Retiring in Greece from Australia: costs, visas, your pension and health cover (2026)

Who Greece suits, and what to weigh up

Greece suits you if you want a Mediterranean base with a social security agreement behind your pension. It suits Greek-Australians going home in particular: with a Greek passport the visa question goes away. At the end of 2025, 9,187 people were being paid the Age Pension in Greece. Of the countries named in the Department of Social Services figures, only New Zealand had more.

Arriving on an Australian passport alone is harder. The long-stay permit asks for income of 3,500 euros a month for one person (about A$5,880), which is more than the Age Pension pays a couple. Medicare pays nothing there, and the permit asks for private health insurance.

Smartraveller says public hospitals are below Australia’s standard, and that family or friends are usually expected to do much of the nursing care. Australia and Greece also have no income tax treaty, so a tax adviser in each country is worth talking to before you move.

What a month costs

Our estimate for a month in Athens is about A$4,700 for a couple and A$3,260 for one person, rent included.

A month in Athens	Couple	One person
Rent, one-bedroom flat in the centre	A$1,110	A$1,110
Living costs (food, transport, bills)	A$2,510	A$1,390
Eating out, local trips and extras (30%)	A$1,080	A$760
Total	A$4,700	A$3,260

How a month in Greece compares

For a couple

Greece, our estimate

A$4,700

Comfortable in Australia

A$6,580

Age Pension, the most paid in Australia

A$4,040

About A$1,880 a month less than a comfortable month in Australia.

For one person

Greece, our estimate

A$3,260

Comfortable in Australia

A$4,680

Age Pension, the most paid in Australia

A$2,680

About A$1,420 a month less than a comfortable month in Australia.

Not built the same way: Australia's figure (ASFA Retirement Standard, comfortable, June quarter 2026) assumes you own your home and includes health insurance; our estimate for Greece includes rent and leaves health insurance out. Age Pension: the most paid in Australia from 20 September 2026; living overseas for good, the base rate is about A$3,710 a month for a couple and A$2,460 for one person.

Our estimate: Numbeo’s living costs for one person (without rent) plus a one-bedroom city-centre rent, plus 30% for eating out, local trips and extras. For a couple, living costs times 1.8. Converted at the Reserve Bank of Australia’s average exchange rate for the 12 months to September 2026 (A$1 = 0.5957 euros). Health insurance is not included. We use Numbeo’s Athens page, last updated 20 October 2026. Short furnished lets usually cost more than the long-term rent in this table.

Crete comes in a little lower, because rent is lower. Numbeo’s figures (updated 20 October 2026) put a one-bedroom flat in central Chania at about 564 euros a month, about A$950 at the RBA’s 12-month average rate. Worked out the same way, a month in Chania comes to about A$4,510 for a couple and A$3,050 for one person.

Against the Age Pension. After 12 weeks away, the most the pension pays is the base rate: about A$2,460 a month for one person and A$3,710 for a couple, before tax (rates from 20 September 2026). That leaves a couple about A$990 a month short of our Athens estimate. One person is about A$800 short. Our guide to living overseas on the Age Pension sets out the numbers.

What costs more than you’d expect. Health cover sits outside our estimate, and for someone without a Greek passport it is a condition of the permit. The permit has its own costs: a 180 euro visa fee for each person (about A$300), then a 1,000 euro permit fee (about A$1,680) in Attica. There is no non-stop flight home, so every trip for a birthday or a check-up is a long one. Heatwaves are frequent in summer, Smartraveller says, and air conditioning adds to the power bill.

Renting long term. Greek law sets a minimum term of 3 years for a lease on your main home, even if the contract says less, Global Property Guide reports. The same report puts the deposit at one or two months’ rent. Before you sign, it helps to know who pays for repairs, how the rent can rise, and how either of you can end the lease. A lawyer in Greece who acts for you can read the contract. Some people start with a furnished short let while they look.

Visas for Australians

Visiting. Smartraveller says Australians can stay up to 90 days in any 180-day period across the whole Schengen area, and Greece is part of it. The Entry/Exit System (EES) takes your fingerprints and photo when you arrive. It is free, and Smartraveller warns about fake websites that say you need to register or pay before you travel. ETIAS, a separate pre-travel approval, has no confirmed start date. Greece isn’t one of the Schengen countries with an extra bilateral visa waiver for Australians.

