Social security formalities for employees working in Greece when the employer is not established in Greece
For the social security of an employee working in Greece by virtue of a contract of employment with an employer established in another EU member state, the provisions of Regulation no 883/29.4.2004 EU are applicable, as amended by Regulations 987/16.09.2009 & 988/16.09.2009 EU.
According to the general rule of article 11 par. 3 a’ of Regulation 883/2004, an employee is subject to the laws of the member state in which he actually performs his work, i.e. in that case, he will be subject to the Greek social security legislation.
In order to enroll the said employee to the Greek social security system, the foreign employer must be registered before the competent local Social Security office (I.K.A.), which will be (in lack of the employer’s establishment) the Social Security local office of the employee’s residence.
After the process of establishment of the foreign company (employer) in Greece is concluded, the “employer’s file” will be transferred from the local social security office where it was opened, to the competent office of the company’s seat.
In order to be registered, the foreign company must submit to the local social security office (of the employee’s residence) a form titled “Application-Declaration of employer’s registration” which is in Greek. This form is signed by the employee and is completed according to instructions provided in regulation Γ99/1/329 29.10.2003 of the Social Security Fund (IKA).
According to article 21 of EU regulation 987/2009, due to the fact that the foreign employer has no presence in Greece, the employee is solely responsible for payment of the insurance contributions relating to his employment. For this reason, upon the registration of the company the latter must also submit a letter stating 1) the full data of the employee, 2) that it has been agreed between the company and the employee that the employee will liable to the Social Security Fund for the payment of his insurance contributions. Also, upon registration, the employment contract must be submitted in Greek (either original or in official translation).