Greece charges 22% corporate tax, a 5% withholding on dividends and 24% VAT, and lets a private company be formed with one euro of capital through an online registry. For a group based in Turkey it is the nearest European Union market by land, and the only one of the region’s low-entry jurisdictions where the profits can come home to Turkey under the full participation exemption.
Turkey and Greece share a land border and two of the busiest crossings in the eastern Mediterranean, and Thessaloniki sits closer to Istanbul than most Turkish provincial capitals. A Greek entity gives access to the single market, to euro-denominated contracts and to European customers without customs formalities, from a base a few hours away.
The Greek side is documented well enough. What is usually missing is the Turkish side, and Greece is unusual there in two respects that are covered in full further down: its 22% rate clears both of the thresholds Turkish legislation applies to foreign subsidiaries, and it charges no withholding at all on profits a branch sends to its head office abroad.
How to Set Up a Company in Greece?
Greece has simplified entry considerably. Founders need a Greek tax identification number and the credentials issued with it; beyond that, no further certificate or clearance is required before the company can be formed. The decision that remains is the vehicle.
Main types of business entities
The form most foreign founders now use. Capital may be as little as one euro, a single member is permitted, and the constitution can be adapted freely. Contributions may be in capital, in kind or as guarantee contributions, which gives unusual flexibility in structuring what each participant brings.
The older private vehicle, still used where counterparties or regulators expect the familiar statutory framework. The minimum capital requirement was removed, so capital is set freely, but the governance rules are less flexible than in the private company.
Required for share classes, transferable share certificates and public issuance, and expected by institutional investors and lenders on larger projects. A board and fuller governance apply, and audit obligations arrive sooner.
Not a separate legal person, so liability runs to the parent. Taxed on Greek-source profit only, and — unusually — no withholding applies when the profit is sent to the head office abroad. See the Turkey section below, where this changes the arithmetic.
Establishment Process
- Obtain a Greek tax identification numberIssued to each founder, individual or corporate, together with the credentials for the electronic systems. This is the only prerequisite before formation and it is what most foreign founders underestimate, because it has to be arranged for every person named in the constitution.
- Choose the form and reserve the nameThe name is checked and reserved through the commercial registry. Where a distinctive title is important, checking it early avoids redrafting the constitution.
- Draft the constitutionPrepared in Greek. For the private company a standard model constitution can be used, which is what makes same-day online formation possible; departing from the model requires a notarial deed and adds time.
- File through the one-stop registryThe application, the tax registration and the social security registration are handled through a single electronic process. A file using the model constitution can complete in a day or two.
- Register for VAT and activate the tax profileThe company’s tax number is issued on incorporation; VAT registration follows according to the activity. Foreign entities carrying out activities that trigger Greek VAT must register before those activities begin, not afterwards.
- Open the bank account and pay in the capitalWhere the capital is more than nominal it is paid into a Greek account. Onboarding is the least predictable step and is covered separately below.
- Set up books and electronic reportingCapital companies keep double-entry books, and transaction data is reported to the tax administration through the national electronic platform. The accounting setup should be specified before the first invoice.
A private company using the model constitution can be registered in a day or two, which is why Greece is often described as one of the quickest EU jurisdictions to enter. That figure measures the registry step alone. For a Turkish founder the real clock starts earlier: every founder and every director needs a Greek tax identification number, and a corporate founder needs its own, obtained on the strength of apostilled registry documents.
Sequencing those two chains in parallel rather than one after the other is what turns a six-week project into a three-week one. Two to five weeks from first instruction is realistic once the tax numbers are in hand.
