Residence permit for dependent employment following an invitation (metaklisi) – type ‘E.4’
Residency route facts
Identity
| Official name (local) | Άδεια διαμονής για εξαρτημένη εργασία κατόπιν μετάκλησης (άδεια διαμονής τύπου «Ε.4») as of 2026-02-06[2][3] |
|---|---|
| Official name (English) | Residence permit for dependent employment following an invitation (metaklisi) – type 'E.4' as of 2026-08-04[2][3][8] |
| Legal basis | Migration Code (L.5038/2023) Art. 61 as amended by Art. 21 L.5275/2026, with Arts. 26-27 (admission volumes and procedure, as amended by Arts. 17-18 L.5275/2026) and Art. 62; fees Art. 171(1)(a) as of 2026-02-06[2][3][4][6] |
Who can apply
| Nationals not served by this route | EU, EEA as of 2023-04-01[4][6] |
|---|---|
| Minimum age | 18 as of 2026-02-06[2][3] Art. 26(6), added by Art. 17 L.5275/2026. |
| Criminal-record condition | Yes as of 2023-04-01[4][6] General admission conditions of Art. 8 apply (public order, public security, public health). |
Permit terms
| Initial duration | 3 years as of 2026-02-06[2][3][9] Art. 61(5) as added by Art. 21 L.5275/2026. |
|---|---|
| Renewable | Yes as of 2026-02-06[2][3] |
| Renewal duration | 5 years as of 2026-02-06[2][3][9] Art. 61(5): renewed for five years at a time where the conditions continue to be met. |
| Work rights | own activity only as of 2026-02-06[2][3][4][6] Employment under the contract on which the permit was granted. Art. 82 (as replaced by Art. 6 L.5275/2026) requires the holder to stay with the first employer for the length of the first contract, capped at six months, after which employer changes are allowed on notification, decided within 45 days and deemed accepted if not decided in time. |
Permanent residence and citizenship
Requirements
| Job offer required | Yes as of 2026-02-06[2][3] Art. 61(3)(a) as amended: a lawful employment contract of at least six months in Greece (previously one year). |
|---|---|
| Salary threshold |
|
| Labour-market test | No as of 2026-02-06[2][3][4][6] No individual vacancy test is prescribed in Art. 61. Labour-market need is assessed collectively when the annual admission volumes are set (Art. 26(2): labour supply from nationals, EU citizens and lawfully resident third-country nationals, the unemployment rate, and invitation statistics from the previous two years). |
| Qualification requirement | none as of 2026-02-06[2][3][4][6] Art. 61(3) requires no qualification; the post must fall within a sector covered by the annual Council of Ministers Act. |
| Employer sponsorship | Yes as of 2026-02-06[2][3][4][6] Art. 61(2): the employer lodges the invitation application. Temporary work agencies may apply as direct employer under Art. 27(4), naming the indirect employer. |
| Job-search route | No as of 2026-02-06[2][3][4][6] Entry requires an existing contract; there is no job-search entry under this route. |
Process
| Where to apply from | from abroad only as of 2026-02-06[2][3][4][6] Art. 61(1) and (4): the worker must first obtain a national entry visa under Art. 27 and applies for the permit immediately after entry. Art. 61(6) separately allows a third-country national already holding another permit to move into the E.4 category under Art. 12. Art. 61(7) lets workers on qualifying strategic-investment or public-works projects enter on a uniform visa or visa-free instead. |
|---|---|
| Observed processing time | 50 to 80 days as of 2026-08-04[8] Range published by the National Registry of Administrative Procedures for the initial grant. |
| Fees |
|
| Quota |
|
Family inclusion
| Family members may be included | Yes as of 2023-04-01[4][6] Through the general family reunification chapter (Arts. 83-92), once the sponsor meets the Art. 84(1) two-year residence condition. See route gr-family-reunification. |
|---|---|
| Eligible relations | spouse, minor child, adult dependent child as of 2026-02-06[2][3][4][6] Art. 4(le) as amended by Art. 9 L.5275/2026. |
| Family may apply at the same time | No as of 2023-04-01[4][6] Art. 84(1): the sponsor must first have resided lawfully in Greece for two years, and the family members must be outside Greece when the application is lodged. |
| Family members' work rights | employment only as of 2023-04-01[4][6] Art. 89(1)(b) gives family members access to DEPENDENT EMPLOYMENT; independent economic activity is not among the enumerated rights. Recorded with v1.0's employment_only value (E1) rather than left unrecorded. |
| Additional means per family member |
Your next step
Read the requirements above considering your own situation: the income multiple, the absence limits, who you can bring. Check the country record for the reference figure those amounts are calculated from, and for anything that has changed recently.
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Verification
| Sources cited | 9 |
|---|---|
| of which official (tier 1) | 7 |
| Oldest as-of date | 2023-04-01 |
| Newest as-of date | 2026-08-04 |
| Reviewed on | 2026-08-11 |
| Schema version | 1.1 |
Sources
- [1] Council Directive 2003/109/EC concerning the status of third-country nationals who are long-term residents
EUR-Lex (Publications Office of the EU) · statute · Tier 1 · Accessed 2026-08-04 - [2] Law 5275/2026 – promotion of legal migration policies and transposition of Directive (EU) 2024/1233 (full text reproduction)
e-nomothesia.gr · press · Tier 2 · Published 2026-02-06 · Accessed 2026-08-04 - [3] Law 5275/2026 – promotion of legal migration policies, transposition of Directive (EU) 2024/1233 (Government Gazette A' 17/06.02.2026)
National Printing House (et.gr) · statute · Tier 1 · Published 2026-02-06 · Accessed 2026-08-04 - [4] Law 5038/2023 – Migration Code (Government Gazette A' 81/01.04.2023)
National Printing House (et.gr) · statute · Tier 1 · Published 2023-04-01 · Accessed 2026-08-04 · Archived copy - [5] JMD 225679/2024 – sufficient resources amounts under L.5038/2023 (Government Gazette B' 5223/17.09.2024)
National Printing House (et.gr) · gazette · Tier 1 · Published 2024-09-17 · Accessed 2026-08-04 - [6] Migration Code, Law 5038/2023 (Government Gazette A' 81/01.04.2023) – full text hosted by the Ministry of Migration and Asylum
Hellenic Ministry of Migration and Asylum · official portal · Tier 1 · Published 2023-04-01 · Accessed 2026-08-04 · Archived copy - [7] JMD 225679/2024 – determination of the level and means of proof of sufficient resources under L.5038/2023 (Gazette B' 5223/17.09.2024), copy hosted by the Ministry of Migration and Asylum
Hellenic Ministry of Migration and Asylum · official portal · Tier 1 · Published 2024-09-17 · Accessed 2026-08-04 · Archived copy - [8] Residence permit following approval of an invitation for dependent employment – initial granting ('E.4')
National Registry of Administrative Procedures (Mitos), Hellenic Republic · official portal · Tier 1 · Accessed 2026-08-04 · Archived copy - [9] L.5275/2026: what changes for residence permits
Plati Law Firm · law firm · Tier 2 · Published 2026-02-06 · Accessed 2026-08-04