How to Apply for a Greek Passport: Documents, E-Paravolo, and Collection

To apply for a Greek passport, you book an in-person appointment at a Hellenic Police Passport Office if you live in Greece, or at the nearest Greek consulate if you live abroad, and bring your Greek identity card, a recent ICAO-compliant photo, and proof that you have paid the fee through the e-paravolo system. A ten-year adult passport costs 80 euros, and the National Passport and Secure Documents Center issues the finished document within five working days of receiving your paperwork for domestic applications.¹

You don’t fill out a paper form. An officer generates the application electronically at your appointment, pulling your data from state records and your ID, then prints it for you to review and sign. Everything after that depends on getting the documents and the photo right before you show up.

Where to Apply

If you live in Greece, apply at a Hellenic Police Passport Office. If you live abroad, apply at the nearest Greek consular authority; the consulate collects your documents and forwards them securely to the Hellenic Police, which produces the passport in Greece and sends it back by diplomatic mail.² Renewal applications can be filed up to one year before the current passport expires, so there is no reason to wait until the last minute, particularly for consular filings that take longer to come back.³

Documents to Bring

Missing any one of these will stop the process at the counter. Gather them before you book.

A valid Greek identity card. You can present the physical card or your digital identity through the Gov.gr Wallet app.⁴
A recent color digital photograph, taken within six months of your application and meeting ICAO Document 9303 specifications. For applications submitted inside Greece, the photo must be uploaded through the myPhoto service on gov.gr; printed photos are no longer accepted domestically.⁵
Your e-paravolo receipt, proving the fee has been paid electronically before the appointment.
Your previous passport, if you have one, even if expired. The officer cancels it when your new one is ready.⁴

Armed forces and security personnel who use a special service identity card must also submit a photocopy of that card.⁴

Photo Specifications

Photos cause more problems than any other single item, and Greece enforces the ICAO standard strictly. Tell your photographer you need a photo for a Greek biometric passport; most professional studios know the rules.

The background should be uniform and light-colored, preferably gray at roughly RGB 190, 190, 190. White is not the standard. No shadows on the background or face, no reflections on your skin. Face the camera directly, mouth closed, neutral expression. Your eyes must be clearly visible. Sunglasses are prohibited, and prescription glasses cannot have tinted lenses; if you wear glasses, the frames must not cover your eyes and the lenses must not glare. Head coverings are permitted only for religious reasons, and your face must still be fully visible from jaw to forehead and ear to ear. Hair cannot cover your eyes, eyebrows, or any part of your face. Head and shoulders should fill 70–75 percent of the frame, with the distance from chin to forehead covering 50–60 percent of the height.⁵

A printed photograph may still be required at consulates abroad. When printing is needed, the dimensions are 40 mm × 60 mm with no border, produced on high-quality white photographic paper at a minimum resolution of 1200 dpi. Inkjet or laser printouts are not accepted.⁵

Fees and the E-Paravolo

Pay the fee before the appointment by generating an electronic payment code through the e-paravolo system on gov.gr. Bring the receipt or code with you; the officer activates it during processing, and if the payment has not gone through, the application stops.

Ten-year passport for adults and minors over 14: 80.00 euros (22.00 digital transaction fee, 53.00 booklet fee, 5.00 postal fee).⁴
Three-year passport for minors up to 14: 71.00 euros (13.00 digital transaction fee, 53.00 booklet, 5.00 postage).⁴
Thirteen-month passport: 67.00 euros, issued in specific circumstances under Presidential Decree 25/2022.⁶
Eight-month or three-month passport: 62.50 euros each, for situations such as fingerprinting being temporarily unavailable.⁶
Replacement of a passport (separate from renewal): 58.00 euros, covering only the booklet and postal fees.⁴

If the application is rejected, the fee is refundable minus roughly 5 euros for postage and handling.³

What Happens at the Appointment

The officer types your application into the system, drawing from state records and your identity card: name, date of birth, parents’ names, place of birth, and registered municipality. When the form is printed, read every line. Your full name appears in both Greek and Latin characters, and the Latin transliteration must match your identity card exactly. A mismatch between the form and your ID means the application is rejected on the spot. A misspelled name or wrong municipality means starting over.