Documents Required for Company Formation
| Document | Requirements and notes |
|---|---|
| Constitution | In Greek; the standard model enables online formation, while a bespoke text requires a notarial deed |
| Founders’ identification | Passport copies for individuals; for a corporate founder, current registry documents evidencing existence and representation |
| Greek tax identification numbers | For every founder and every person appointed to manage the company, corporate founders included |
| Resolution of the corporate founder | Approving the formation, the capital and the appointment of the administrator |
| Appointment and acceptance of the administrator | Declaration of acceptance by the person who will manage and represent the company |
| Registered address documentation | Lease or consent from the holder of the premises |
| Power of attorney | Where the filing is handled by a local representative |
| Translations and apostille | Documents issued in Turkey require an apostille and an official Greek translation |
Turkey and Greece are both parties to the Hague Apostille Convention, so documents issued in Turkey need an apostille rather than consular legalisation. Settle the company name, the capital figure and the identity of the administrator before anything is apostilled, since an amendment afterwards means running the chain again and losing one to three weeks.
Is a Local Partner or Local Manager Required?
No. A Greek company may be wholly owned by a Turkish parent or by non-resident individuals, and there is no requirement for a Greek shareholder. The administrator need not be a Greek citizen or resident.
The practical constraint is the tax identification number rather than nationality. Every founder and every appointed manager needs one before the company can be formed, and a non-resident obtains it on the strength of apostilled documents. A manager who is never in Greece also complicates bank onboarding, so appointing a resident representative alongside the group’s own manager is a common arrangement.
Greek Tax System and Comparison with Turkey
Greece
- Corporate tax
- 22% Flat, no size threshold
- Domestic minimum tax
- None
- Dividend withholding
- 5% Nil to EU parents and on branch remittances
- Value added tax
- 24% Reduced rates 13% and 6%
- Related-party threshold
- 33% Ownership, votes or profit rights
Turkey
- Corporate tax
- 25% 30% for financial institutions
- Domestic minimum tax
- 10% Of profit before deductions
- Dividend withholding
- 15% Branch remittance also 15%
- Value added tax
- 20% Reduced rates 10% and 1%
- Related-party threshold
- 10% Capital, votes or dividend rights
Corporate tax and dividends
Corporate tax is 22% on the profits of public limited companies, limited liability companies, private companies, partnerships, cooperatives and joint ventures alike. Distributed dividends carry a 5% withholding, which does not apply where the entity keeps single-entry books — a carve-out that is irrelevant to a foreign-owned capital company, since those must keep double-entry books in any event.
Two exceptions to the 5% matter to a group. It does not apply to dividends paid by a Greek subsidiary to an EU parent meeting the conditions of the parent-subsidiary directive, and it does not apply to profits credited or remitted by a Greek branch to its head office abroad. A Turkish parent falls outside the first exception and squarely inside the second.
Withholding on payments abroad
| Payment | Rate | Note |
|---|---|---|
| Dividends | 5% | Nil to a qualifying EU parent and on branch profits remitted abroad |
| Interest | 15% | Treaty rate applies where lower |
| Royalties | 20% | Treaty rate applies where lower |
| Service fees | 20% | Technical projects, management fees, consultancy and related services |
| Payments to construction companies | 3% | A separate reduced rate for this category |
| Where the recipient has no Greek presence | None | No withholding applies to payments to non-residents without a Greek permanent establishment |
Management fees, consultancy and technical project fees paid out of Greece attract a 20% withholding — four times the rate on dividends and higher than most groups budget for. Where a Turkish parent intends to charge its Greek subsidiary for head office services, that charge is where the tax arises, not the dividend.
The double taxation agreement between the two countries may reduce or eliminate it depending on how the service is characterised, but relief has to be claimed with a residence certificate obtained before payment. Modelling the service charge and the dividend together, rather than separately, is what avoids paying 20% on the way out and then finding the dividend route would have cost 5%.
Value added tax and other charges
The standard VAT rate is 24%, with a reduced rate of 13% for items such as fresh food, electricity and natural gas, and a super-reduced 6% for newspapers, theatre tickets, pharmaceuticals and hotel accommodation. Foreign entities must register before carrying out activities that trigger Greek VAT.
Two further charges are easy to overlook. A capital concentration tax of 0.5% applies to certain capital injections, so funding a Greek entity by increasing capital carries a cost that funding it another way may not. Stamp duty of between 1.2% and 3.6% applies to certain transactions including loans and assignments — which makes intra-group lending into Greece more expensive than it looks.
