NATURALIZATION

NATURALIZATION

The request and the supporting documents should be sent electronically to the email address grcon.sko@mfa.gr, in order to determine whether they are the required ones. Immediately afterwards, an appointment will be arranged, during which the applicant should come in person to submit the documents in their original form.

Please note that the submitted original documents will NOT be returned and will be kept in our Authority's Archives.


The applicant is required to have:

- completed the 18th year of age

- knowledge of Greek history and culture

- knowledge of the Greek language 

Regarding the naturalization process for expatriates residing abroad, based on Article 10 of Law 3248/2004 (Greek Citizenship Code), and in accordance with the recent amendments to Article 30 of Law 4829/2021, we list the following requirements/supporting documents:

1. Application for naturalization. The application for naturalization is submitted to the competent Consular Authority and is considered acceptable when completed in Greek characters and bears a recent color photograph on which the stamp of the Consular Authority is affixed. It is emphasized that, when completing the application form, the applicant's name details must be in absolute agreement with the information stated in the translations of the other accompanying documents. Special attention should be paid to completing all information regarding the applicant's national origin, as these are the most critical points of the naturalization application form.

2. Declaration of naturalization. The declaration of naturalization, which is submitted along with the application for naturalization, is drawn up with the personal presence of the interested expatriate before the Consul or an official authorized by the Consul of the competent Consular Authority, in the presence of two Greek Citizens as witnesses, whose full names and the number of their Police ID Card or Greek Passport must be stated in the naturalization declaration. Consular Authority means the one in whose jurisdiction the interested person is a permanent resident.

3. Passport. For the submission of the naturalization application, the interested person must present their valid passport, of which an accurate copy will be issued. A translation of the passport is not required, provided that the applicant's details are also written in Latin characters.

4. Birth certificate. Original birth certificate duly legalized and officially translated or other equivalent certificate provided by the legislation of the country of first nationality. The applicant's birth certificate, issued by foreign authorities, must bear the Hague Convention apostille, translated into Greek.

5. Criminal record. The interested person must present an original criminal record certificate, recently issued, which should reflect their overall criminal status. It must bear the Hague Convention apostille, translated into Greek.

6. Consul's Report: Supporting Documents/Interview

In addition to the above, a Consul's Report is drawn up based on supporting documents which you must also submit, duly translated and legalized, and which will prove your expatriate status, your national origin, knowledge of the Greek language, documents of ascendants/family history, possible acquisition of Greek citizenship by blood relatives, and generally any connection you have with Greece. Furthermore, the Greek Consul invites the interested person for an interview in order to examine the applicant's Greek consciousness, their contact with Greece (Greek history, Greek culture, etc.), as well as their participation in events of general national interest, taking into account all the submitted data.


Please note the following:

- The decision on the naturalization application is not taken by the Consular Authority, but by the competent service of the Ministry of Interior, after examining the data in the expatriate's file and the opinion of the Ministry of Citizen Protection on matters concerning public order and security, submitting a relevant recommendation to the Minister of Interior for the acceptance or rejection of the naturalization request (see Article 10 par. 2 of the Greek Citizenship Code).

- Based on par. 4 of Article 10 of the Greek Citizenship Code, "A child of an expatriate who acquires Greek citizenship under the provisions of this article becomes a Greek citizen without further formality, if at the date of acquisition of Greek citizenship by their parent they are a minor and unmarried."

- Based on the above provision, adult or married children do not automatically acquire Greek citizenship due to an ascendant acquiring Greek citizenship.


Translations and legalization of supporting documents

Regarding the translations that must accompany the above supporting documents (except the passport) and taking into account various possibilities (e.g., geographical proximity of the consular authority to Greece, provision of support by an authorized lawyer, etc.), it is emphasized that translations carried out by official translators contracted with the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, or by a Greek lawyer who must be a member of any Bar Association in Greece and sign as "the translating" lawyer, or by a graduate translator of the Department of Foreign Languages, Translation and Interpreting of the Ionian University1 are equally acceptable. It is pointed out that the translation must also include all the legalizations present in the foreign language document.

The translation must also include the Apostille stamp.

Matching of Name Details: The name details of the applicant and ascendants must fully agree in all applications and translations of supporting documents, i.e., they must be rendered in Greek in the same way and with lowercase accented characters.

If there are changes in the name details (e.g., the name on the passport differs from that on the birth certificate), the deed poll or other administrative act or court decision on the basis of which the change was made, duly legalized and translated, must be submitted.

For married women who changed their surname to that of their spouse, their marriage certificate, duly legalized and translated, must be submitted.

Please note: All submitted documents to our Consulate should use terminology, compatible with the Prespa Agreement.


COST

For the submission of a naturalization application under Article 10 of the Greek Citizenship Code, a fee of €100 is required, as well as a stamp duty of €100 (in cash).

Regarding the submission of translated and officially legalized supporting documents, it is noted that the cost of legalizing the signature of an official translator of North Macedonia amounts to €30 (in cash).

Issuance of an accurate copy amounts to €10 (in cash).

For any assistance or clarification, you may need regarding the above, please contact our Consular Office at grcon.sko@mfa.gr.

Within the framework of the above assistance, we can guide you, without, however, this sending being considered the submission of a relevant request/application.