; e) money laundering or terrorist financing; f) child labour and other forms of trafficking of human beings. Moreover, defaulting of tax payments and social contributions constitute grounds for exclusion. Importantly, exclusion grounds related to labour audits which resulted in fines do not apply when the estimated value of the contract, excluding VAT, is equal to or less than EUR 20,000. (Law No. 4412 of 2016, as amended in 2020, Arts. 73 and 74)
Are some bids automatically excluded? e.g., lowest/highest price; unusually low price, etc. Yes. If, for a given contract, tenders appear to be abnormally low in relation to their object, the contracting authority shall reject those tenders if, after requesting in writing details of the constituent elements of the tender which it considers relevant, the bidder fails to justify the low price. Additionally, the contracting authority can reject bids, inter alia: 1. that contains defects, deficiencies, ambiguities or errors, if they can not be supplemented or corrected or, if they can be completed or corrected, have not been corrected during its clarification and completion period; 2. for which the tenderer has not provided the required explanations within the prescribed period or the explanation is not acceptable to the contracting authority; 3. which are an alternative offer, if such is not allowed or, if allowed, does not meet the minimum requirements of the contract documents; 4. submitted by a tenderer who has submitted two or more tenders unless an alternative tender is permitted. (Law No. 4412 of 2016, as amended in 2020, Arts. 88, 89 and 91)
Is scoring criteria published? Yes. For contracts above EU thresholds, contract award criteria shall be included in public procurement notices and contract award notices, which shall be published by the OJEU/TED. For contracts below EU thresholds, scoring criteria is included in public procurement notices - published in the national platform: Central Electronic Public Procurement Register (Κ.Η.Μ.ΔΗ.Σ.) -, but it is unclear whether they are included in award notices. Furthermore, contracting authorities are obliged to use the ESIDIS function (Ε.Σ.Η.Δ.Η.Σ.) at all stages of the public procurement process, for contracts with an estimated value of more than EUR 60,000, excluding VAT. (Law No. 4412 of 2016, as amended in 2020, Arts. 36, 38, 65 (1) (2) (7), 66 (1), 86 (10), 117 (2) (5), 118 (3), 123 (2), 311 (5) and 332 (2) Above EU thresholds: Appendix A, Annex V, Parts C (18) and D (9) Below EU thresholds: Appendix A, Annex IX and Appendix B, Annex XI)
Are decisions always made by a committee? No. In general, decisions concerning public works require technical committees. Additionally, design contests are awarded by a jury (composed exclusively of natural persons who are independent of the participants), and abbreviated/concise procedures, i.e. those below EU thresholds, as well as direct awards demand a decision from a committee. The Public Procurement Law also refers to advisory and supervision committees for specific contracts (mostly related to works). However there is no blanket rule about the necessity of tender decisions being made by a committee. (Law No. 4412 of 2016, as amended in 2020, Arts. 32a, 114, 115, 136 (2), 118 (5), 142, 221 (8) (9), 221a and 327 (4))
Are there regulations on evaluation committee composition to prevent conflict of interest? Yes. The staff members of the contracting authority or of a procurement service provider acting on behalf of the contracting authority who are involved in the procurement procedure or may influence the outcome of that procedure (such as the jury in case of design contests, which influences the outcome of the procedure by evaluating the plans and projects submitted by the candidates) should not have, directly or indirectly, a financial, economic or other personal interest which might be perceived to compromise their impartiality and independence in the context of the procurement procedure. Moreover, the jury shall be composed exclusively of natural persons who are independent of participants in the contest. (Law No. 4412 of 2016, as amended in 2020, Arts. 24 and 114)
Is some part of evaluation committee mandatorily independent of contracting authority? No.
Are scoring results publicly available? No. For contracts above EU thresholds, contract award criteria shall be included in contract award notices, which shall be published by the OJEU/TED. The report drawn up for each contract awarded and that should be sent to national authorities and the European Commission upon request is not necessarily made public. For contracts below EU thresholds, it is unclear whether scoring criteria are included in award notices. (Law No. 4412 of 2016, as amended in 2020, Arts. 64 (1), 65 (1) (7), 66 (1), 117 (2) (5), 118 (3) and 341)
Does the law specify under which conditions the tender can be cancelled? Yes. The tender can be cancelled if: (a) the procedure has been fruitless either due to non-submission of a tender or due to rejection of all tenders or requests or exclusion of all tenderers or participants; or (b) none of the bidders arrives to sign the contract. Cancellation of the public procurement procedure may take place by a specially reasoned decision of the contracting authority, after the opinion of the competent body. The following constitute additional reasons for cancellation of the tender: (a) irregular conduct of the award procedure; (b) if the economic and technical parameters relating to the award procedure have changed substantially and the performance of the contractual object is no longer of interest to the contracting authority or body to which the contracted object is intended; c) if due to force majeure, the contract can not be properly executed; (d) if the selected tender is considered to be financially unprofitable; (e) in the case of Article 97 (4); (f) for other overriding reasons in the public interest such as in particular public health or environmental protection. (Law No. 4412 of 2016, as amended in 2020, Art. 106)

