Last updated 14 October 2026. By Demetre E. Katsouris, Managing Partner, Katsouris Law Firm.
The short answer: the freeze on new short-term rental registrations covers the 1st, 2nd and 3rd municipal districts of the Municipality of Athens, and central Thessaloniki. Glyfada, Voula and Vouliagmeni are separate municipalities and are not covered; an owner here can still register. What applies everywhere is the definition — a letting of under 60 days with only accommodation and linen is a short-term rental, anything of 60 days or more is a lease — together with the registration number, the safety standards, the climate fee, the platform reporting since May 2026, the building’s own regulation, and the absolute ban on short-letting a Golden Visa property.
The 60-day line
Greek tax law defines a short-term rental by duration and services: under 60 days, through a platform or otherwise, with no services beyond accommodation and bed linen. A stay of 60 days or more is a lease, declared as a lease, with the three-year minimum and the long-term rules. The line matters in three ways.
First, registration. A short let needs the registration number; a lease needs the electronic lease declaration. Mixing them — a “two-month Airbnb” — produces a declaration of the wrong type.
Second, services. Breakfast, daily cleaning, transfers or anything hotel-like turns a short let into a business activity, taxed and registered as such. An owner on the Riviera who adds a concierge package has crossed that line.
Third, income. The 60-day threshold is not a cap on how many nights a year you can let; there is no annual limit in Greek law. It separates one kind of letting from another. A property let for 200 short-term nights a year is still a short-term rental, and the tax authority may impute income for the whole year on the basis of the property’s characteristics if the declared nights look low.
Registration here
An owner applies through the tax portal with the tax number, deed, permit and the standards documents, and receives the 11-digit number to display on every listing. The number is issued to the owner: a buyer of a flat in Voula that is currently short-let applies afresh, which is fine here and impossible in Plaka. A manager can run the listing but the registration stays in the owner’s name.
The building’s regulation
The most common obstacle on the Riviera is not the state but the neighbours. The horizontal-property regulation of many buildings in Glyfada and Voula prohibits short-term letting outright, or permits it only with the general assembly’s consent, and co-owners can introduce a prohibition by majority. A regulation that is silent does not permit everything; the use must still be consistent with residential use and not a nuisance. Before buying for short-term letting, read the regulation and the recent minutes, and have the lawyer confirm what the assembly has decided.
The standards and the fee
Since 1 October 2025 every short-term rental must carry civil liability insurance from a Greek-licensed insurer, an electrical installation certificate, smoke detectors, a fire extinguisher, an exit sign, a first-aid kit and pest-control records, and must meet light and ventilation requirements that exclude most semi-basements. A climate resilience fee, currently €8 per night in high season for a standard apartment, is collected from the guest. Since 20 May 2026 the platforms verify the registration, display it, report nights and income to the tax authority monthly, and delist properties without a number.
Golden Visa properties on the Riviera
Many of the apartments bought in Glyfada and Voula under the €800,000 threshold are short-let through managers who tell the owner it is fine. It is not. A Golden Visa property may not be short-let by the owner, a manager, a lessee or a relative; the fine is €50,000 and the permit is revoked. A long lease is the only permitted letting.
Tax
Short-term income is taxed with long-term rent at 15% to €12,000, 25% to €24,000, 35% to €36,000 and 45% above. The 5% allowance applies. A long lease of a home up to 120 sq.m. previously short-let, signed by 31 December 2026, earns a three-year income-tax exemption, which for a Riviera flat producing €1,800 a month is worth considering against the net of short letting.
Frequently asked questions
Is there any proposal to extend the freeze to the southern suburbs? Extensions have been discussed for island and tourist areas; the southern suburbs have not been named. Rules can change, and an investment built entirely on short-term income should price that in.
Can I let my own home for the summer while I am away? Yes, with a registration, the standards and the declaration. Letting a main residence does not change your ENFIA or your tax residence.
My building’s regulation says “residential use only”. Does that ban short lets? Courts have gone both ways; the current trend is to treat professional short letting as outside ordinary residential use where it causes disturbance. Get the regulation amended, or do not rely on it.
This article is general information, not legal advice; it reflects the position on the date above and may change.
For a check on whether a specific apartment in Glyfada, Voula or Vouliagmeni can be short-let, send us the address and the building regulation: info@katslaw.eu or +30 210 8982 864.
