VAT and invoicing in Greece (2026): FPA, myDATA and e-invoicing

Greece runs one of Europe's most digital VAT systems: every invoice already reaches the tax authority through myDATA, and in 2026 structured B2B e-invoicing becomes mandatory for all businesses. This guide covers what a small business needs to know: rates, the small-business scheme, returns, invoice content, myDATA and the e-invoicing dates, with a worked example in euros. Rules are as of October 2026, including the postponement announced on 30 September 2026.

FPA at a glance: rates and the tax authority

The tax is Φόρος Προστιθέμενης Αξίας (ΦΠΑ, often written FPA), governed by the VAT Code, which since 2024 is Law 5144/2024, and administered by the Independent Authority for Public Revenue (ΑΑΔΕ, AADE).

Island rates

On qualifying islands the rates are cut by 30%: 17%, 9%, 4% and 3% instead of 24%, 13%, 6% and 4%. Lesvos, Kos, Samos and Chios qualify while a migrant reception facility operates there. Since 1 January 2026 the reduction also covers the smaller islands of the North Aegean and the Dodecanese (no more than 20,000 inhabitants) and Samothraki, as listed by AADE; larger islands such as Rhodes pay the normal rates. Tobacco and means of transport are excluded, and the reduced rate depends on where the goods are delivered or the business is established, so check AADE's list before you apply it.

Who must register and the small-business scheme

• No registration threshold: any business carrying out taxable activity in Greece registers for VAT when it starts that activity.
• Small-business exemption: a Greek business whose domestic turnover is no more than EUR 10,000 in the current and previous year can opt out of charging VAT. It files no VAT returns, but it also cannot deduct input VAT. The rules now sit in article 44a of the VAT Code.
• EU SME scheme: a business whose EU-wide turnover stays within EUR 100,000 can also use the exemptions of other EU countries, with an identification number ending in EX, and file quarterly reports.
• Tax ID: your ΑΦΜ (AFM) has 9 digits; your EU VAT number is the same number with the prefix EL, for example EL123456789.

VAT returns and payment

There is no separate annual VAT return. Late returns are fined: EUR 250 with single-entry books and EUR 500 with double-entry books for a return showing VAT due, and EUR 100 for a return with nothing to pay.

What a Greek invoice must show

The Greek Accounting Standards (Law 4308/2014, article 9) list the mandatory details:

1. 1Date of issue
2. 2A sequential number, within one or more series
3. 3Your and your customer's ΑΦΜ, full names and addresses
4. 4Quantity and type of goods, or type of services
5. 5Date of supply, if different from the issue date
6. 6Taxable value per VAT rate, unit price excluding VAT and any discounts
7. 7The VAT rate and the VAT amount
8. 8Where relevant: the legal basis of an exemption, reverse charge or self-billing wording, and margin-scheme details

Other rules:

• Timing: an invoice is due by the 15th of the month after delivery or completion of the service.
• Corrections: you issue a credit invoice (πιστωτικό τιμολόγιο) for discounts and returns; any document that clearly amends the original counts as an invoice.
• Simplified invoices are allowed up to EUR 100, for corrective documents and for businesses using the small-business exemption.
• Retail receipts: sales to consumers are documented with a retail receipt (απόδειξη λιανικής) instead of an invoice.
• Currency: you may invoice in any currency, but the VAT must also be shown in euros.
• Record keeping: at least five years, longer if the audit period is extended.

Failing to issue an invoice, or issuing an inaccurate one, can cost 50% of the VAT involved, with a minimum of EUR 250 or EUR 500 per audit, and more for repeat offences.

myDATA and mandatory B2B e-invoicing

myDATA is AADE's electronic books platform: the details of every invoice you issue and receive are transmitted to it, and AADE uses that data to pre-fill VAT and income tax returns.

On top of that, Law 5222/2025 made e-invoicing mandatory for domestic B2B sales, sales to businesses outside the EU and sales to the public sector. Under the implementing decisions (A.1128/2025, amended by A.1044/2026 and A.1197/2026), an e-invoice can be issued only through a certified e-invoicing provider (πάροχος ηλεκτρονικής τιμολόγησης) or AADE's free timologio and myDATAapp applications; issuing from your own accounting software no longer counts once the transition ends.

From 1 February 2027 invoices go only through a provider or AADE's applications. Businesses that use a provider file a declaration of the start of electronic issuing; those that use only timologio or myDATAapp do not.

Digital delivery notes (ψηφιακό δελτίο αποστολής) are being phased in alongside: the next phase, covering loading and receipt events, was postponed to 1 January 2027.

Clientlly is not a certified e-invoicing provider and does not transmit to myDATA, so you need a certified provider or AADE's free applications for those parts.

Worked example in euros

A small bookshop in Athens keeps single-entry books and files quarterly. From July to September it sells:

It buys books for EUR 5,000 plus EUR 300 VAT (6%) and stationery for EUR 2,500 plus EUR 600 VAT (24%). Input VAT is EUR 900.

FPA payable = EUR 1,440 − EUR 900 = EUR 540, due by the last working day of October: Friday 30 October 2026, because the 31st is a Saturday. To find the VAT inside a gross price at 24%, multiply by 24 and divide by 124: EUR 124 × 24 ÷ 124 = EUR 24.

Late payment between businesses

Greece applies the EU Late Payment Directive. In commercial transactions:

• if no term is agreed, payment is due within 30 days; agreed terms over 60 days are allowed only if expressly agreed and not grossly unfair to the creditor;
• public authorities must pay within 30 days, or 60 in certain cases;
• late payers owe statutory interest of at least 8 percentage points above the ECB's main refinancing rate (2.40% on 1 July 2026), and a fixed EUR 40 for recovery costs.

Common mistakes

1. 1Waiting for the last week before 2 November 2026 to choose an e-invoicing provider, or assuming the old 1 October date still applies.
2. 2Charging 13% on restaurant drinks: food served is 13%, drinks served are 24%.
3. 3Applying island rates on islands not on AADE's list, such as Rhodes.
4. 4Invoicing late: the invoice is due by the 15th of the month after delivery.
5. 5Errors in myDATA, which flow straight into your pre-filled VAT return.
6. 6Forgetting the EUR 10,000 limit of the small-business exemption: above it you must charge VAT.

How Clientlly helps

Clientlly handles the invoicing and bookkeeping work around your VAT returns. Invoices are numbered sequentially per series and carry Greece's VAT rates; credit notes are linked to the original invoice; and the PDF is produced in your client's language, with a card payment link. You see when an invoice was opened, automatic reminders go out 3, 14 and 30 days after the due date, and recurring invoices and multiple currencies are supported. Scanned receipts have their VAT read automatically, sales and purchase VAT books are kept per rate (including exports, reverse charge and intra-EU purchases), and tax reports with Excel and PDF exports are ready for you and your accountant. Import clients, suppliers, products and opening balances from Excel or CSV, and keep working from the mobile app. Clientlly is not a certified e-invoicing provider and does not report to myDATA, so pair it with a certified provider or AADE's free tools. See invoicing, accounting and how to get paid faster.