Eastern European Time Zone (UTC+02:00) 

Undoubtedly, payroll is a critical process for any organization. Pay cycle in Greece refers to the period for which an organization pays its employees, and this can vary depending on the pay frequency that the organization chooses to adopt.

The payroll cycle in Greece is generally monthly, and payments must be made on the same day of the month and no later than the last working day of the month. 

In Greece, there are mandatory 13th and 14th salaries which include Easter (half a month's salary), vacation bonus (half month's salary), and Christmas (a full month's salary). The payment of the Christmas bonus must be made by 21 December. If the Christmas bonus is not paid on time, the employees should apply to the relevant Labor Inspectorate. The Labor Inspectorate of SEPE is responsible for the imposition of the relevant fines.

Minimum wages have been revised in Greece from 1 January 2023. The minimum wages are increased as follows: 

• For general workers, from  €31.85 to €34.84  per day and €713.00 to €780.00 per month
• For technicians, and craftsmen, from €31.85 to €34.84 per day

Overtime hours should not exceed 3 hours per day, 30 hours per month, or 200 hours per year. Employees receive an additional 50% (40%) for overtime work for each hour of overtime work and an additional 100% for holidays or work performed after 1 PM on Saturdays. 

Employers must generally keep tax records for at least five years unless a longer period is specified in legislation.

Employers must maintain copies of social security returns for at least ten years.

The categories of characteristics (in terms of discrimination prohibition) regulated under the law are gender, racial or ethnic origin, religious or other beliefs, disability, age and sexual orientation, chronic illness, descent, family or social status, and gender identity or characteristics.  

Law No. 2643/1998 on the care for the employment of specific categories of persons and other provisions provides for the compulsory hire of specific categories of employees (people with a disability, people with many children, war victims, etc.) such that these hires amount to 8 percent of the total workforce of employers in the public and private sectors that employ over 50 employees, in accordance with the prescribed procedure. An exception applies to employers with a negative budget for the previous two years. 

Onboarding details for a local employee are as follows:

• Candidate Full Name  
• Address  
• Email Address  
• Copy of Identification  
• Qualification details  
• Previous Employment Details  
• Copy of Passport  
• Work Permit 

There are 12 public holidays.   

• 1 January - New Year's Day
• 6 January - Epiphany
• 7 March - Orthodox Ash Monday
• 25 March - Independence Day
• Orthodox Good Friday
• Orthodox Easter Sunday
• Labour Day
• Orthodox Whit Sunday
• Orthodox Whit Monday
• 15 August - Assumption Day
• 28 October - Ochi Day
• Christmas

A minimum of 20 prorated days of paid time off per year are given to employees who work five days a week. Employees are entitled to an extra day of leave for every successive year of employment, up to a maximum of 22 days. Employees who have worked for the same employer for 10 years or who have worked for any firm for 12 years are eligible for 25 days of annual leave.

When employees take sick time off, the company must compensate them for 13 days in the first year and 25 days after that. Both the employer and the EFKA pay for days. 

Maternity leave – (17 weeks) or 119 calendar days. (The employer only pays for the first month; the EFKA covers the remainder.)  

The first 56 days should be taken before the due date, and the last 63 days should be taken following the birth.  

In addition to the maternity leave, the labor employment office offers a 6-month leave that is compensated at the minimum wage (OAED). Mothers may agree with their employers to obtain an additional 3.5 months of paid leave rather than shorter daily working hours. 

Pregnant workers are to take paid leave during working hours in order to undergo prenatal examination if the tests are required to be performed during working hours.

After the birth of the child, fathers are entitled to 2 days of paid leave. 

Marriage leave: 5 working days 

Leave for children's school grading: For each child under the age of 16, four days of leave. One of the parents may take advantage of this type of leave. 

Bereavement leave: two business days for the death of a husband, wife, kid, father, or brother. 

Elections leave: The amount of time depends on how far the workplace is from the voting venue. Usually, it is one to three working days. 

