Greece runs an alternative-taxation regime for new residents (informally called the Greek "non-dom" regime) that applies a fixed annual tax on qualifying foreign-source income. It's a real tool for high-foreign-source-income movers. It also has conditions that catch cases that didn't plan carefully.
What the regime does
Qualifying new residents pay a fixed annual amount on a defined category of foreign-source income, replacing the ordinary progressive rates on that category. Family members can be added for a per-person extension fee.
Greek-source income is taxed ordinarily.
Who qualifies
The regime requires:
- Not being a Greek tax resident for a defined number of prior years
- Investment commitment to Greece (real estate or qualifying instruments) above a published threshold
- Election within a defined window of becoming Greek tax resident
Missing the election window is a frequent error. The regime is not retroactively available.
What it doesn't do
- It does not exempt Greek-source income
- It does not exempt all foreign-source income - the categories covered are defined in legislation
- It does not replace the substance / real-residence requirement
- It does not waive other reporting obligations
Substance and real residence
The regime is conditional on actually becoming Greek tax resident. Cases that try to claim the regime without real residence end up with the worst of both: tax exposure in the prior country (because residence didn't really shift) and Greek scrutiny (because the substance isn't there).
When the regime pays
When foreign-source income exceeds the threshold where the fixed amount beats the ordinary rate by a comfortable margin. Most beneficiaries are high-investment-income or high-passive-income movers; salary-heavy profiles often find that the math works out differently.
How we coordinate this
- Confirm eligibility (prior-residence rule, investment commitment).
- Model the actual tax bill under both the regime and ordinary regime.
- Plan the entry timing around the election window.
- Document the investment commitment cleanly.
- Make the election on time.
The regime is one of the cleaner European foreign-source regimes when used for the right profile. It is unkind to last-minute applications.