Open competition

CFT publication

Does the law specify the location for publicizing open calls for tenders? Yes. Publications Office of the European Union (Tenders Electronic Daily, "TED"), buyer profile and Central Electronic Register of Public Procurement (KIMDIS) - Κεντρικό Ηλεκτρονικό Μητρώο Δημοσίων Συμβάσεων (ΚΗΜΔΗΣ) - portal (www.promitheus.gov.gr) (Law No. 4412 of 2016, as amended in 2020, Arts. 38, 62 (1), 63, 65 and 66)
Does the law specify the location for publicizing restricted calls for tenders? Yes. Publications Office of the European Union (Tenders Electronic Daily, "TED"), buyer profile and Central Electronic Register of Public Procurement (KIMDIS) - Κεντρικό Ηλεκτρονικό Μητρώο Δημοσίων Συμβάσεων (ΚΗΜΔΗΣ) - portal (www.promitheus.gov.gr) (Law No. 4412 of 2016, as amended in 2020, Arts. 38, 62 (1), 63, 65, 66 and 69)
Does the law specify the location for publicizing negotiated calls for tenders? Yes. Publications Office of the European Union (Tenders Electronic Daily, "TED"), buyer profile and Central Electronic Register of Public Procurement (KIMDIS) - Κεντρικό Ηλεκτρονικό Μητρώο Δημοσίων Συμβάσεων (ΚΗΜΔΗΣ) - portal (www.promitheus.gov.gr) (Law No. 4412 of 2016, as amended in 2020, Arts. 38, 62 (1), 63, 65, 66 and 69)

Minimum # of bidders

What is the minimum number of bidders for restricted procedures? General. (Law No. 4412 of 2016, as amended in 2020, Art. 84 (2))
What is the minimum number of bidders for negotiated procedures? General. (Law No. 4412 of 2016, as amended in 2020, Art. 84 (2))
What is the minimum number of bidders for competitive dialogue procedures? General. (Law No. 4412 of 2016, as amended in 2020, Art. 84 (2))

Bidding period length

What are the minimum number of days for open procedures? General. Above EU thresholds: 35 days; Below EU thresholds: 15 days (Law No. 4412 of 2016, as amended in 2020, Arts. 27 (1), 121 (1) (a), 331 (1) (a))
What are the minimum number of days for restricted procedures? General. Above EU thresholds: 30 days; Below EU thresholds: 7 days (Law No. 4412 of 2016, as amended in 2020, Arts. 28 (1), 121 (1) (b) and 331 (1) (b))
What are the minimum number of days  for competitive negotiated procedures? General. Above EU thresholds: 30 days; Below EU thresholds: 7 days (Law No. 4412 of 2016, as amended in 2020, Arts. 28 (1), 121 (1) (b) and 331 (1) (b))

