Last updated 14 October 2026. By Demetre E. Katsouris, Managing Partner, Katsouris Law Firm.
The short answer: any construction or change of use carried out without a permit, or beyond the permit, makes the property untransferable until it is declared and legalised or removed. The current legalisation regime (Law 4495/2017) accepts declarations for works built before 28 July 2011 that fall in categories 1 to 4 — from small deviations up to violations of 40% of the permitted building — and the deadline for those, which was to expire on 31 March 2026, has been extended to 31 March 2028. Category 5, the largest violations, has been closed since autumn 2020 and the ministry has said it will revisit it only within a wider planning reform. Works built after 28 July 2011 cannot be legalised at all; they are removed or the building stays unsaleable. The fine is calculated by a formula on the area and nature of the violation, with discounts that have narrowed with each extension.
What counts as unpermitted
Anything built, enclosed or converted without the required permit: an enclosed balcony or veranda; a loft, storage or roof room added above the permitted height; a basement or pilotis converted to living space; an extension on a plot in a village or outside the plan; a change of use from shop to flat or flat to office; an outbuilding, pool or wall built without approval. Also anything built differently from the approved plans, even with a permit. Buildings completed before 1955 are outside the regime.
The categories
Category 1 covers buildings completed before 1983 with no later changes; the declaration is simple and the fine fixed. Categories 2 and 3 cover minor violations — small exceedances, changes within the building’s envelope, enclosed semi-open spaces — with low fines and, for category 3, a one-off flat fee. Category 4 covers violations up to 40% of the permitted building area or height and 20% of the coverage, with the full fine formula. Category 5 covers everything larger, and buildings outside the plan without any permit; its window closed on 30 September 2020.
What cannot be legalised
Works built after 28 July 2011. Works in protected areas — shoreline, forest, archaeological zones, protected streams — subject to specific exceptions. Works that violate the minimum distance from a public road or boundary beyond the tolerance. Category 5 violations, until and unless the law reopens.
For a property with works in these groups, the choices are removal, which the engineer certifies, or living with an unsaleable property. A buyer’s lawyer will not allow a deed to be signed, and a notary who does sign produces a void transfer.
How the fine is calculated
The engineer enters the works on the ministry’s electronic system: area of the violation, type (exceedance of building coefficient, coverage, height, change of use), year of construction, zone value of the area, and whether the property is a main residence. The system calculates a fine from these inputs. Earlier declarants received discounts of up to 30% that no longer apply; a declaration in 2026 pays the base figure, which is still well below the demolition cost or the lost sale. The fine is paid in instalments. On payment of the first instalment and submission of the file, the works are treated as legalised for the purpose of a transfer.
The role of the engineer
The engineer surveys the property against the permit, identifies the deviations, classifies them, prepares the declaration, calculates the fine, and after payment issues the certificate of lawful construction that attaches to the deed and feeds the electronic building identity. Nothing in this process is done by the lawyer or the notary. An owner abroad engages an engineer through the lawyer, with access to the property arranged through whoever holds the keys.
Co-owners who do not agree
Any one co-owner may file the declaration for the whole property without the consent of the others, and bears the fine; the law was changed to allow this precisely because co-ownership disputes were blocking legalisation. The paying co-owner can seek contribution from the others.
Why act now rather than at the sale
The extension to March 2028 removes the panic but not the reason. The engineer’s survey takes weeks; where the planning office’s permit file is incomplete, redrawing takes months; the fine is paid in instalments over time; and a buyer who discovers unpermitted works in the preliminary-agreement stage either walks away or reprices. An owner who legalises in a quiet year sells in a busy one. The same applies to a parent planning a gift to a child: the gift deed needs the same certificate as a sale.
Frequently asked questions
My father enclosed the balcony in 1995 and it has been in the E9 as living space ever since. Is it legal? No. Declaring it to the tax authority is not legalising it. Category 2 or 3, declarable until March 2028.
The roof room was built in 2014. Post-2011: it cannot be legalised. The engineer will advise on removal.
Does legalisation change my ENFIA? The legalised area becomes declared area, so yes, going forward. The building identity will in any case set the taxable area from 2027.
Can I legalise and then sell in the same month? Once the first instalment is paid and the file is complete, yes.
This article is general information, not legal advice; it reflects the position on the date above and may change.
To have a property surveyed for unpermitted works and a fine estimated before you sell or gift, contact us at info@katslaw.eu or +30 210 8982 864.
