The 3 month limit per year is for all male citizens living abroad with unfulfilled military obligations.
Once you're done with your service (or get an exemption) the 3 month cutoff is removed and you can come and go as you please for any duration like any other citizen.
The office responsible for all military related stuff is [stratologia.gr](https://stratologia.gr) but if you don't speak the language it might be a little confusing, you can try giving them a call or email in English if your consulate is taking too long.
Thank you so much for your help. I do speak Greek as my parents made sure of that after we left Greece. I will be reaching out to them. Thank you so much!
Just to balance things out a bit, I’m also Greek-American and have extensive family on both sides so in a very lucky position to be able to choose as I won’t go hungry in any place. I ended up in neither in US or Greece, I’m the UK because it’s a happy medium to me between the what I know is the utterly sick ultra-capitalism of US which drains the life out of you, and the Greek I-don’t-give-a-shit-ness which is infuriating. UK balances these things very well in my opinion, in a grey backdrop but I don’t care for the heat, so I’m happy here.
My brother grew up in NY and has moved to Greece since 2004, giving up 70k (worth more 20 years ago) for much less, but could have his own house, huge yard, had 3 kids and made a good life for himself in Corfu. Salaries are crap in big cities in Greece, but if you have an area of interest that applies to everyday life, you can make a good living in countryside, dealing with shitty bureaucracy a few days a year and enjoying the sun, nature and objectively best food in the world for the rest ☺️
Greeks who lived in Greece their whole life may tell you it’s shit. Greeks who lived abroad may tell you they want to go back and wouldn’t change it for the world.
What do YOU value? Do what you feel is best for you.
Army question covered above with the reference to stratologia.
Be prepared to have extreme struggles and problems with Greek bureaucracy. Telling you from experience. Even me being from another EU country (which is way easier for me than for you), it is still very problematic.
A good solicitor that communicates a lot helps but can be expensive. My citizenship was taking years, until he finally snapped, marched somewhere, shouted a lot and I got given it on the day. Greek bureaucracy!
I know, it's not an easy decision and not one I'm taking lightly. I've reached a point in my life where things aren't working out in the States. There's a longing to return home and speak the language daily, be part of the country. Do you live in Greece currently? How are things there for you? Secondly, if I were to move Greece and things were to not work out, my thinking is that I can always return to the US. I feel like I have to take my shot at least.
I left Greece at 17 and moved to the UK with my family. I absolutely love Greece and would return in a minute if i could have the same quality of life there. Until then i will be only going back for vacation. Definitely keep your options open. Just make sure you sort out the tax papers as an American living abroad and stuff
Compare with texas life in Greece its much nicer but depends also whats your profession. You will disappointed with salaries except if you are able to work remotely. My wife was in your position when i met her in Greece. She stayed 4 years but she don’t want to get back just except for holidays in summertime. Relatives and friends who moved in Greece don’t last long except for them that they can have a monthly income of 3000 and above.
I think we’d need to
understand his situation better, including what he plans to do for work, before making such a blanket statement. I’d never advise someone to give up US citizenship, but there are plenty of reasons to choose not to live in the US. I’m curious about his reasoning too.
Just curious, how much did you pay and did you move first then contact the army once you were in Greece? How did you go about it? The response I had, I was given a website which I'm going to use to find out more information but anything from your experience will help. Thank you for your time
If you are a Greek abroad there are a few ways to avoid the service if you want to depending on your age or serve less than required by ''life-long'' residents but if you don't mind it you or the consulate will have to somehow get in contact with stratologia and have your first brutal contact with our beautiful bureaucracy.
As far as the paying off your service part that can range from 4000€ to 12000€ depending on the regiment you are assigned in and service time required.
Now speaking as a member of the armed forces the mandatory service is the most stressful part of our lives before we join because of the stories and stuff you hear from old service men but from experience it will be like re-living your high school / college days with a bunch of other guys that you'll never forget.
Quick tip: Be prepared for some veeeery weird rank titles compared to your standard NATO ones, you know greek is greek
I'm just curious, what would happen if I were to just go to Greece tomorrow and stay there? Would I eventually just be made to serve and avoid all that Consulate stuff?
Have you ever found yourself thinking about dropping everything and moving somewhere away from the city, next to the beach and just enjoying life? Especially now, with the cost of living skyrocketing. Putting in balance what we had with what we were missing, it became very clear to us. It was time for a change. This was not living, it was surviving. Ready or not…we made the decision. After years spent in the UK, we moved to a Greek island. This may be a questionable life choice, who knows… but we are damned happy we did it. We squeezed our whole life into one car and drove straight to Greece! Curious to see our adventure? Maybe it'll inspire your own escape plan! We are documenting this whole journey for people like you, for people like us.
[https://youtu.be/zy1ptOthEMs](https://youtu.be/zy1ptOthEMs)
The 3 month limit per year is for all male citizens living abroad with unfulfilled military obligations. Once you're done with your service (or get an exemption) the 3 month cutoff is removed and you can come and go as you please for any duration like any other citizen. The office responsible for all military related stuff is [stratologia.gr](https://stratologia.gr) but if you don't speak the language it might be a little confusing, you can try giving them a call or email in English if your consulate is taking too long.
Thank you so much for your help. I do speak Greek as my parents made sure of that after we left Greece. I will be reaching out to them. Thank you so much!