Staying longer: the financially independent person (FIP) permit. This is the permit Greece offers people living on a pension or savings. You first get a national (type D) visa from the Greek embassy or a consulate in Australia, then apply for the permit in Greece. A 2024 ministerial decision sets the income test at 3,500 euros a month for one person (about A$5,880). A foreign pension, a bank account or other lawful means can show it. Regular income such as a pension is counted by the month; deposits are counted over a year. The decision sets no minimum age.

Some official pages are older. The page of the Decentralized Administration of Attica, which issues permits around Athens, is dated November 2023 and still shows 2,000 euros (about A$3,360). It lists a 1,000 euro fee (about A$1,680), a 16 euro card (about A$27) and private health insurance. Either income figure is above the Age Pension base rate, so the FIP tends to suit self-funded retirees.

What the consulate asks for. The Greek foreign ministry’s visa handbook lists an interview in person and a passport issued in the last 10 years with two blank pages. You also need a police certificate from the country you live in, a medical certificate, and insurance that covers emergency care and medical repatriation. The visa fee is 180 euros (about A$300) for each person. In Australia, national visas come from the embassy in Canberra or the consulate for your state: Sydney, Melbourne, Adelaide or Perth.

What the permit allows. Under the Migration Code, the permit runs for 3 years and can be renewed for the same period. It gives no right to work or run any business in Greece, and that applies to your spouse or partner too. Whether renting out a flat you own counts as business activity is a question for the immigration office. After 5 years of legal, unbroken residence, EU rules allow a long-term resident status, the European Commission says, with conditions on income, insurance and sometimes integration.

A partner, and family. The income test rises by 20% for a spouse, to 4,200 euros a month (about A$7,050), and by 15% for each child. Family members get their own permits, which end when yours does. If you are partners but not married, the consulate can tell you what applies. Our guide to retirement visas by age compares other countries.

With a Greek or other EU passport. A Greek citizen needs no visa to live in Greece. The Greek consulates in Australia say citizenship passes to a child born to a Greek parent, and is proven by registration in a Greek municipality. Registering your parents’ marriage and your birth comes first. Greek passports are issued only through the consulates and the Canberra embassy, and take about 4 to 5 weeks.

A citizen of another EU country can live in Greece on EU rules with health insurance and enough income, and may need to register after 3 months, the EU’s Your Europe site says. Smartraveller asks dual nationals to check which passport to enter on. Once ETIAS starts, a dual Australian and EU citizen won’t be able to enter on their Australian passport.

Men’s military service runs from 19 to 45, the consulates say. That won’t touch you at 55, but it can touch a son or grandson, and Smartraveller says it can apply even to men who don’t think they hold Greek nationality. If you are moving back with your household, ask the consulate about a certificate of change of residency. It needs you to have lived mainly abroad, at least 185 days a year, for two years in a row.

Documents to get in Australia before you go. The AFP national police check costs A$57, and the AFP says most online checks arrive within a few days. DFAT legalises Australian documents, such as a police check or a marriage certificate, with an apostille. It costs A$105 a document from 1 January 2026, by appointment at a passport office or by mail, and processing times vary. Greece has been in the apostille convention since 1985. A JP can certify copies for use in Australia, but copies for use overseas need a notary public, DFAT says. Ask the consulate whether it also wants Greek translations.

Visa rules change. Greece’s embassy or a consulate, or a licensed visa agent in Greece, can confirm which income figure they use and what health insurance they accept. Our guide to visa agent and property scams covers the warning signs.

Your Age Pension and Medicare in Greece

Services Australia says your Age Pension can keep paying while you are overseas. After 6 weeks away the Energy Supplement stops and your Pensioner Concession Card is cancelled. The Pension Supplement stops completely at 12 weeks (since 20 September 2026). If you lived in Australia less than 35 years between age 16 and pension age, your rate can be reduced after 26 weeks. Our guide to the 6, 12 and 26-week rules explains each step.