Transfer pricing
| Item | Position |
|---|---|
| Principle | Arm’s length, following the OECD guidelines, applied to cross-border and domestic controlled transactions alike, branches included |
| Documentation threshold | Transactions above EUR 100,000 where turnover is below EUR 5 million; above EUR 200,000 where turnover exceeds EUR 5 million |
| File contents | Master file, Greek documentation file and a summary information table covering the group, functions performed, risks assumed and the method adopted |
| Country-by-country reporting | Greek ultimate parents of groups with consolidated revenue above EUR 750 million |
| Related-party test | Direct or indirect holding of 33% or more of shares, profit rights or voting rights, or a relationship of management dependency or decisive influence |
Greece treats parties as associated at a 33% holding; Turkey applies its transfer pricing rules from a 10% holding in capital, votes or dividend rights. A shareholding of, say, 20% therefore creates a documented related-party transaction on the Turkish side and none on the Greek side.
The consequence is that documentation cannot simply be prepared once and used in both countries. Where both thresholds are crossed, the two files should be consistent rather than drafted independently, because both administrations are looking at the same transactions.
Accounting System and Operational Compliance with Turkey
Both international standards and Greek generally accepted accounting principles apply. Listed companies, their subsidiaries under conditions, and public sector organisations prepare financial statements under the international standards; other entities apply the Greek framework. Financial statements are prepared annually.
The book-keeping basis follows legal form and size. Capital companies, limited partnerships by shares and partnerships whose partners are exclusively capital companies must keep double-entry books. Other entities generally move to double-entry once annual turnover exceeds EUR 1.5 million. For a Turkish group this means the subsidiary will be on double-entry books from day one, which is also what makes the 5% dividend withholding unavoidable.
A Turkish group will find the Greek framework closer to its own group reporting than the Turkish statutory books are, which reduces rather than adds to the reconciliation burden. The point that needs planning is electronic reporting: transaction data flows to the tax administration through the national platform, so the accounting and invoicing setup has to be specified before trading rather than after the first invoice.
Bank Account Opening and Turkey-Related Companies
Onboarding is the least predictable step for a group structured from Turkey, and the reason a two-week formation becomes a two-month project. The determinant is the compliance file rather than the deposit.
- Ownership chain traced to the ultimate beneficial owners
- Documented description of the business model and expected flows
- Source of funds for the capital contribution
- Sanctions screening of the group and its counterparties
- An administrator able to attend in person
- Capital consistent with the stated activity
A company formed with one euro of capital while describing substantial planned turnover is reviewed in more detail and takes longer. Where the capital is nominal by design, the commercial rationale should be set out in writing before the first meeting rather than explained afterwards.
Tax Residency and Permanent Establishment Assessment
This is where Greece separates from the other low-entry routes into the European Union, and where the answer for a Turkish group is genuinely different.
The controlled foreign company rules do not bite. Article 7 of the Turkish Corporate Income Tax Law requires, among other conditions, an effective tax burden abroad below 10%. Greece taxes at 22%, so the condition fails and the rules generally do not apply — unlike Hungary at 9%, and without the borderline exposure Bulgaria carries at exactly 10%.
The full participation exemption is available. The exemption for foreign dividends in Turkey requires a tax burden of at least 15% in the subsidiary’s country, alongside a holding of at least 10% of paid-in capital held for at least one year and transfer of the profits to Turkey by the corporate tax return filing deadline. Greece’s 22% satisfies the tax burden test, so the dividend arrives fully exempt — not the 50% exemption that applies from Bulgaria, Hungary or the Gulf.
Why the branch may cost less than the subsidiary here
Greece charges no withholding on profits a branch remits to its head office abroad. Turkey, for comparison, taxes a branch remittance at 15%. That asymmetry, combined with the Turkish exemption for foreign branch income where the same 15% tax burden test is met, produces a result that runs against the usual advice.
| Step | Greek subsidiary | Greek branch |
|---|---|---|
| Greek corporate tax on profit | 22% | 22% |
| Greek tax on sending the profit to Turkey | 5% withholding on the dividend | None |
| Combined Greek burden | About 25.9% | 22% |
| Treatment in Turkey | Fully exempt; the 15% test is met | Exempt where the same test is met and the profit is transferred by the filing deadline |
| Liability | Ring-fenced in the subsidiary | Runs to the Turkish parent |
The branch saves roughly four points of Greek tax, and that is a real saving on a recurring profit stream. It is bought with unlimited liability: everything the Greek operation does binds the Turkish company directly, and there is no share to sell if the group later exits.
