Santheos’ work in the Greece Golden Visa market is best understood through a simple principle: a property is not suitable for an investor merely because its advertised price matches a statutory threshold. The legal route, the building’s planning history, the title, the payment trail and the residence-permit file must all refer to the same property and the same transaction.
That principle is especially important for EUR 250,000 commercial-to-residential conversion projects. This is a specific statutory route, not a general EUR 250,000 threshold for ordinary homes across Greece. Santheos develops and presents projects within this route only after project documentation has been reviewed and verified by the company’s internal legal and risk-control teams. Final legal opinions, technical certifications, notarial acts and public decisions remain the responsibility of the relevant independent professionals and authorities.
The legal basis of the EUR 250,000 conversion route
The Greek National Registry of Administrative Public Services identifies the route under Article 100(B.5) of Law 5038/2023, as amended by Article 64 of Law 5100/2024. According to the current official procedure, the investor must acquire one property in full ownership and possession for a minimum acquisition value of EUR 250,000. The qualifying change from commercial or industrial use to residential use must be completed after 5 April 2024 and before the Golden Visa application is submitted.
If a building permit predates the amending law, the official procedure explains that the relevant permit or planning documentation for the specific property must be updated or revised after the law’s publication so that the qualifying change of use is evidenced for that property. An engineer’s technical report forms part of the required file. The 120-square-metre minimum applicable to certain other real-estate categories does not apply to this conversion route.
This is why an investor must not rely on a building-wide statement alone. The evidence needs to match the exact horizontal property or unit being acquired. A Santheos project reference such as ST-004 identifies the commercial project, but it does not by itself prove the legal status of every unit. The current unit file is controlling.
What should be in the project file
A well-controlled conversion transaction should allow the investor’s advisers to trace the property from its former lawful use through the conversion and into the acquisition deed. Depending on the property and the applicable planning process, the file should be examined for:
- title deeds and the seller’s authority to transfer the exact unit;
- cadastral or land-registry identification and registration evidence;
- the previous authorised use and the permit, update or revision supporting the residential use;
- approved plans and an engineer’s route-specific technical report;
- the acquisition value, permitted payment method and complete banking trail;
- the notarial certificate containing the parties, property, price, payment details and relevant Golden Visa references;
- construction specifications, inspection records and the handover protocol where the unit is delivered after renovation;
- insurance and the applicant’s immigration documents.
No single certificate closes every track. Legal ownership, planning compliance, construction completion and immigration filing are related, but they are not identical questions.
What “fully eligible” means at Santheos
When Santheos uses the expression fully eligible, it should mean that the exact project or unit has passed the company’s internal legal and risk-control review against the identified Golden Visa route and that the required evidence is available or clearly assigned as a documented pre-filing condition. The expression must never be read as government pre-clearance, an assurance that no authority will request further evidence or a prediction of the final administrative decision.
Eligibility is also time-sensitive. A later change in law, project documents, ownership, construction status or transaction structure may require a fresh review. Investors should request the date and scope of the latest review before making a reservation payment.
Acquiring through a company
The official change-of-use procedure recognises acquisition through a legal entity established in Greece or another EU Member State where the applicant owns all of its shares or corporate interests. This condition requires documentary proof and should be reviewed together with beneficial ownership, corporate authority, source of funds, taxation and the wording of the notarial deed.
A corporate acquisition is not a shortcut and should not be selected solely because it appears more flexible. The investor’s lawyer and tax adviser should confirm that the proposed structure satisfies both the residence-permit rule and the investor’s wider objectives.
Timing: official standard versus transaction reality
The current National Registry procedure publishes a 50-day administrative completion deadline for the initial change-of-use Golden Visa procedure. That figure is not a guaranteed end-to-end delivery time for a purchase, renovation, deed, registration, biometric appointment, residence-permit decision and card issuance. Each stage has its own dependencies, and the competent authority may request additional evidence.
Santheos therefore should not promise a predetermined permit-delivery timetable, claim priority over normal administrative processing or suggest that administrative relationships can secure an outcome. The useful service is to prepare an auditable file, disclose outstanding conditions and coordinate the participants so that avoidable document gaps are addressed early.
Residence rights, employment, tax and citizenship
The official procedure describes a renewable five-year permanent investor residence permit. It also states that the permit does not provide access to employment. Investors should distinguish this residence status from several separate questions:
- Travel: movement within the Schengen area remains subject to the applicable rules for residence-permit holders and border conditions.
- Tax residence: Greek tax residence is determined under separate tax rules, including permanent or principal residence, habitual abode, centre of vital interests and, in relevant circumstances, presence exceeding 183 days.
- Citizenship: naturalisation is a separate process requiring lawful residence and satisfaction of formal and substantive statutory conditions. Buying a property does not automatically produce Greek citizenship.
- Family files: each family member’s category and documentary requirements should be checked on the basis of current law and the applicant’s actual family status.
Holding and resale require advance advice
The official procedure states that resale of the property during the validity of a permit issued through this specific route results in revocation of the seller’s residence permit. Investors considering a later sale, transfer, corporate restructuring or replacement investment should therefore obtain legal advice before taking action.
Rental income and capital appreciation should also be treated as commercial possibilities, not guaranteed outcomes. Before purchase, an investor should examine the intended use, building rules, operating costs, tax treatment, management arrangements, comparable rents, vacancy assumptions and exit liquidity. Santheos should never invent a yield, promise a return or present a forecast as a government-backed result.
A practical investor checklist
- Confirm the exact statutory route and the property identity used in every document.
- Obtain the title, registry or cadastral evidence and current encumbrance review.
- Ask the engineer to explain the former use, the new residential use and the date and document that completed the qualifying change.
- Reconcile the reservation agreement, main contract, notarial deed and payment trail.
- Separate construction completion and handover obligations from Golden Visa eligibility.
- Confirm applicant and family documents with the filing lawyer before submission.
- Keep copies of the deed, registration, payment, insurance, technical and immigration records for renewal and any later transaction.
For further operational questions, consult the Santheos Golden Visa Answers. The FAQ is a starting point; the law and the project’s current evidence remain controlling.
Official sources
- National Registry of Administrative Public Services: Permanent Golden Visa (change of use) – Initial issuance, last updated 4 August 2026.
- Law 5100/2024, Article 64, Government Gazette A 49, 5 April 2024.
- Law 5038/2023, Article 100, Immigration Code, Government Gazette A 81, 1 April 2023.
- Ministry of Migration and Asylum Circular 9/2024, issued 24 September 2024.
- Independent Authority for Public Revenue: Tax residence of natural persons.
- Ministry of Interior: Greek Citizenship Code.
This article provides general information as of 7 September 2026. It does not replace project-specific legal, tax, technical or immigration advice.