Greece is a social security agreement country, so you can generally claim the Age Pension from Greece instead of having to be in Australia on the day you claim. Services Australia’s factsheet on the agreement says your years living in Australia and your years of social security cover in Greece can be added together to reach the 10 years the Age Pension needs. If you live outside Australia when you claim, you generally need at least 12 months of Australian residence between 16 and pension age, 6 months of it in one stretch. You can lodge the claim at a Greek social insurance office, up to 13 weeks early.

A Greek pension, if you worked there, is Greece’s decision, and the factsheet sends you to Greece’s social insurance agency for it. The Department of Social Services figures show the 9,187 people paid in Greece got an average of about A$390 a fortnight each. That is about a third of the single base rate. The count has fallen from 11,977 at the end of 2020.

If you move for good, the Age Pension pays the base rate only from the day you leave: A$29,520.40 a year single, A$44,506.80 for a couple.

Medicare never pays for treatment overseas. Smartraveller says there is no agreement between Australia and Greece for free health care, and Greece isn’t on Services Australia’s list of 11 reciprocal health care countries. If you are an Australian citizen and move overseas, you can still use Medicare for treatment in Australia, on visits home, for up to 5 years after you leave. Visits home do not restart that clock. After 5 years, you re-enrol when you move back to live. Permanent residents are different: their enrolment ends 12 months after they leave. Our guide to Medicare overseas has the detail.

Health care and insurance

Smartraveller says public hospitals are below Australia’s standard, and non-urgent surgery can mean long delays. They can run short of supplies, including essential medicines, and have limited nursing care. Friends and relatives are usually expected to give, or pay for, care around the clock, including help with eating and washing. Private hospital costs are high. You pay before you leave a hospital or clinic, and sometimes before treatment. Public ambulances can be slow, and private hospitals run their own.

Public care for Greek citizens and residents. Greece’s Ministry of Health says a 2016 law opened public hospitals and health centres, free, to uninsured Greek citizens and to people living in Greece legally. Access is through a Greek social security number (AMKA). The ministry’s explainer dates from when the law began, so ask Greece’s social insurance agency what applies to you now. The FIP permit still asks for private insurance, and Smartraveller’s warnings about public hospitals apply either way.

What’s close by, and when it means travel. Athens has public and private hospitals. Smartraveller says that if you get seriously ill on an island or in a remote area, you may be moved to Athens or another place with better facilities, and that evacuation is expensive. Crete has its own network: the Region of Crete counted eight public hospital units in 2024, including a university hospital in Heraklion and general hospitals in Chania and Rethymno, plus 19 health centres. Thessaloniki has several public general hospitals. Smartraveller’s page on retiring overseas says a medical repatriation to Australia can cost hundreds of thousands of dollars.

Your medicines. Codeine and other prescription opiates can only be issued in Greece on a prescription from a Greek doctor. Smartraveller suggests carrying a prescription and a letter from your doctor naming each medicine. Greece’s medicines agency can say whether something you take is allowed. Our guide to taking PBS medicines overseas covers the Australian side.

Which cover. For a winter away, the usual type is travel insurance for a single long trip; ask whether it covers your full stay at your age, any conditions you already have, and evacuation. Living there means international health insurance instead. Our guide to international health insurance by age covers the age limits. If you’d like help working out where to start, book a free planning session on Zoom.

Smartraveller says dust storms blow in spring and that measles is common.

Where Australians live

There is no official count of where Australians settle in Greece. If you’re going back to family, you’ll already know the town. Otherwise, these are the main areas to compare. Driving times are rough.

