Greek Citizenship

Matters concerning Greek Citizenship are primarily governed by the Greek Nationality (or Citizenship) Code (Law No. 1438/1984), as well as Law No. 3284/2004. The main points to retain are:

I.    A Greek Citizen is an individual who is duly registered in the Records of a Municipality of the Hellenic Republic. The registration in the records of a Greek Municipality constitutes the recognition of the individual’s Right to Citizenship by the Greek State, and, therefore, the premise for the Greek Passport.

II.    The Greek citizenship is an inherent right of persons born to a Greek parent.  As such, Greek Consular authorities do not “grant Greek citizenship”.  Instead, through the provisions of Greek Law and its stipulated procedures, they can assist you to exercise your Right to Citizenship.

III.    In order toregister with a municipality in Greece, Greek citizens permanently residing in South Africa apply through the local Greek Consular Authorities, which in turn transmit the application to the competent (Municipal) Greek Authorities.

IV.    A person acquires Greek citizenship at the time of birth, if born to a parent of Greek Nationality. Both the registrations of the parents’ marriage, as well as the registration of the applicant’s birth, are prerequisites for the registration of a child (See “Registrations” section for more details).

V.    An individual who did not acquire Greek citizenship at birth, may apply for it at a later stage, through different procedures, depending on his/her particular conditions.

VI.    In all instances, it is not the Consulates that ascertain citizenship, as this falls within the jurisdiction of the General Districts and the Greek Ministry of Interior, Public Administration and Decentralisation.

VII.    Finally, it should be stressed that the relevant procedures are necessarily lengthy, as they end up recognizing a lifelong right, which additionally is passed to one's descendants indefinitely.

Procedure& Supporting Documents

In order to begin the procedure for acquiring Greek citizenship, please send an email to the Consulate General in Johannesburg ( ), attaching clear, scanned copies of the followingdocuments depending on your case (please use WeTranfer or a similar service in case of large attachments):

I.   Individuals born after 08/05/1984 to at least one Greek parent or before that date to two Greek parents (=registered with a Municipality in Greece, as described above)
o    Family Status Registration Certificate from the Greek municipality, where the parents are registered as a couple (Οικογενειακή μερίδα). If that is not the case, their marriage should be registered first.
o    Original Unabridged birth certificate of the South African Authorities + Apostille (see relevant section) + Translation into Greek by a sworn translator (list available in relevant section). The unabridged birth certificate is returned to the applicant on the same day.
o    Original certificate of christening from the Greek Orthodox Church (if applicable).
o    South African passport of the individual (if applicable).
o    Current Greek and SA passports of both parents

II.   Individuals born before 08/05/1984 to one Greek parent (=registered with a Municipality in Greece, as described above) or born before their parent became Greek. In these cases, citizenship may be acquired through a lengthier procedurecalled “Nationality Determination”. Necessary documents:
o    Family Status Document proving that at least one parent is registered in Greece.
o    Unabridged civil Marriage certificate of parents+ Apostille + Translation into Greek by a sworn translator. Please note that in this case, the unabridged marriage certificate of the parents is NOT returned to the applicant.
o    Original Full/Unabridged birth certificate of applicant+ Apostille + Translation into Greek by a sworn translator (also NOT returned to the applicant)
o    South African passport
o    Original certificate of christening from the Greek Orthodox Church (if applicable).
o    South African passport of the individual (if applicable).

III.    Individuals of Greek descent, whose parents were never registered with a Municipality in Greece.
In these cases, the only way to acquire Greek citizenship is through a special procedure, called “naturalization”.
It should be underlined that the naturalization process is neither automatic, nor guaranteed, as it aims at confirming the Greek “conscience” of an applicant, whose parents were not Greek citizens at the time of his/her birth.
In other words, the applicant needs to prove that he/she maintains a contact with Greece, its history, traditions, and language, despite a gap of more than one generation in the family’s registrations.
The application entails an interview with the Consul General and the drafting of a detailed report. The final decision solely rests on the relevant authorities in Greece and may take more than a year from the moment you submit your documentation and go through the interview.
If you are granted citizenship, any children under the age of 18 at the time will also get it automatically.

Required documentation for obtaining Greek nationality through Naturalization

1. Complete application form (To be filled at the Consulate on the day of the appointment)
2. Affidavit signed by the applicant and two Greek witnesses which will happen only during the appointment (Must be holders of Greek passports, not related to each other and to the applicant), in the presence of an employee of the Consulate General, confirming the application for Greek nationality)
3. Certified copy of the applicant’s passport (will be done on the day of the appointment)
4. Unabridged birth certificate of the applicant, Apostilled and translated
5. Unabridged marriage certificate of the applicant, Apostilled and translated (if applicable)
6. Unabridged marriage certificate of the applicant’s parents, Apostilled and translated
7.Unabridged birth certificates of applicant’s children, Apostilled and translated
8. Police clearance of the applicant, Apostilled and translated by a sworn translator (This certificate must be issued only after all the other certificates from Home Affairs have been received, due to the expiration of the police clearance after 6 months)
9. Certificate of registration in Greece or any other official Greek document for the parents or other ancestors, proving the Greek descent of the applicant.
10. Letters of recommendation, if possible, from the Greek community or the Greek Orthodox Church referring to the involvement of the applicant with the Greek culture (If applicable)
11. Certificate of baptism (if applicable)
12. Two small colour photos of the applicant

Important note: All birth and marriage certificates issued by Home Affairs must be Apostilled by DIRCO (Department of International Relations & Cooperation) in Pretoria.

Translations should be made either through the website https://metafraseis.services.gov.gr/ or by an English-speaking lawyer in Greece. In some instances, translations by local sworn translators have been accepted in the past by services in Greece, but this option is not recommended for naturalizations.

Please note that original birth and marriage certificates of the descendants would need to be provided and all will be sent to Greece, without the possibility of being returned at a later stage.

Cost Breakdown:

Application fee: 100 €
Certified copy of passport: 10 €
Every legalization of signature or translation: 30 €