Establishment of Subsidiaries in Greece, especially of foreign entities that wish to get actively involved in the entrepreneurial life of Greece

First and foremost of all, what needs to be clearly demonstrated is the fact that the subsidiary of any foreign entity here in Greece bears the exact same responsibilities with any other national entity that finds itself operating solely within the Greek boundaries; In other words, the same tariffs stand in terms of profits as these are provided for by law 2190/1920 and in particular article 50 with regards to an SA and, complementary, by laws 3190/1955 as amended by law 4308/2014 and in particular articles 57,58.

The necessary supporting documentation to that end read as follows:

1. The decision reached by the foreign entity as such dealing specifically with the launching of a subsidiary corporate formation in Greece, by also defining seat, name, scope, capital share, duration, and valid identification details of the person -s who shall be responsible as its lawful representative.
2. An excerpt from the foreign entity’s registration with its local/ regional Chamber of Commerce, wherein the capital of the foreign/ parent entity is described, and which apparently has to read € 4.500, 00 in case of an LTD and € 60.000, 00 in case of an SA respectively.
3. A certificate issued by a competent authority confirming the share capital’s existence.
4. A statute of the foreign parent corporation as lawfully issued by the competent local/ regional authority, bearing an apostille stamp.
5. A Notary/Embassy- issued certificate appointing a certain natural person in Greece as lawful representative of the subsidiary; That certain representative may as well be appointed as the subsidiary’s representative attorney at law.
6. A certain verification document regarding the well-being of the parent company which essentially has to be remaining duly valid and operational, its license to have been in any way revoked.
7. A certain verification document regarding the parent company’s lawful representatives.
8. The parent company’s registration number with the local/ regional competent chamber of commerce.
9. A certain verification document as issued by the local/ regional competent chamber of commerce regarding the name and distinctive title of the subsidiary.
10. In case of a third country, there has to be a specific agreement in place explicitly dealing with issues of parent and subsidiary companies and their modus vivendi in Greece.
11. An explicit decision reached by the parent company’s board of directors, or any other corporate body operating in such manner, dealing in particular with the respective appointment of a board of directors in the case of an SA, or a lawful representative in the case of an Ltd, by mentioning names, surnames, ids, and their titles within the subsidiary of or the branch entity at hand.
12. A certificate issued by the competent local/ regional tax authorities of the parent company bearing a necessary apostille stamp providing the parent company’s tax number.
13. Last but not least, and just for the sake of clarity: all of the aforementioned documents need to be properly and officially translated in the Greek language.

Moreover and just to have everything in place, in case of a subsidiary’s establishment in Greece the appointed representative needs to provide and present to whomever asks for such valid documentation, the following:
– In case of EU nationals: an identification card, or a valid passport
– In case of third-country nationals: exact and official photocopy of a valid Residence Permit regarding the exercise of independent financial activity, or of a valid Residence Permit for someone appointed as managing director and lawful representative of an SA Board of Directors.

Moving further along with the mapping of relevant information regarding the establishment of a subsidiary in Greece, the following needs to be pinpointed:
– A certain approval is to be issued by the local/ regional competent Chamber of Commerce authority allowing for such a procedure
– Following that, a certain payment of the subsidiary’s annual contribution to the competent Chamber of Commerce has to be concluded, as well as the issuance of a valid tax number and the registration of its proclaimed activities as described in the subsidiary’s scope
– Needless to say, given that the subsidiary is to be managed by a certain lawful representative, the latter needs to have been appointed by the foreign parent corporation and needs to be further announced to the local/ regional competent Chamber of Commerce authority; The aforementioned representative bears the exact same responsibility as if he/ she were member of an SA BoD, or managing director of an Ltd.

Accounting tip: all foreign Sas, LTDs and Private Companies [coined “IKE” in Greek] are obliged to keep books of the highest scale in terms of accounting standards.