In-plan or out-of-plan: can you build on this Greek plot?

• In-plan (εντός σχεδίου): land inside an approved town plan, with its own building terms such as coverage, building coefficient and height.
• Settlements (οικισμοί): legally existing pre-1923 settlements, or settlements under 2,000 inhabitants with official boundaries. A 2025 decree set new criteria for these boundaries, and some will be redrawn when local plans are prepared.
• Out-of-plan (εκτός σχεδίου): everything else. Building here is the exception and depends on plot size and road access.

The planning rules were gathered into a new Spatial Planning and Urban Planning Code, ratified by Law 5306/2026 in June 2026.

Under the 1985 decree now carried into the Code, an out-of-plan plot is buildable as a rule (κατά κανόνα άρτιο) with at least 4,000 m² and 25 m of frontage on a public road (κοινόχρηστος δρόμος). Stricter figures apply along major roads.

In its Plenary decision 176/2023, the Council of State held that area alone is not enough: the plot must front a lawfully existing public road that was not created by private will. A Presidential Decree on how out-of-plan roads are recognised is still pending, and building offices have applied the rules inconsistently in the meantime.

A track to the plot, even one used for decades, may not count as a public road. Ask your engineer what evidence shows the road's status before you rely on it.

Plots created before certain dates could be built on with less area, by exception (κατά παρέκκλιση): 750 m² with 10 m frontage, 1,200 m² with 20 m, or 2,000 m² with 25 m, depending on when the plot was created and the road it fronts.

Law 4759/2020 ended these exceptions with a transition period. Only owners who applied for a pre-approval or a confirmation of building terms by 9 December 2022 can still use them, and, according to the Technical Chamber of Greece, the permit must be issued by 30 June 2027 after the latest extension. This deadline has been extended several times, so check it with your engineer. Once a new local plan is approved for the area, the exception regime ends there.

If a seller describes a small out-of-plan plot as buildable, ask to see the 2022 filing and check the dates. Without it, the plot may not be buildable at all.

Local Urban Plans (ΤΠΣ) are replacing the older General Urban Plans (ΓΠΣ) and plans for open-land areas (ΣΧΟΟΑΠ). Special Urban Plans (ΕΠΣ) sit at the same level and can override them. A new plan can change land uses and building terms, and can also end the small-plot exceptions described above.

Forest, Natura 2000, coastal and archaeological rules can apply on top of all of this, so a plot that meets the size and road rules can still be restricted.