Month: January 2021

On February 12, 2021, the forest maps for the entire Regional Unit of Rethymno, as well as it progressively happens in many other areas of Greece, are posted on the website of the Greek Land Registry. It is important to emphasize that the forest map concerns land, which is located outside of city plans and outside village building zones. The content of the Forest Charter refers to the character of the areas (forest / agricultural or not), which is determined in combination by the use/status it had in the past (1945) and by the form it has today (2007 or 2015).

Efstratios Psycharakis, topographic engineer NTUA and representative of TEE (Technical Chamber of Greece), Email epsycharakis@gmail.com ,  is giving some instructions to landlords in order to check the status of their land right after the maps have been published and secure them as non-forestry areas. The owners, using the website of the Greek cadaster, they should look for their respective property on the map to see the designation given. The user will be able to see different colors, depending on the designation, but also a pair of letters that will indicate exactly what applies to the property. It is necessary for the citizens to ‘check’ their property, even if they have a final decision of declassification for their area. In the case of an objection, they will have a deadline of 100 days and 125 days if they are residents abroad.

The procedure is mandatory and aims to clarify the use of land and ownership status of land in the countryside and outside the designated building zones.

The objections are submitted exclusively electronically through the internet application on the website of the Hellenic Land Registry. It should be noted here that for each independent area, a separate objection must be submitted. After the objection is submitted electronically and a protocol number is obtained, the citizen himself, or his appointed topographer engineer/or lawyer, should collect the necessary documents and studies documenting the objection and submit them to the Directorate of Forests. Objections may have to be subject to a fee, the amount of which depends on the area of the objection. For the above procedure, the contribution of an engineer and a lawyer is recommended so that the file of the objection is as thorough as possible.

Finally, the objection will be discussed in the competent EPEA. (Objections Review Committee), possibly in the presence of the citizen (or the authorized engineer and lawyer), to decide whether the objection is admissible or not.

This might sound a s a complicated procedure for landlords, but the aim is to clarify once and for good the use of land status countryside plots, the clean deeds ownership and the buildability of these lands and secure a safe transaction and use to future buyers, a step that is definitely to the right direction.

From 1 January 2021, the electronic identity of the building has been introduced, which will essentially be the register of the entire building stock of the country.

What is the identity of the building?

The electronic identity card is an organized electronic file that contains all the elements (documents and plans) of the building. The collection of all relevant documents is done with the assistance of a building engineer, who verifies that everything is complied with according to the letter of the law. These documents are kept by the relevant building engineers and are made available by the owners of the property in case of changes.

Why is the identity of the building necessary?

Today, for each building, there are different area identifications, which in many cases do not correspond with each other.

This lack of identification of the areas in the various entries of the property creates problems with correct recording.

Even with the identity of the building, each owner will have a complete picture of the legality or non-legality of their building, as well as its energy and static condition.

Obligation to do so, under the current legal framework, both new buildings (for those that receive a new building permit) and older buildings are obliged to be registered, but at the time of their transfer.

Electronic Building Identity will be required for every property transaction, except for lettings.

First, to have a building ID created, all arbitrariness, like Pergolas, living area added, or any part added beyond the initial building permit, must have been be legalized according, with any of the previous arbitrariness laws for them to be considered fully transactable.

Those owners of arbitrariness who have not settled the defaults will also be subject to restrictions and prohibitions for:

passing it on though selling it or bequeathing it to their children.

The process is carried out by the civil engineer through a special electronic digital platform “Building Identity" developed by the Technical Chamber of Greece (TEE), which is also the provider of electronic services to the Ministry, civil engineers, and citizens.

Also, starting from 1/1/2021 it is required that in all sales advertisements either via real estate agents, or by owners, the energy class of the building shall be mentioned According to the classification of the Energy Performance Certificate. This means that it is obligatory to obtain this before putting a property on the market for sale or rent, otherwise there are serious penalties by the Greek state in case of inspections.