Inheritance of foreign property to a Greek resident

If a Greek citizen or a foreign resident inherits property or any assets located in Greece, then basically Greek law will determine the process of transferring assets (movable or immovable) from the deceased to the heir.

Only if the deceased was a foreign citizen and not Greek, the law of his country of citizenship will determine who inherits what. However, Greek law will still determine the process of transferring the ownership of assets located in Greece.

If, on the other hand, the heir's assets are located outside of Greece, foreign law, i.e. the law of the country where the assets are located, will usually apply to legally transfer the heir's assets. Once this process is completed, the Greek resident will receive their share of the foreign inheritance, whether it is movable property and cash or ownership rights to real estate located in a foreign country.

The question on the minds of many Greek tax residents who inherit foreign assets is whether they need to declare their inherited share to the Greek tax authority and whether they need to pay inheritance tax to the state. The main law governing such a situation is the Code of Inheritance, Gifts and Gifts by Parents in Greece. From the combination of predominantly Articles 3 and 25, we conclude that a Greek taxpayer (i.e.

This means that if you are a tax resident of Greece and you inherit immovable property (plots, buildings, apartments, houses, etc.), you do not have to pay inheritance tax in Greece. etc.) located outside Greece, you do not need to file a Greek inheritance tax return because you do not have to pay inheritance tax in Greece for inherited foreign immovable property. However, you should consult an accountant/tax advisor in Greece as to how you will declare the foreign immovable property you inherited in your tax return in Greece.

If, on the other hand, the foreign inheritance you inherited consists of movable property and especially cash (money in a foreign bank account), a very important distinction should be made whether the deceased was a tax resident of Greece for the last ten years before his death or not.

If the deceased who left a foreign bank account balance was a foreign tax resident and not a Greek tax resident for at least ten years or more before his death, the heir who is a Greek tax resident does not have to file an inheritance tax return in Greece because he does not have to pay inheritance tax, regardless of the amount he received from abroad.

When the amount of an inherited share is transferred from a foreign bank to the Greek bank account of a Greek tax resident who is an inheritor, the Greek bank will request the source of the money. The heir who is a Greek resident will provide the bank with copies of the main documents of the foreign inheritance, confirming the value of the inheritance and the value of the share that the heir received in Greece.

Of course, if the deceased was a Greek tax resident for the last year or more prior to his death, a Greek tax resident who inherits foreign movable property must file an inheritance tax return with the Greek tax authority and be liable to pay inheritance tax depending on the rates and categories of relatives.

A simple example: a child or spouse living in Greece and inheriting an amount of up to €150,000 each in a foreign bank account of a deceased person who was a tax resident in Greece must file an inheritance tax declaration but will not pay inheritance tax if they do not inherit anything else from that deceased person or if their combined share of Greek and foreign assets does not exceed €150,000. If the heir is a relative of the deceased but not a child or spouse, the tax free thresholds are below €150,000.

Needless to say, the above information is generic. A professional should be consulted for accurate recommendations for each individual case because each case has its own characteristics.