Area	What it’s like	Getting around	Hospital	Airport
Athens and the south coast	The capital, with seaside suburbs such as Glyfada and Voula; our cost base	Busy traffic; hills in parts; public transport in the city	Public and private hospitals; where island patients may be moved	Athens International, about 40 minutes from Glyfada
Chania, Crete	Harbour town on the north-west coast; rents a little lower	Old town on foot; a car helps beyond it	Public general hospital	Chania airport, about 20 minutes
Heraklion, Crete	Crete’s main city, on the north coast	Busy city streets; buses	University hospital and a general hospital	Heraklion airport, about 10 minutes
Thessaloniki	Northern port city on the Thermaic Gulf	Flat waterfront; buses	Several public general hospitals	Thessaloniki airport, about 25 minutes
Islands and home villages	Quieter; often where families came from	Often hilly; a car, ferries or both	Health centres; serious cases moved to a bigger city	Ferries or domestic flights to a hub

Athens and the coast south of it put you near the international airport and the main hospitals. Smartraveller notes petty theft around Monastiraki and Syntagma Square, and regular protests in the centre.

Crete lies south of the mainland. Chania, on the north-west coast, comes in a little under Athens on our figures. Heraklion, further east, has the island’s university hospital. Smartraveller notes earthquakes near Crete and Santorini.

Thessaloniki is the main city of the north. Smartraveller mentions protests there too, around Aristotelous Square and the university campus.

The islands and villages families came from are quieter, but further from hospitals and the airport. Ferries can be delayed or cancelled in strong winds, Smartraveller says.

If you are weighing Greece against its island neighbour to the east, see our Cyprus page.

Renting or buying a home

Australians can buy property in Greece. The main legal limit is in frontier areas: parts of the north and the islands in the east. There, Law 1892/1990 bars buyers from outside the EU and EFTA unless a committee of the regional Decentralized Administration lifts the ban, the European Land Registry Association’s Greek entry says. A sale made in breach is void and can’t be registered. A Greek or other EU passport takes you outside that rule.

The Golden Visa. Buying can also bring a 5-year investor permit, renewable. Since 2024 the Migration Code sets the minimum at 800,000 euros (about A$1.3 million) in Attica, Thessaloniki, Mykonos, Santorini and islands of more than 3,100 people. That has to be one property of at least 120 square metres. Elsewhere it is 400,000 euros (about A$671,000). A building converted to housing, or a listed building being restored, can qualify at 250,000 euros (about A$420,000). A property bought for the permit can’t be let short term or sublet.

The paperwork. Any purchase starts with a Greek tax number (AFM). Greece’s tax authority now issues it remotely, with identification by video call, Proto Thema and the Greek Herald reported. Rights to the property only exist once they are registered with the land registry or cadastre, the European Land Registry Association’s Greek entry says. If the property earns rent, Greece expects a Greek tax return on that income even if you live abroad, the same reports say.

The people to ask are a property lawyer and a notary in Greece who act for you, not the seller. Ask them to check the title, any frontier-area permit, building permits and debts on the property. If you own a home in Australia too, our guide to keeping, renting or selling the family home covers that side.

Tax: there and at home

Greece’s Income Tax Code makes you a Greek tax resident if your main home, usual residence or centre of personal and financial life is in Greece. Spending more than 183 days there in any 12 months also does it. That day count doesn’t apply to stays of up to a year purely for tourism or medical treatment. Residents pay 9% on the first 10,000 euros of income (about A$16,790), rising in steps to 44% above 60,000 euros (about A$101,000).

The 7% regime. Article 5B of the code offers a flat 7% tax on all foreign income to people with a foreign pension who move their tax residence to Greece. You must not have been a Greek tax resident in 5 of the previous 6 years. You must also be moving from a country that has a tax cooperation agreement with Greece in force. The tax is paid in one instalment by the end of December, for up to 15 tax years. Whether a move from Australia meets the cooperation condition is a question for a tax adviser in Greece.

No tax treaty. Treasury’s list of Australia’s tax treaties shows only an airline profits agreement with Greece, from 1977. A treaty normally settles which country taxes which income. Without one, there are no treaty rules to fall back on for your pension, super or rent from Australia.

On the Australian side, the ATO’s residency tests decide whether you are still a resident for tax. If you become a foreign resident, you lose the tax-free threshold, and Australian income such as rent is taxed at 30% from the first dollar (2025-26). Sell your Australian home while you’re a foreign resident and, for sales after 30 June 2020, there’s no capital gains tax main residence exemption, apart from narrow life events. Our guides to whether you pay tax in Australia when you retire overseas and foreign resident tax rates go through both.

