One of the main concerns for men that have migrated from Greece to Australia in recent years or boys reaching adulthood is Greece’s laws on mandatory military service.

Conscription is enshrined in Article 4 paragraph 6 of the Greek constitution, which reads:

“Every Greek capable of bearing arms is obliged to contribute to the defence of the Fatherland as provided by law.”

In one of the amendments of the Constitution, in 2001, an explanatory statement was added in order to ensure that the legislation for conscientious objectors is compatible with the Constitution:

“The provision of paragraph 6 does not preclude that the law provides for an obligatory offering of other services, within or outside the armed forced (alternative service), for those who have a proven conscientious objection to perform armed or military service in general.” 

The relevant law about conscription is Law 3421/20052 as amended the following years. According to this law, all Greek males are obliged to serve in the Armed Forces, from 1 January of their 19th year until 31 December of their 45th year.

As a result, many men have been declared draft evaders and have been issued fines, whereas others are not aware if the universities or schools they plan to attend are recognised by the Greek Army allowing them to postpone their service. According to Articles 51 to 54 of Law No. 3421/2005, those who evade compulsory military service are declared “insubordinate”. They are charged with insubordination, punished with an additional fine, and face multiple other administrative consequences.

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Greek citizens living outside of Greece have the right to postpone their conscription. They are permanently exempted from their military obligations when they reach the age of 45 years old. The postponement is granted with the certificate of permanent residence abroad, issued only by the Greek Consular Authorities. The supporting documents are filed only once and not every year.

Several readers have been messaging Neos Kosmos whether they could be exempt as permanent residents of other countries and when such an exemption becomes applicable.

Certain individuals may be exempt from military service for living overseas:

– Individuals who have a permanent residence abroad for at least 11 consecutive years.
– Individuals who resided abroad for living needs for at least seven consecutive years.

If you fall into one of the above categories, contact the Greek Consular Authorities or Armed Forces Department to inquire about a Certificate Permanent of Residence Abroad.

*If you are under military-exempt status but overstay the permitted time in Greece, you may not be permitted to depart Greece until you fulfill the military service requirement.

Most important prerequisites to qualify as Permanent Resident Abroad:

a. You have been living permanently outside of Greece for at least eleven (11) years immediately prior, in one or more countries.

You are permitted to stay in Greece, within each calendar year, up to 6 months.

b. You have been working systematically on a full-time basis and have been living continuously outside of Greece for at least seven (7) years in one or more countries.

Years of study abroad and part-time student jobs are not included in the 7-year systematic work scheme.

The maximum period that the individual is allowed to stay in Greece within every calendar year is up to 6 months.

The Consular Authority to which you should apply for the issuance of a certificate of permanent residence abroad for military use is dependent on the country and state where you last resided. In case you have lived in other states or other countries in the past, you should first contact the corresponding Greek Consular Authority to confirm the years spent in these areas.

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Documents:

a. Application for the issuance of a certificate of permanent resident abroad by the Consulate and application for the Military Service to grant the postponement of military conscription.

b. Certificate of enrollment in male registers of any Municipality in Greece and, if any, a photocopy of a Greek ID or Tax Identification Number or any form sent by the Military Service.

c. Photocopies of all pages of your passports (Greek or other, even those expired, regarding your years of residence outside Greece).

d. If you are not a citizen of another country outside of Greece you will need to provide proof of visa or green card or visa from the respective Authorities for all the years you wish to be included.

e. If you were a student in the years you lived outside of Greece: official transcripts from High Schools, Colleges, Universities, etc., of each year to be computed (not diplomas or degrees, but official transcripts). Schools from Kindergarten to Middle schools do not provide official scores. In this case, you will need to apply for a formal certificate, which indicates all those years you were a full-time student.

f. If you have worked outside Greece, you must provide the Social Security Statement and the Tax Statement forms.

If you apply for a permanent resident’s certificate due to 7-year full-time employment, continuous and systematic work proof is required. This includes attestations from your employers, certified by a notary public or verification of employment from the Human Resources Department, where the period you have worked to date, your position in the company and your scope of work should be mentioned. If you are self-employed (e.g. a company owner), you must provide the Company’s statute as well as your tax returns.

g. For each month of the current year only, you will need to provide bank statements which are under your name that shows transactions or forms of any bills/accounts you pay each month (you can print them from the internet).

h. You may submit any other evidence that you live permanently outside Greece, such as a birth certificate abroad, a contract for renting or buying a house, a marriage certificate, a birth certificate of your children etc.

* For all the years you wish to be counted and you were under 18 years old, both parents must send proper documentation (the Social Security Statement and both copies of the 1st and 2nd pages of tax returns 1040, as well as passports, see paragraphs b and f).

The cost of the Consular Official is € 50 and the Consular bill is paid, in cash, in dollars or money order payable to the respective Consulate. The certificate of permanent residence abroad is issued by the Consulate and is sent to the appropriate Military Service in Greece. The Consulate will inform you as soon as it receives the certificate of the postponement of your conscription.

Meanwhile, one of the most important amendments seen by the revision of the law is that draft evaders who had been issued fines in previous years can wave the obligation as of 3 May 2019 if they fall under certain categories. The fine can reach the amount of €6,000 while the evader still has to complete the service.
Under the new law, Greek males living abroad can now obtain a Greek passport and can also visit Greece without justification for up to 30 days a year. If an evader opts to complete his service the fine and legal implications are abolished. A draft evader is also exempt after they reach 45 years of age. If part of the sum has been repaid the rest of the amount will be abolished.

This applies to: i) men who have enlisted and have partially fulfilled their military obligation, ii) men who have enlisted and are still completing their military service, ii) are to enlist by 31 December 2020, iii) have been exempt prior to enlisting, iv) will be exempt before 31 December 2020, v) have postponed their service due to health related reasons, vi) will postpone their service due to health related reasons by 31 December 2020, vii) men who have declared their right to conscientious objection and have completed or are completing their assigned alternative service viii) men who will evoke their right to conscientious objection by 31 December 2020 and will assume their assigned alternative service within the allowed timeframe.

Other categories of persons that can be exempted:

-Those considered by the competent health committees of the Armed Forces as unfit for conscription on health grounds

-Those irrevocably sentenced by any criminal court to more than 5 years imprisonment, or to a sentence that would entail discharge and if it was not followed by amnesty, pardon or prescription of the penalty with lifting of the consequences of the sentencing.

-The father of 3 or more living children.

-The only or elder son of deceased parents, which has at least one unmarried and under-age or unmarried and incapable for any work brother or sister.

-The widower father of at least one living under-age or incapable for any work unmarried child.

-The father of at least one living under-age or incapable for any work unmarried child who has a spouse incapable for any work.

-Monks in a Monastery of the Holy Mountain [Mount Athos] or in the Monastery of the Patriarchate of Jerusalem.

-Men of Greek descent interrupting their permanent residence in Azerbaijan, Armenia, Georgia, Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Belarus, Moldova, Ukraine, Uzbekistan, Russian Federation, Tajikistan, Turkmenistan, Albania and Turkey, coming to Greece directly or via another country and ever since they reside permanently in it, provided that their registration in the male register has taken place after the completion of 35 years of age.

-Professional soldiers

*For information on military matters and legislation in general, please visit the official website of the Legal Service of the Ministry of Defense: www.stratologia.gr