Parental Leave: Parents are entitled to unpaid leave for at least four months for each parent, starting from the end of the maternity leave and until the child becomes six years old. 

Adoption Leave: Employees are entitled to paid leave to adopt a child younger than six years. 

Study leave: Employees who study at a public school or university are entitled to a special leave of up to 30 days per year to study for their exams. The employee is paid by OAED (Labor Force Employment Organization) during their study leave. The employee must verify the exam participation with a certificate from the school or university. Because study leave is granted for the preparation of the employee for their exams, it should be taken during the exam period. For postgraduate students, study leave amounts to 10 days per year and is considered unpaid. 

Types of Termination: There are two types of termination for indefinite-term employment contracts (dismissal):

1. With prior notice (regular termination), which applies only to white-collar employees; and
2. Without prior notice (irregular termination)

When a dismissal with notice is implemented, the notice period depends on the employee's years of service with the (former or current) employer, as follows:  

• up to 12 months of employment: no notice;
• from one year to two years of employment: one month's notice;
• from two full years to five years of employment: two months' notice;
• from five full years to 10 years of employment: three months' notice; and
• more than ten full years: four months' notice

A termination form must be submitted to the local authorities when there is a leaver no later than eight days following the employee's dismissal. If they were fired, payment should be made on the departing employee's last day. Payment will be made in accordance with each allowance's deadline if the leaver has resigned. In Greece, employees' rights depend on whether they are blue-collar or white-collar.

For blue-collar employees:

• No severance pay if tenure is less than one year
• Seven days' wages if tenure between one year and two years.
• 15 days of wages if tenure is more than two years and less than five years
• One month's wages if tenure is more than five years and less than ten years 
• Two months of wages if tenure is more than ten years and less than 15 years
• 100 days of wages if tenure is more than 15 years and less than 20 years
• 120 days of wages if tenure is more than 20 years and less than 25 years
• 145 days of wages if tenure is more than 25 years and less than 30 years
• 165 days of wages if tenure is 30 years or more

For white-collar employees:

• No severance pay if tenure is less than one year of service
• Two months of wages if tenure is less than four years of service
• Three months of wages if tenure is more than four years and less than six years of service
• Four months of wages if tenure is between six and eight years of service
• Five months of wages if tenure is between six and ten years of service
• Five month of wages plus one month for each year of service above 10 years.

Greece has two categories of work visas - Short stay C Visa and long stay D visa. 

Short-term Visa: A Schengen visa entitles the holder to travel to and remain in Austria, Belgium, the Czech Republic, Denmark, Estonia, Finland, France, Germany, Greece, Hungary, Iceland, Italy, Latvia, Liechtenstein, Lithuania, Luxembourg, Malta, The Netherlands, Norway, Poland, Portugal, Slovakia, Slovenia, Spain, Sweden, and Switzerland for a maximum of 90 days in any 180-day period*.  

In the following circumstances, a Schengen visa application can be submitted at the Greek Embassy:

• The applicant's sole destination is Greece.
• If the applicant plans to visit more Schengen nations, Greece must be their primary destination or, in the absence of a primary destination, the applicant's initial port of entry into the Schengen region.

The Embassy decides on applications once they arrive at the Embassy, and the processing time is a maximum of 15 days; however, in exceptional circumstances, this period may be extended up to 30 calendar days, particularly when an additional review of the application is required. On rare occasions, the period may also be extended up to a maximum of 60 calendar days.  

Long-term Visa: A "D" visa for extended stays enables the holder to enter and remain in Greece for over three months. It may be given for several reasons, including job, education, academic research, involvement in cultural, scientific, or religious activities, and family reunion. National visa holders must apply for a residence permit in Greece as soon as they enter the nation. The applicant must apply for a visa for an extended stay in Greece and any necessary supporting documentation.

From a data protection law point of view, the personal data collected and processed for any background checks must only include the data necessary for deciding whether to conclude an employment contract. If an employer contains any personal data for an employee, it must be limited to data required for assessing the candidate for a particular job. If conditions are not followed, there are penalties according to the GDPR.