Talk to a registered tax agent in Australia and a tax adviser in Greece before you go. With no treaty, the answer turns on your own income and assets.

Money and banking

Services Australia can pay your Age Pension into an Australian account or into a bank account in Greece, in euros, once you lodge its international bank account form (AUS178). If you live overseas long term, it pays every 4 weeks.

A local account. Greek banks set their own rules for foreigners, and a Greek tax number (AFM) is the usual first step for dealing with Greek services. Ask the bank what it needs from someone on your permit or passport: your passport, your AFM, a Greek address and proof of income.

Moving money. The main options are a transfer from your Australian bank, a currency transfer service, or an ATM on an Australian card. Each charges a fee and builds a margin into its rate; ask for both. Smartraveller says Greece’s daily ATM limits don’t apply to most major foreign cards.

Cash. Amounts over 10,000 euros (about A$16,790), in any form, must be declared when you travel between Greece and a country outside the EU. People with Greek nationality can take only up to 10,000 euros (about A$16,790) out of Greece, Smartraveller adds.

Currency swings. Your pension is in Australian dollars and your costs are in euros. At the RBA’s 12-month average rate (A$1 = 0.5957 euros), 1,000 euros is about A$1,680. If the Australian dollar fell 10%, the same 1,000 euros would cost about A$1,870.

Day to day

Language. Greek is the language of landlords, offices and markets, and even a little helps.

Getting around without driving. Smartraveller says to use only licensed taxis, check the driver uses the meter, and ask for a receipt. Ferries and large catamarans carry most visitors to the islands, though some don’t suit people with disabilities. Strikes and protests can stop taxis, ferries and public transport at short notice.

Driving. A valid Australian licence is recognised in Greece, Smartraveller says, though digital licences may not be. You may not need an International Driving Permit. The Greek embassy can confirm for your licence type, and say whether residents need a Greek licence after a time. Smartraveller calls driving hazardous: aggressive drivers, poor roads and red lights ignored. Quad bike and motorcycle crashes have killed Australian visitors.

Safety beyond health. Smartraveller’s advice for Greece is to exercise normal safety precautions (updated 30 September 2026). It names pickpocketing and bag snatching on airport buses and trains and on ferries, and scams involving taxis and restaurants. Under Greek law, every seller must give you a receipt. Drug penalties include prison even for small amounts, and you must carry ID, such as a photocopy of your passport.

Weather and natural hazards. Wildfires burn from June to September, sometimes near towns and tourist areas. Greece is in an active earthquake zone. Heavy rain can bring floods and power cuts, and winter can bring heavy snow. Emergency alerts come by text from 112.

The weather, month by month. Japan Meteorological Agency normals for 1991 to 2020 show average temperature and rain:

Month	Athens	Athens rain	Heraklion, Crete	Heraklion rain
January	10.1°C	52 mm	12.2°C	99 mm
February	10.6°C	37 mm	12.3°C	79 mm
March	12.8°C	38 mm	13.9°C	37 mm
April	16.2°C	26 mm	16.6°C	25 mm
May	21.1°C	16 mm	20.5°C	14 mm
June	26.1°C	10 mm	24.4°C	2 mm
July	28.9°C	9 mm	26.6°C	1 mm
August	29.0°C	3 mm	26.7°C	3 mm
September	24.7°C	17 mm	24.1°C	16 mm
October	20.1°C	37 mm	20.9°C	56 mm
November	15.5°C	66 mm	17.1°C	66 mm
December	11.7°C	66 mm	13.8°C	95 mm

These are averages across day and night, so summer afternoons run much hotter.

Public holidays. Orthodox Easter moves each year and closes most things for a long weekend. In 2026 Good Friday fell on 10 April and Easter Monday on 13 April, from the Danish embassy’s holiday list. Clean Monday, the start of Lent, Independence Day on 25 March, Whit Monday and Ochi Day on 28 October are days off too.

Making friends. A Greek class, a walking group or a church community gives you the same faces each week. For Greek-Australians, family and the village often come first. If you’re going alone, see retiring overseas single.

