
Greece’s economy is creating jobs. Last month, unemployment fell below 10% for the first time since the start of the financial crisis in 2009 while there were 70,000 unfilled job vacancies in Greece, the highest level since data collection started that same year.
But even amid the jobs boom, the government is working to better manage the labor market. Compared with other European countries, Greece has long struggled with low labor participation rates among key segments of the workforce. Traditionally, that has included women, youth, seniors and people with disabilities.
The government has introduced new rules to make it easier for women and seniors to work, while it has also introduced a range of tax incentives to attract foreign professionals and investors to set up residency in Greece. It is now looking at creating new tech and talent visas for non-EU citizens.
Last year, the government expanded paternity leave, which could help ease the burden on working women, while at the beginning of this year, the government lifted a 30% penalty on pension income for pensioners who choose to work. Since then, the number of registered employed pensioners has jumped to more than 180,000 from 36,000 previously.
As currently envisaged, the Tech Visa would allow Greek startups to hire non-EU talent, thereby expanding their labor pool while also drawing skilled foreign workers to Greece. The Talent Visa would allow graduates from prestigious foreign universities to move to Greece for a limited time even without a job offer. The Greek government also recently adopted new rules to attract more foreign universities to the country.
In the last five years, the government has introduced new non-dom rules for investors and tax breaks for foreign professionals who relocate to Greece. Incentives for high net worth individuals and investors have also been introduced.