Wills

DRAFTING A WILL AT THE CONSULAR OFFICE

For a legally binding Will to be drafted and signed before the authorized Consular Officer, the Testator must be of sound mind and of legal age (over 18 years old) and provide Proof of his /her Greek Citizenship (Greek passport, National Identity Card).

The hand written will is drafted entirely by the Testator, without any added or visible corrections. It is dated and signed by him/her. In this way, the authenticity of the will is proven and the content expresses with certainty the free will of the Testator. It may be deposited with the Consular Office. At the same point in time, the Consular Officer responsible for powers of attorney issues a certificate to that effect according to the relevant provisions of the law. The handwritten will may be removed by the testator in person, at any time.

The public will is drafted in the presence of the Consular Officer responsible for powers of attorney and also of three Greek adult witnesses who are not related to the testator or to one another.

The witnesses must provide Proof of their Greek Citizenship (Greek passport, National  Identity Card.

The following persons cannot sign as witnesses:
(1) the spouse of the testator,
(2) a relative at least up to the third degree either by blood or through marriage,
(3) any person who is honored in the will,
(4) any person who is blind or deaf,
(5) any minor,
(6) any person who does not have sufficient knowledge of the Greek language, and
(7) those who have an incapacity either to understand or to be aware of the content of the will or are deprived of the use of reason.

As long as the Testator is alive, the content of the will may not be made known to anyone and no copies of the will may be issued. The public will is enacted at the time of death of the testator.

The secrethand written ("Holographic") will is drawn up in two stages.
At the first stage, it is drawn up by the Testator and contains his/her last will. It may be written by a third party or typed.
At the second stage this document is submitted by the Testator to the Consular Officer responsible for powers of attorney in the presence of three Greek adult witnesses who are not related to the testator or to one another.

The witnesses must provide proof of their Greek Citizenship (Greek passport, National Identity Card) and copy of their current Swedish Passport or Driver’s license or any other legal document with a photograph.

The secret will may be more beneficial to the Testator than the public will in that the testator is certain that his/her last will did not become known to any third person, because it is not read at the time of its submission to the Consular Officer in charge. If the testator has no knowledge of the Greek language, an interpreter is required.
Wills of any kind must go through the Greek Courts after the Testator's death. This means that before they can be executed, they need to be probated.


For the execution of a Will, one has to provide:

-2 witnesses not related to this person, or to one another. The witnesses must be Greek and shall provide a passport or a National Identity Card.

Proof of death of the Testator is needed before the Will is made public.

If the person dies in Greece, a death certificate from Greece is needed ("Lixiarhiki Praxi Thanatou").

If the person dies in Sweden, this certificate is issued by the Consular Office upon submission of an official death certificate from Sweden.
Please contact the Consular Office for more details.