After you sign, the officer collects your biometrics: a digital fingerprint scan and a facial image, both stored on the passport’s embedded microchip. For children under twelve, a printed photo is required in addition to the digital photograph uploaded through myPhoto.⁴

You also make a formal declaration about your legal status: pending criminal convictions, exit prohibitions, arrest warrants, or unmet military service obligations. Applicants aged thirteen and older answer these questions themselves. For children under thirteen, the legal guardian declares on their behalf.⁴

Applying for a Child

Passport applications for anyone under eighteen require both parents (or legal guardians) and the child to appear in person, each with a valid identity card or passport.⁷

If one parent cannot attend, they must provide written consent issued within six months of the application date, legalized by a Greek public authority or generated through gov.gr. Consent older than six months will not be accepted.⁷

Divorced parents face extra requirements. The parent with custody must present the court decision granting it. If that decision is not yet final, a certificate of appeal issued within the last six months is also needed. Custody decisions from another EU country must carry an Apostille and a certified Greek translation. Decisions from non-EU countries must first be ratified by a Greek court.⁷

Passports for minors over fourteen are valid for ten years, the same as adult passports. For children fourteen and under, validity is three years.⁸

Processing Time and Collection

For applications submitted inside Greece, the National Passport and Secure Documents Center issues the passport within five working days from the date it receives all supporting documents.¹ Consular applications take longer because the file travels to Greece by secure post and the finished passport returns via diplomatic mail.

You can track progress on the National Passport Center’s portal by entering your surname in Greek characters and the barcode number from your appointment receipt.⁹ Consular applicants receive an email when the passport arrives at their consulate.¹⁰

Collection is in person. Bring the receipt from your appointment. If you cannot collect the passport yourself, an authorized representative can, with proper identification and a written authorization bearing your signature, certified by the Greek consular office. Hand over your old passport when you collect the new one so it can be formally invalidated. Passports left uncollected at a consulate for more than six months are returned to the authorities in Greece, and retrieval starts from scratch.¹⁰

If Your Passport Is Lost or Stolen

Report the loss or theft to the nearest Greek consular authority and to the local police as soon as possible, and get a written confirmation or crime reference number from the police to file with the consulate.³

After the declaration at the consular authority, an investigation opens that can last up to three months. A replacement cannot be issued during that period; you can submit a new application only after 90 days from the date of declaration. If you lose or have a passport stolen a second time within five years, the investigation period can stretch to a full year.³

If you must travel urgently while the investigation is open, you can request a temporary emergency travel document (laissez-passer) from the consular authority. It is issued under Law 2968/2001, is intended only to get you to Greece or your place of permanent residence, and its validity normally does not exceed fifteen days. It is granted only in genuine emergencies such as an accident, illness, or death in the family. If you have no identification at all, two witnesses with valid passports or identity cards must confirm your identity.¹¹

1
National Passport and Secure Document Center. General Questions
2
National Passport and Secure Document Center. Instructions
3
Ministry of Foreign Affairs of the Hellenic Republic. Passport Information
4
National Passport and Secure Document Center. Supporting Documents
5
National Passport and Secure Document Center. Passport Photograph
6
National Passport and Secure Document Center. Questions About the Supporting Documents, Fees Etc
7
Ministry of Foreign Affairs of the Hellenic Republic. List of Supporting Documents for Issuing Passports to Minors
8
National Passport and Secure Document Center. Questions About the Passport Validity, Duration Etc
9
National Passport and Secure Document Center. Passport Application Status
10
Ministry of Foreign Affairs of the Hellenic Republic. Passport Collection
11
Ministry of Foreign Affairs of the Hellenic Republic. Temporary/Emergency Travel Documents