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Can you sit on a board there?
Pick a market. You get the residency test, the nationality test, the work-authorisation position, the appointment steps in order, and the frictions that actually delay appointments — each cited to the instrument that creates it.
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Open to foreign directorsGR
No nationality or residency test applies to a director of a Greek société anonyme. The constraint is the statutory independence test, which disqualifies some candidates who would be independent elsewhere.
- Residency test
- None.
- Nationality test
- None.
- Work authorisation
- A non-executive director attending board meetings does not need Greek work authorisation. Executive roles for non-EU nationals require a residence permit for work.
- Board language
- Statutory documents and general-meeting process are in Greek; boards of the large banks and internationally owned issuers commonly work in English.
- Tenure limit once appointed
- Nine financial years' cumulative service on the board of the company or its related companies — a statutory limit under Law 4706/2020 art. 9, not a code recommendation.
- Time commitment
- A regular board cycle through the year plus committees; the statute requires at least two independent directors to attend meetings that approve the financial statements.
- What a seat pays
- Fees are highest at the systemic banks and the largest Euronext Athens issuers and fall steeply beyond them; each company discloses directors' pay in its annual remuneration report.
- Tax on your fees
- Directors' fees from a Greek company are Greek-source income subject to withholding for non-residents; treaty relief depends on the director's residence.
The appointment steps, in order
- 1Election by the general meeting against the company's suitability policy, with the nomination committee's recommendation
- 2Obtain a Greek tax registration number (AFM), usually through a tax representative for a non-resident
- 3Registration of the new board composition with the General Commercial Registry (GEMI)
- 4For a bank or insurer, a fit-and-proper assessment by the Bank of Greece or, for significant banks, the ECB
What actually gets in the way
- The rule that a director appointed directly by a shareholder cannot be independent excludes some candidates put forward by anchor investors
- The board must reassess every independent director annually, so a change in a candidate's other roles can cost the seat mid-term
- General-meeting and statutory documents are in Greek; the large banks and internationally owned issuers commonly work in English
The instruments behind these answers
- Law 4706/2020 on corporate governance art. 5 — The board of a listed company must consist of executive and non-executive members, with independent non-executives making up at least one third of the board and never fewer than two. (Hellenic Republic)
- Law 4706/2020 on corporate governance art. 9 — Sets the independence test, which must be met on appointment and throughout the term and reassessed by the board annually. It fails on a holding above 0.5% of voting rights, more than nine financial years' cumulative board service, or a direct appointment by a shareholder, among other criteria. (Hellenic Republic)
- Law 4706/2020 on corporate governance art. 3 — Requires every listed company to adopt a board suitability policy, approved by the general meeting, covering individual and collective suitability and gender representation. (Hellenic Republic)
- Law 5178/2025 — Transposes Directive (EU) 2022/2381. From 30 June 2026 large listed companies must have at least one third of the board from the under-represented sex, and at least one such executive where there are three or more executives; other listed companies keep the 25% floor. The HCMC can reprimand or fine for non-compliance. (Hellenic Republic)
- Law 4449/2017 art. 44 — Requires a listed company to have an audit committee, formed as a board committee or as an independent committee elected by the general meeting, with a majority of independent members and an independent chair. (Hellenic Republic)
- Hellenic Corporate Governance Code 2021 — Comply-or-explain. Adds best practice on board operation, evaluation and succession above the statutory floor set by Law 4706/2020. (Hellenic Corporate Governance Council)
Reviewed against primary sources in September 2026. This is governance decision-support, not legal or tax advice. Rules change and transitional provisions frequently apply — verify against the primary instrument before you rely on it.
Eligibility is only the first question
Being allowed to sit on a board there is not the same as being read for one.
The mobility index answers the second question: whether your record is legible to a board in that market, whether you hold what it is currently short of, and whether you can do the job in the language its board works in.