Greece Opens Path for Citizens to Legally Acquire Squatted Public Properties

The Ministries of Finance and Digital Governance in Greece have paved the way for thousands of private citizens to obtain legal ownership titles for squatted public properties. The process involves payments that may be significantly reduced, even down to 20% of the property’s assessed value.

The process for purchasing approximately 90,000 squatted properties is set to start Sept 30, with applications for private citizens submitted to a new digital platform initially regarding the country’s 20 Regional Units, while applications will be accepted for properties nationwide from Oct. 31, 2024.

All procedures regarding the application including the applicants’ communication with related services will exclusively be done via the new digital platform that will be open to submissions until the end of Oct. 2024.

Citizens who submit a purchase application can pay the property price either in full or in 60, interest-free, equal monthly instalments, with a minimum instalment amount of 100 euros.

A key requirement for submitting a purchase application is that the applicant, or their legal predecessors, must have continuously possessed the public property:

For at least 30 years with a title,

For at least 40 years without a title, provided the applicant uses the property as their primary residence, an auxiliary space for their home, or for tourism, small-scale industry, manufacturing, commercial, or agricultural activities,

The property must have been declared on the “E9” tax form for at least five years prior to the application indicating that the applicants believed the property belonged to them.

Additionally:

Applications can be submitted for properties that do not have a building.

A ten-day deadline is set for informing applicants if any supporting documents are missing. The provision of aerial photographs is no longer required, as the existence or absence of a building is no longer considered.

The government retains the right to decide on exemptions from the right of purchase for reasons of public interest.

This move is expected to regulate a longstanding issue of unauthorized occupation of public lands, potentially bringing substantial revenue to the state while providing legal clarity to property holders.