Getting there and coming home

There is no non-stop flight between Australia and Greece, BITRE’s June 2026 airline figures show. Expect at least one stop, usually in the Middle East or Asia, and a full day of travel or more. From Athens, domestic flights and ferries go on to Crete and the islands, which adds time to every trip home. Smartraveller notes that conflict in the Middle East can close airspace and cancel flights at short notice.

Greece is 9 hours behind Sydney and Melbourne in our summer, and 7 hours behind in our winter. For about a week around the start of April and most of October, the gap is 8 hours, because the clocks change on different dates. A 10am call from Athens reaches Sydney at 7pm in our summer.

Your first steps

One order that works, from a first look to living there. The right order for you depends on your health, your passport, your home and your money.

1. Ask for help first. Book a free planning session on Zoom, or contact our team. Once we understand your situation, we can point you in the right direction.
2. Spend up to 90 days in Greece first, in a place you could rent long term. Our guide to trying it before you move sets out the options.
3. Talk it through with your family, including who would fly over if you got sick. See talking to family.
4. Work out which passport you’d live on. If you may be Greek, your nearest Greek consulate can start the municipal registration.
5. Put your own numbers against the pension: what you’ll get after 12 weeks away, and a year in Greece with insurance and permit fees. See taking your Age Pension overseas.
6. Work out what happens to the house, and whether it counts for the pension while you’re away.
7. See your GP, check your medicines, and get a doctor’s letter. With an ongoing condition, read retiring overseas with a health condition.
8. Get insurance quotes for the way you’ll live there, evacuation included. Start with travel insurance for long stays.
9. Talk to a registered tax agent here and a tax adviser in Greece about tax residence, the 7% regime and the missing treaty.
10. Order your police check and apostilles, then book the consulate interview for the type D visa if you need one.
11. Tell Services Australia you’re going, and set up how your pension will be paid.
12. Find a long-term rental and have the lease read before you sign, knowing the 3-year minimum term that Global Property Guide reports.
13. Keep a plan for coming home: where you’d live, and how the pension and Medicare restart. See coming home.

Questions people ask

Can Australians live in Greece?

Yes. On an Australian passport alone, living there takes a residence permit, usually the financially independent person permit, with income of 3,500 euros a month for one person (about A$5,880). Greek citizens need no visa, and other EU citizens can live there on EU rules.

How long can an Australian stay in Greece without a visa?

Up to 90 days in any 180-day period, counted across the whole Schengen area, not Greece alone. The Entry/Exit System records your arrivals and departures. Staying longer takes a national visa and a permit, or a Greek or EU passport.

How much would it cost to retire in Greece?

Our estimate for a month in Athens is about A$4,700 for a couple and A$3,260 for one person, rent included, before health insurance. Chania on Crete comes to about A$4,510 for a couple. Permit fees, insurance and flights home come on top.

Can I get my Australian pension in Greece?

Yes. The Age Pension keeps paying, with the usual 6, 12 and 26-week rules, and can be paid into a Greek bank account in euros. Greece has a social security agreement with Australia, so you can generally claim from there and add Greek insurance years to your Australian residence.

What is Greece’s 7% tax rate for pensioners?

It is an optional regime under article 5B of Greece’s Income Tax Code: a flat 7% on all foreign income for up to 15 tax years. It is for people with a foreign pension who move their tax residence to Greece and weren’t Greek tax residents in 5 of the previous 6 years. Other conditions apply, so a tax adviser in Greece can check whether you qualify.

Can an Australian buy a house in Greece?

Yes, outside frontier areas in the north and on the eastern islands, where non-EU buyers need a permit. Buying for the Golden Visa means at least 400,000 euros (about A$671,000), or 800,000 euros (about A$1.3 million) in Attica, Thessaloniki, Mykonos, Santorini and the larger islands. A Greek tax number comes first.

How do I get Greek citizenship by descent from Australia?

According to the Greek consulates, a child born to a Greek parent is Greek by birth, and citizenship is proven by registration in a Greek municipality. Registration goes through your nearest Greek consulate, starting with your parents’ marriage and your own birth. The decision is made in Greece, not by the consulate.