Institutional arrangements

Institutions and regulations

Does the law specify the main EXCEPTIONS preventing the application of the public procurement law for tenders/organisations? Yes. Indicatively, Book I of the Public Procurement Law (Articles 3 to 221) does not apply to: 1) contracts in the water, energy, transport and postal services sector; 2) telecommunications; 3) contracts and design contests organised pursuant to international rules; 4) specific service exclusions such as rental or acquisition; broadcasting, arbitration and conciliation, financial services, employment contracts; 5) service contracts based on exclusive rights and 6) contracts between bodies of public sector. (Law No. 4412 of 2016, as amended in 2020, Arts. 7-12)
Does the law specify the main types of institutions that must apply the public procurement law? Yes. The State, regional or local authorities, bodies governed by public law, associations formed by one or several of such authorities or one or several of such bodies governed by public law, and contracting authorities within the meaning of Article 223. "Contracting entities" means contracting entities within the meaning of Article 224. (Law No. 4412 of 2016, as amended in 2020, Art. 2 (1) (a))
Does the law specify the main procedure types or procurement methods permitted? Yes. Above and below EU thresholds: open procedure, restricted procedure, competitive procedure with negotiation, competitive dialogue, innovation partnerships, negotiated procedure without prior publication. Only for contracts whose values are below EU thresholds: direct award and summary tender/concise competition. (Law No. 4412 of 2016, as amended in 2020, Arts. 26 and 116)
Is there a procurement arbitration court dedicated to public procurement cases? No. For contracts below EUR 60,000, complaints/appeals against acts or omissions of the contracting authority can be brought before the Administrative Court of Appeal in the place where the relevant contracting authority is located. For contracts above EUR 60,000, disputes that arise during the stage preceding the conclusion of public works, supply and service contracts, may be brought before the Preliminary Appeals Review Authority (or Authority for the Examination of Preliminary Appeals - AEPP). The preliminary appeal is a pre-condition for the exercise of other legal remedies. Appeals against AEPP's decisions can be initiated before the Administrative Court of Appeal. None of these bodies is specialised in public procurement. (Law No. 4412 of 2016, as amended in 2020, Arts. 105 (1) (3), 127 (1) (5), 345, 346, 360, 361 and 372)
Is there a procurement regulatory body dedicated to public procurement? Yes. Single Independent Public Procurement Authority (Law No. 4013 of 2011, Arts. 1 and 2 Law No. 4412 of 2016, as amended in 2020, Arts. 340 (1) and 359)
Does the law specify procurement advisors' profession (i.e. degree to be obtained, official list of members of the professional association) and its role in the tendering process (e.g. right to draft tender documentations, conduct market research identifying bidders)? Yes. Different requirements for procurement advisors within advisory bodies (in the context of goods and services, as well as works contracts) are laid down by Article 221 of the Public Procurement Law. Tender committees in procedures which aim at concluding public contracts of projects, studies and provision of technical and other scientific services, are composed of technical staff of the contracting authority, who have the qualifications of (aa) of (b) of paragraph 8 of Article 221. Within the Authority for Examination of Preliminary Appeals (AEPP), 30 (thirty) positions are reserved for special scientific staff, who should be scientists with at least three years of experience in the field of public procurement. Additionally, 5 (five) positions of Legal Advisers are recommended for the AEPP. Advisers should be lawyers, hired for a fixed fee by the Supreme Court, who have at least ten years of experience and specialization in the field of public procurement law. Moreover, the contracting authority is required to have minimum staff with technical qualifications to be able to supervise a public contract for a project or study and to adequately respond to the project/studies to be assigned, depending on their estimated value, type, category, size and complexity. Finally, in design contests, at least one third of the members of the jury must have the qualification, or an equivalent, asked from bidders. (Law No. 4412 of 2016, as amended in 2020, Arts. 44 (1), 221, 357 (2) (3), 376 (10))
Is disclosure of final, beneficial owners required for placing a bid? No. ( )

Complaints

Is there a fee for arbitration procedure? Yes. For public contracts with an estimated value of less than or equal to EUR 60,000 (excluding VAT), upon filing the objection the interested party must pay a fee, in favor of the State, of 1% (one percent) of the estimated value of the contract. This fee is public revenue. The fee shall be reimbursed by an act of the contracting authority, if the objection is accepted or partially accepted by the deciding administrative body. For contracts with an estimated value of more than EUR 60,000, admissibility of the exercise of the preliminary appeal, is conditioned to payment of a fee by the applicant in favor of the State, the amount of which amounts to 0.50% (0.50 percent) of the budgeted value (excluding VAT) of the relevant contract. The amount of the fee may not be less than EUR 600 (six hundred) euros nor more than EUR 15,000 (fifteen thousand). If the contract documents do not show its budgeted value, for the admissibility of the preliminary appeal, a fee of EUR 600 (six hundred) is paid. The fee is returned to the applicant in case of full or partial acceptance of their appeal. It is also reimbursed to the applicant in the event that the contracting authority revokes the contested act or takes the action required before the decision of the AEPP on the appeal is issued. (Law No. 4412 of 2016, as amended in 2020, Arts. 127 (2), 333a, 360 and 363)
Is there a ban on contract signature until arbitration court decision (first instance court)? No. The time limit for bringing an action for a preliminary ruling precludes the conclusion of the contract and the AEPP may decide to suspend the tender procedure, either through requested interim measures or of its own accord. However, applying for a preliminary ruling per se does not automatically impede the progress of the tender procedure. (Law No. 4412 of 2016, as amended in 2020, Arts. 364 and 366)
What is the maximum number of days until arbitration court decision from filing a complaint in the case of awarded contracts? General. The day and time of the examination of the appeal may not be more than 40 days from the date of filing the appeal. Additionally, the AEPP shall give its reasoned decision on the merits of the factual and legal pleas within an exclusive period of 20 days from the day of examination of the appeal. (Law No. 4412 of 2016, as amended in 2020, Arts. 365 (4) and 367 (1))
Is there a requirement to publicly release arbitration court decisions ? Yes. The decisions of AEPP are notified to the interested parties and posted on its website (https://aepp-procurement.gr/), in compliance with the regulations of Law 2472/1997 and Regulation (EC) No 45/2001 of the European Parliament and of the Council of 18 December 2000 (OJ L 8, 23.11.1995) on the protection of personal data. (Law No. 4412 of 2016, as amended in 2020, Art. 365 (6))

Legislation

Law No. 4013/2011, Establishing a Single Public Procurement Independent Authority and of a Central Electronic Public Procurement Registry (Greek)pdf
Law No. 4155/2013, National System of Electronic Public Procurement and other provisions (Greek)pdf
Law No. 4281/2014 (Greek)pdf
Law No. 4412/2016 on Public Works, Procurement and Services - Public Procurement Law (English)pdf

*Last update: 2017