Residence Permits in Greece for economically independent citizens

As a rule, having reached a certain level of the savings or of the permanent income from official sources, a citizen of the third country begins to give special attention to the comfort and safety of residing in Europe. It involves a necessity of the profitable money investment, which can give more ample opportunities and provide a stable economic platform. If your income level is sufficiently high and stable, and you don’t intend to be engaged in any entrepreneurial activity in Greece, the law 4251/2014 provides possibilities to obtain the residence permits for economically independent persons.    

General requirements to all residence permits in Greece involve:
•A candidate must have the valid passport, mustn’t be a threat to the public order and to the safety of the country, mustn’t be a threat to the health of other people.
•A candidate must have a medical insurance as well as money sufficient for his own maintenance and for the maintenance of depended members of his family.

Lawyer Svetlana Kasatkina-Kouskou’s practice confirms that for the past few years the most widespread residence permits for citizens from the CIS countries are the residence permits for economically independent persons.

Greece has many preconditions to act as ideal variant for the residence permits for economically independent citizens. First, it is a full-fledged member of the European Union; secondly, it has favorable climatic conditions; thirdly, it is the largest European tourist center; fourthly, it provides sufficiently high extent of the internal security (it has one of the lowest crime rate indicators among developed countries). It is possible still to list advantages, but considering only these points, we draw a conclusion that it is possible to live in Greece comfortably and successfully, especially having advantages of the residence permits for economically independent persons.

The main advantages of these documents are:
•visa-free entrance to the territory of all countries of the Schengen Agreement,
•possibility to obtain the personal residence permits for members of the family of the citizen which have the residence permit for an economically independent person (spouse, minor children),
•there is a possibility of filing of an application to obtain the Greek citizenship after 7-year legal residing in the Republic territory.

According to the current legislation of Greece, a citizen of the third country, which has the confirmed sufficient official income, has the right to obtain the residence permit for an economically independent person. The residence permits are issued for a period of 1 year and are prolonged every year, if the income of the foreigner who has received residence permit still meets the requirements of the joint decision of the Ministries.

At the first stages of preparation and drawing up of documents for the residence permit in Greece, it is important to consider the Russian-speaking lawyer’s consultation in order to avoid any misunderstanding, in particular, in connection with confirmed last changes or amendments for the law.

The document package necessary for a special visa is filed at the Consulate of Greece in a residence of a citizen applying for the residence permit of such a category.

One of the main criteria for making decision about the special visa issue by competent services is the official document from a respectable bank that confirms the source and stability of the annual incomes of the foreign state citizen and the sufficient tangible assets availabilities for the financial support of natural discharges for residing in Greece. The sufficient income amount and its confirmation form are fixed by the Ministry of Internal Affairs and the Ministry of Economy of Greece.

As of today, the sufficient monthly income for an owner of the residence permit for an economically independent person is 2.000 euros.  

For members of the family of a citizen having the residence permit of such a category, a condition providing their economic independence is the increase of the fixed monthly income amount making calculations: 2.000 euros "plus" 20% for the spouse  and "plus" 15% for each minor child.

The extract from the law 3386/05: “According to the law in force, under the decision of the General Secretary of region, a citizen of the third country has the right to obtain the permission to stay in Greece for a period of one year after the special visa obtaining. The residence permits for economically independent persons are prolonged for each next year if the legal requirements are complied.

The individual permission to stay can be given to members of the family of a citizen of the third country for the same term as well as for a citizen of the third country having the residence permit for economically independent person.”