Tax Residency in Greece for Israelis Moving There: the 183-Day Test, the 5A, 5B and 5C Regimes, and What Happens in Israel

A residence permit in Greece determines whether you may live there. Tax residency determines where you pay tax, and on which income. Israelis moving to Greece, whether remote workers, retirees, families or entrepreneurs, need to plan both questions in parallel: when they become Greek tax residents, whether a special tax regime for new residents is worthwhile for them, and what happens to their Israeli tax residency. This guide summarises the position as of November 2026.

1When do you become a Greek tax resident?

Under Article 4 of the Greek Income Tax Code (4172/2013), an individual is a Greek tax resident if one of two tests is met. The qualitative test: a permanent or main home in Greece, a habitual abode, or a centre of vital interests, meaning personal and economic ties. The quantitative test: presence in Greece of more than 183 days in aggregate in any 12-month period.

• Rolling period: the 183 days are counted in any 12-month period, not necessarily a calendar year.
• From the first day: someone who passes the 183-day threshold is treated as a tax resident from the first day of their stay in Greece, not from day 184.
• Exception: the day test does not apply to someone in Greece only for tourism, medical treatment or a similar private purpose, if the stay does not exceed 365 days.
• Change of residency: the Greek tax authority (AADE) sets the procedure for changing residency status, so the move must also be updated in the tax register and not only in practice.

2On what income is a Greek tax resident taxed?

A Greek tax resident is taxed on worldwide income, subject to tax treaties. A non-resident is taxed in Greece only on Greek-source income, for example rent from a Greek property. Salary, pensions and business profits are taxed at progressive brackets, and according to PwC's tax summary the brackets are:

Under Law 5246/2025, lower brackets apply according to the number of children and for young people up to age 30. Rental income is taxed on a separate scale, as detailed in the guide to rental income tax in Greece.

3What special tax regimes exist for new residents in Greece?

The Greek Income Tax Code includes three alternative regimes for new residents: Article 5A for high-net-worth individuals who invest in Greece, Article 5B for retirees, and Article 5C for employees and business owners who move their activity to Greece. All of them require that the applicant was not a Greek tax resident in most of the years before the move, and all of them require a timely application. They do not apply automatically.

4How does the 5A regime, the EUR 100,000 flat tax, work?

Someone who moves to Greece and elects the 5A regime pays a flat tax of EUR 100,000 a year on all their income from outside Greece, regardless of its amount. Family members can be added for an additional EUR 20,000 per person per year. The regime lasts up to 15 tax years, and under a 2025 update (Law 5222/2025) this is a fixed period with no extension. Greek-source income is taxed under the ordinary rules, and foreign tax paid is not credited against the flat amount.

• Investment: at least EUR 500,000 in real estate, businesses or securities in Greece, by the applicant, relatives or a company under their control, to be completed within three years of the application.
• Inheritance and gift tax benefit: according to PwC, inheritance and gift tax does not apply under the regime to assets abroad, and the 2025 amendment extended this to movable assets abroad.
• Filing deadline: according to professional sources, Law 5313/2026 and AADE Decision A.1147/2026 provided that the application is filed by 30 September, in the year of the move or the following year. Someone who moved after 2 July can join only from the following year.
• Termination: failure to pay the flat amount ends the regime.

5How does the 5B regime for retirees, the 7% tax, work?

A retiree who moves their tax residency to Greece can elect to pay 7% on all their income from outside Greece, not only the pension, for up to 15 years. The conditions: a foreign pension from a compulsory insurance system, an occupational pension fund or group pension insurance, no Greek tax residency in five of the previous six years, and moving from a country that has an active agreement with Greece on administrative cooperation in tax matters. 5B cannot be combined with 5A.

AADE Decision A.1192/2026, published on 24 September 2026, updated the procedure: the application is filed by 31 October of the relevant year, missing documents can be supplied by 30 November, and a decision is issued within 60 days. The tax is paid in a single instalment by the last working day of December, and failure to pay cancels the regime. Someone who moved by 2 July can apply for the regime for the year of the move or the following year, and someone who moved after 2 July only from the following year.

6How does the 5C regime, the 50% salary exemption, work?

The 5C regime is intended for those who move to Greece to work: 50% of income from salary or business in Greece is exempt from income tax, for seven tax years. According to PwC, you must work in Greece for a Greek entity or the permanent establishment of a foreign company, or start a business activity in Greece, and declare an intention to stay at least two years. The application is filed by the end of the year in which the work started, if it started by 2 July, and otherwise by the end of the following year.