The branch route also fixes the exit. A subsidiary can be sold as a company; a branch can only be wound down or have its assets transferred, which is slower and taxed differently. Where the Greek operation is a defined project with a known end, the branch usually wins. Where it is a market position the group may one day sell, the four points are the price of keeping that option open.
Where the company is managed from
Under Article 3 of the Turkish Corporate Income Tax Law, a company whose place of effective management is in Turkey is a full Turkish taxpayer on worldwide income wherever it is registered. A Greek company incorporated for the 22% rate but directed entirely from Istanbul is the case the rule exists for. Decisions taken in Greece, management present there and a documented record of both are what prevent the question arising — and the proximity makes that easier to arrange than in most jurisdictions.
Social Security and Labor Legislation
Employment is governed by Greek labour law, with contracts registered electronically before work begins. Social security is administered through the unified fund, with contributions shared between employer and employee and withheld through payroll. Employer cost sits above the Bulgarian level and below the western European one.
Where staff are seconded from Turkey rather than hired locally, the social security agreement between the two countries determines whether Turkish coverage continues during the assignment. A certificate of coverage must be obtained before the assignment starts; obtaining it afterwards is materially harder and sometimes not possible at all.
Company Formation Timeframe in Greece
| Stage | Typical duration |
|---|---|
| Greek tax numbers for founders and managers | 1–3 weeks |
| Apostille and translation of Turkish documents | 1–3 weeks |
| Name reservation and drafting | 2–5 days |
| One-stop registry filing | 1–3 days |
| VAT registration and tax profile | 1–2 weeks |
| Bank account and accounting setup | 2–8 weeks |
Common Mistakes Made by Investors
- Reading the one-day registration as the whole timeline. The registry step is fast; obtaining Greek tax numbers for every founder and manager is what sets the clock.
- Budgeting head office service charges at the dividend rate. Management, consultancy and technical fees paid abroad carry a 20% withholding against 5% on dividends.
- Assuming the EU dividend exemption helps. It applies to EU parents under the directive; a Turkish parent uses the 5% domestic rate or the treaty, not the directive.
- Funding the entity through capital increases without checking the levy. A capital concentration tax applies to certain injections, and stamp duty of 1.2% to 3.6% applies to loans and assignments.
- Preparing one transfer pricing file for both countries. Greece treats parties as associated at 33%, Turkey at 10%, so the perimeters differ.
- Choosing the branch on tax alone. It saves about four points but carries unlimited liability and closes off a clean sale of the operation.
- Managing the Greek company from Istanbul. Effective management in Turkey makes it a full Turkish taxpayer on worldwide income.
- Registering for VAT after starting to trade. Foreign entities must register before carrying out activities that trigger Greek VAT.
Frequently Asked Questions
What is the minimum capital to set up a company in Greece?
What is the corporate tax rate in Greece?
How long does company formation in Greece take?
Will a Greek subsidiary trigger the Turkish controlled foreign company rules?
How are dividends from a Greek subsidiary taxed in Turkey?
Is a Greek branch cheaper than a Greek subsidiary for a Turkish company?
What withholding applies to service fees paid from Greece?
Is a Greek partner or resident manager required?
As the Ozbek CPA team, we advise groups based in Turkey on establishing and operating in Greece — choosing between a subsidiary and a branch on the full arithmetic rather than the headline rate, sequencing the tax numbers and apostilles so the timetable holds, structuring head office service charges against the 20% withholding, transfer pricing across two different related-party thresholds, and planning repatriation under the Turkish participation exemption. We work with local counsel and accountants in Greece on the domestic registration and filings. Contact us.