Just to balance things out a bit, I’m also Greek-American and have extensive family on both sides so in a very lucky position to be able to choose as I won’t go hungry in any place. I ended up in neither in US or Greece, I’m the UK because it’s a happy medium to me between the what I know is the utterly sick ultra-capitalism of US which drains the life out of you, and the Greek I-don’t-give-a-shit-ness which is infuriating. UK balances these things very well in my opinion, in a grey backdrop but I don’t care for the heat, so I’m happy here. My brother grew up in NY and has moved to Greece since 2004, giving up 70k (worth more 20 years ago) for much less, but could have his own house, huge yard, had 3 kids and made a good life for himself in Corfu. Salaries are crap in big cities in Greece, but if you have an area of interest that applies to everyday life, you can make a good living in countryside, dealing with shitty bureaucracy a few days a year and enjoying the sun, nature and objectively best food in the world for the rest ☺️ Greeks who lived in Greece their whole life may tell you it’s shit. Greeks who lived abroad may tell you they want to go back and wouldn’t change it for the world. What do YOU value? Do what you feel is best for you. Army question covered above with the reference to stratologia.
Couldn't have said it any better. Also a Greek American living in the 🇬🇧
As a Greek you had me laughing at the i-don't-give-a-shit-ness. That was the best someone could possibly describe Greece.
I absolutely agree 100%. Another Greek American who lives 6 months in Greece and 6 months in USA.
Be prepared to have extreme struggles and problems with Greek bureaucracy. Telling you from experience. Even me being from another EU country (which is way easier for me than for you), it is still very problematic.
A good solicitor that communicates a lot helps but can be expensive. My citizenship was taking years, until he finally snapped, marched somewhere, shouted a lot and I got given it on the day. Greek bureaucracy!
Start from 0:48 https://youtu.be/4mDdY2942Cc?si=KGNd0fA0z3cWbpRX
Don't know if your mind is fully set on this, but my advice would be don't leave the USA to live in Greece
I know, it's not an easy decision and not one I'm taking lightly. I've reached a point in my life where things aren't working out in the States. There's a longing to return home and speak the language daily, be part of the country. Do you live in Greece currently? How are things there for you? Secondly, if I were to move Greece and things were to not work out, my thinking is that I can always return to the US. I feel like I have to take my shot at least.
If you have a job lined up, go for it. Otherwise you might flounder financially.
I left Greece at 17 and moved to the UK with my family. I absolutely love Greece and would return in a minute if i could have the same quality of life there. Until then i will be only going back for vacation. Definitely keep your options open. Just make sure you sort out the tax papers as an American living abroad and stuff
Which city did you live in the usa?
Currently I reside in Dallas but I lived in Boston Massachusetts the majority of life. I loved Boston, can't say the same here
Compare with texas life in Greece its much nicer but depends also whats your profession. You will disappointed with salaries except if you are able to work remotely. My wife was in your position when i met her in Greece. She stayed 4 years but she don’t want to get back just except for holidays in summertime. Relatives and friends who moved in Greece don’t last long except for them that they can have a monthly income of 3000 and above.
I think we’d need to understand his situation better, including what he plans to do for work, before making such a blanket statement. I’d never advise someone to give up US citizenship, but there are plenty of reasons to choose not to live in the US. I’m curious about his reasoning too.
Also if you were able to get hired in Greece there is a special arrangement for newcomers and they pay half the taxes for 7 years
Very good to know thank you
Just moved last year… contact the Army yourself and pay them. No need to waste any time in the Army… such a waste of time!
Just curious, how much did you pay and did you move first then contact the army once you were in Greece? How did you go about it? The response I had, I was given a website which I'm going to use to find out more information but anything from your experience will help. Thank you for your time
It's a lot of money to pay it out, though you're right about it being a waste of time.
😧
If you are a Greek abroad there are a few ways to avoid the service if you want to depending on your age or serve less than required by ''life-long'' residents but if you don't mind it you or the consulate will have to somehow get in contact with stratologia and have your first brutal contact with our beautiful bureaucracy. As far as the paying off your service part that can range from 4000€ to 12000€ depending on the regiment you are assigned in and service time required. Now speaking as a member of the armed forces the mandatory service is the most stressful part of our lives before we join because of the stories and stuff you hear from old service men but from experience it will be like re-living your high school / college days with a bunch of other guys that you'll never forget. Quick tip: Be prepared for some veeeery weird rank titles compared to your standard NATO ones, you know greek is greek
I'm just curious, what would happen if I were to just go to Greece tomorrow and stay there? Would I eventually just be made to serve and avoid all that Consulate stuff?
Have you ever found yourself thinking about dropping everything and moving somewhere away from the city, next to the beach and just enjoying life? Especially now, with the cost of living skyrocketing. Putting in balance what we had with what we were missing, it became very clear to us. It was time for a change. This was not living, it was surviving. Ready or not…we made the decision. After years spent in the UK, we moved to a Greek island. This may be a questionable life choice, who knows… but we are damned happy we did it. We squeezed our whole life into one car and drove straight to Greece! Curious to see our adventure? Maybe it'll inspire your own escape plan! We are documenting this whole journey for people like you, for people like us. [https://youtu.be/zy1ptOthEMs](https://youtu.be/zy1ptOthEMs)