7What happens with social security when you move to Greece?

Someone who works in Greece is insured with the Greek insurance institution (e-EFKA). According to PwC, contributions on salary are 13.37% for the employee and 21.79% for the employer, up to a monthly salary ceiling of EUR 7,761.94 from 2026. The self-employed pay under a separate system.

Israel has no social security agreement with Greece: Greece is not on the list of 19 countries published by the National Insurance Institute (Bituach Leumi). This means there is no treaty mechanism preventing double payment or aggregating insurance periods. Anyone leaving Israel should check with the National Insurance Institute when they cease to be treated as a resident for insurance purposes, and what happens to rights such as the old-age pension and state health insurance.

8What does the Israel-Greece tax treaty provide?

Israel and Greece have a treaty for the avoidance of double taxation signed in Jerusalem on 24 October 1995 and ratified in Greece by Law 2572/1998. Article 4 of the treaty deals with residency. When a person is treated as resident in both countries under domestic law, the treaty decides according to set tests, such as permanent home and centre of vital interests. That decision determines which country has the primary taxing right.

Full details are in the guide to Israel's tax treaties by country and in the guide to corporate tax and dividends in Greece.

9What happens in Israel when you move to live in Greece?

Israeli tax residency does not end on the day of the flight. It is examined according to the centre of life: home, family, work, business, assets and social ties. According to PwC, presence in Israel of 183 days or more in a tax year creates a presumption of residency, as does presence of 30 days or more in the tax year together with 425 days or more over three years (the tax year and the two preceding years). The presumptions are rebuttable, by the assessing officer or by the taxpayer.

• Exit tax: according to PwC, on ceasing to be resident, the individual's assets are treated as if sold the day before. The tax can be paid at the time of departure or deferred until the actual sale.
• Income that remains taxable in Israel: Israeli-source income, such as rent from a property in Israel, continues to be taxable in Israel even after residency has ended.
• Controlled company: someone who remains an Israeli resident and holds a foreign company may be liable to tax on undistributed profits under the controlled foreign company (CFC) rules, where the income is mostly passive and the tax on it does not exceed 15%. An ordinary Greek company pays 22%, so it usually does not meet this condition.
• Dividends: an individual Israeli resident pays 25% on dividends (30% for a substantial shareholder (10%+)), with a credit for the tax withheld in Greece.
• Returning resident: someone who returns to Israel after years abroad may be entitled to benefits, depending on the law that applies at the time.

Ending residency in Israel, declarations, reporting and timing will be detailed in the general guide on ending Israeli tax residency and moving abroad. In any case, it is recommended to coordinate the move in advance with an Israeli accountant and an accountant in Greece, because decisions in the first year determine your status in both countries.

10What do you do in the first year, in order?

1. Before the move: check your residency in Israel, calculate your exposure to exit tax, decide on assets remaining in Israel and plan the date of departure.
2. Choose a regime in Greece: check whether 5A, 5B or 5C suits you and when the application deadline is. The decision also depends on the date of arrival, before or after 2 July.
3. Obtain an AFM and access codes: without a tax number and the myAADE system you cannot apply for a regime or file an annual return. See the guide to obtaining an AFM.
4. Update your residency in the Greek tax register and file the application for the special regime with the documents, including proof that you were not a Greek resident in previous years.
5. Count days in both countries and keep evidence: lease, bills, children's school registration, health insurance.
6. Annual reporting in Greece of worldwide income, even under a special regime, and payment of the flat tax or the 7% on time.
7. Reporting in Israel for the year of the move, according to the Israeli accountant's instructions.

11What about property, inheritance and other taxes in Greece?

A property in Greece is subject to annual property tax (ENFIA) regardless of residency, and rental income is taxed on a separate scale. Greek inheritance and gift tax is calculated according to the relationship to the deceased, with an initial exemption of EUR 150,000 for first-degree relatives. See the guide to real estate taxation in Greece and the guide to inheritance and gifts in Greece.

The information in this guide is general and correct as of November 2026, and is not tax advice. Every move requires an individual review in both countries according to personal circumstances and current law.

More on relocating to Greece: Residence routes and status in Greece · Ending Israeli tax residency · Moving abroad with an Israeli company or business · The family legal checklist

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