Buying land in Greece: what to check before you buy a plot

Every parcel in the Hellenic Cadastre has a 12-digit KAEK and a mapped outline. Ask the seller or agent for the KAEK, find the parcel on the map and compare its mapped area with the deed and any topographic plan.

If the area or outline does not match, it can be corrected: since 18 September 2026 geometric corrections go through the metavoles.ktimatologio.gr platform with a certified engineer. Ownership, mortgages and lawsuits are on the cadastral sheet, which your lawyer obtains.

• In-plan (εντός σχεδίου): land inside an approved town plan, with its own building terms.
• Settlements (οικισμοί): legally existing pre-1923 settlements, or settlements under 2,000 inhabitants with official boundaries.
• Out-of-plan (εκτός σχεδίου): everything else. Building is the exception and depends on plot size and road access.

Out of plan, a plot is buildable as a rule with at least 4,000 m² and 25 m of frontage on a public road. In 2023 the Council of State held that the road must be a lawfully existing public road, and which roads count is still being settled.

Smaller older plots (750, 1,200 or 2,000 m²) can only be built on if the owner applied by 9 December 2022, and, according to the Technical Chamber of Greece, the permit must be issued by 30 June 2027. If a seller calls a small out-of-plan plot buildable, ask to see the 2022 filing.

Forest maps mark land protected by forest law. Building homes on forest-coded land is generally not allowed, and one plot can carry several codes. A partly forest plot can only be built on if the non-forest part alone meets the minimum plot rules.

Under Law 5299/2026, in force since 5 May 2026, a sale of land that a ratified map shows as forest-type is void without a Forest Directorate certificate. For land outside forest law, an engineer's sworn declaration is enough.

• Streams: building inside a demarcated stream's boundary lines is banned. Most streams are not demarcated, and until a planned decree is issued buildings must keep at least 10 m from the flood lines inside town plans and settlements, and 20 m outside them.
• Flood zones: a mapped flood zone is not by itself a building ban, but it affects design, permits and insurance.
• Coast: the foreshore (αιγιαλός) and the beach zone behind it, up to 50 m, are public and can never be sold. Outside town plans, fences are generally not allowed within 500 m of the shore.

Greece has 446 Natura 2000 sites covering about 27% of its land. Natura is not an automatic building ban, but out-of-plan plots inside a site need a larger minimum size to build, and projects that could affect a site need an environmental assessment. An engineer can issue an official Natura certificate for the plot.

• Buyers from outside the EU and EFTA need prior permission to buy in designated border areas. A purchase without it is void.
• Every buyer needs a Greek tax number (ΑΦΜ), and the price must be paid through a bank. A deed that records cash payment is void.

A plot can pass every public-map check and still not be buildable. Planning category, road status and local plans are confirmed by your engineer with the building office.