The business register in Greece is the Γενικό Εμπορικό Μητρώο — Γ.Ε.ΜΗ. (General Commercial Register, GEMI), supervised by the Υπουργείο Ανάπτυξης (Ministry of Development) and published at businessportal.gr, with a free public search at publicity.businessportal.gr. Registration and publication happen in one act: entry in GEMI together with simultaneous publication on the GEMI website is what gives corporate acts effect. Sole traders with commercial activity are registered in the same register as companies.

The company registry in Greece

The governing statute is ν. 4919/2022 «Σύσταση εταιρειών μέσω των Υπηρεσιών Μιας Στάσης (Υ.Μ.Σ.) και τήρηση του Γενικού Εμπορικού Μητρώου» (Law 4919/2022 on company formation through the One-Stop Services and the keeping of the General Commercial Register), which transposed Directive (EU) 2019/1151 and replaced the earlier GEMI regime. It redefined who must register, restructured the one-stop services and made digital incorporation and electronically signed certificates the rule.

Three layers operate the register. The Ministry of Development supervises GEMI and the one-stop services and keeps GEMI itself for listed and public-interest companies, insurers and credit institutions, while the ministry responsible for social cohesion keeps it for social cooperative enterprises. The IT infrastructure and database integrity are handled by the GEMI and one-stop services department of the Κεντρική Ένωση Επιμελητηρίων Ελλάδος (Central Union of Greek Chambers). The actual registrars are the GEMI services of the chambers of commerce (επιμελητήρια), which receive filings, perform completeness and legality checks, register and issue certificates.

One-stop services and incorporation

The Υπηρεσίες Μιας Στάσης — Υ.Μ.Σ. (One-Stop Services) are the GEMI service of the Ministry of Development, the GEMI service competent for social cooperative enterprises, the GEMI services of the chambers — any chamber may act, regardless of the company’s seat — and certified notaries where a notarial deed is required. The fully electronic route, e-ΥΜΣ, handles incorporation, automatic tax registration and social security enrolment in one procedure; it does not cover incorporations arising from transformations or entities requiring prior administrative approval. The ΑΦΜ (tax identification number) is issued automatically by the tax authority through the one-stop procedure and is one of the search keys in the public GEMI search.

One category sits outside GEMI: ναυτιλιακές εταιρείες πλοίων αναψυχής — Ν.Ε.Π.Α. (shipping companies for pleasure craft) are kept in a dedicated register at the shipping authority rather than in GEMI.

Legal forms that can be registered in Greece

  • Ανώνυμη Εταιρεία — Α.Ε. (Société anonyme, joint-stock company) — ν. 4548/2018. Shareholder liability limited to the capital contributed; the standard form for large and listed businesses.
  • Εταιρεία Περιορισμένης Ευθύνης — Ε.Π.Ε. (Limited liability company) — ν. 3190/1955. Members are liable up to their contribution; the traditional mid-sized form.
  • Ιδιωτική Κεφαλαιουχική Εταιρεία — Ι.Κ.Ε. (Private Capital Company) — ν. 4072/2012. Limited liability with capital that may be as low as one euro; the default modern vehicle for small and medium businesses.
  • Ομόρρυθμη Εταιρεία — Ο.Ε. (General partnership) — ν. 4072/2012. All partners are jointly, severally and unlimitedly liable.
  • Ετερόρρυθμη Εταιρεία — Ε.Ε. (Limited partnership) — ν. 4072/2012. General partners are unlimitedly liable while limited partners answer only up to their contribution.
  • Ετερόρρυθμη κατά μετοχές (Partnership limited by shares) — a variant in which the limited partners’ interests take the form of shares.
  • Αστικός συνεταιρισμός (Civil cooperative) — ν. 1667/1986. A member-owned entity whose members’ liability follows its statutes.
  • Κοινωνική Συνεταιριστική Επιχείρηση — Κοιν.Σ.Επ. and Συνεταιρισμός Εργαζομένων (Social cooperative enterprise and workers’ cooperative) — ν. 4430/2016. Social-economy forms with limited member liability.
  • Κοινωνικός Συνεταιρισμός Περιορισμένης Ευθύνης — Κοι.Σ.Π.Ε. (Limited liability social cooperative) — ν. 2716/1999, used for work integration in the mental health sector.
  • Αστική εταιρεία με οικονομικό σκοπό (Civil company with economic purpose) — under the Civil Code; members are generally unlimitedly liable.
  • Κοινοπραξία (Joint venture or consortium) — ν. 4072/2012; a contractual grouping that is nonetheless registrable.
  • Ευρωπαϊκή Εταιρεία — SE (European Company), Ευρωπαϊκή Συνεταιριστική Εταιρεία — SCE (European Cooperative Society) and Ευρωπαϊκός Όμιλος Οικονομικού Σκοπού — Ε.Ο.Ο.Σ. (European Economic Interest Grouping) — the EU-law forms; in the grouping the members are unlimitedly and jointly liable.
  • Υποκαταστήματα αλλοδαπών εταιρειών (Branches of foreign companies) — separately catalogued for companies seated in another EU Member State and for third-country companies, together with branches or agencies of foreign natural or legal persons. A branch has no separate legal personality and the parent remains liable.
  • Ατομική επιχείρηση (Sole trader) — registrable where the activity is commercial, tested against the official activity-code checker; the trader is personally and unlimitedly liable.

Information available from the Greek business register

The free public search requires no account and returns the GEMI number, the tax identification number, the company name and distinctive title, the legal form, the status, the seat and address, the activity codes, the date of incorporation, the competent GEMI service and the persons holding roles in the entity, together with the GEMI announcements and the filed acts. Searches can be filtered by legal form, status, GEMI office, activity, incorporation or closure date and location, with results capped per query.

Publicity in Greece is constitutive rather than merely informative. Registration in GEMI combined with publication on the GEMI website is required for the acquisition of legal personality, for amendments to the statutes, for mergers, divisions and conversions, and for dissolution, liquidation, revival and deletion; where the published text diverges from the underlying facts, the published version prevails towards third parties. Annual financial statements are filed and published in GEMI and are publicly viewable. Certificates may be requested by any third party and their authenticity verified online.

What is restricted

The Κεντρικό Μητρώο Πραγματικών Δικαιούχων (Central Register of Beneficial Owners), established by ν. 4557/2018 and operated on the tax administration’s infrastructure, is not open to the public. Following the Court of Justice judgment of 22 November 2022 in joined cases C-37/20 and C-601/20, public access was suspended by joint ministerial decision with effect from 1 December 2022. Registration and updating obligations continue, and access remains for competent authorities and for anti-money-laundering obliged entities carrying out customer due diligence. No official announcement restoring public or legitimate-interest access could be identified, so general public access should be treated as unavailable.

Personal data of individuals — tax numbers, identity card numbers, addresses and dates of birth — are not exposed in the public GEMI search beyond the person’s name and role.

Documents that can be obtained from the register

All certificates are issued electronically, are signed electronically and can be requested by anyone for any company; their authenticity is verifiable through the same platform.

  • Γενικό Πιστοποιητικό (General Certificate) — the consolidated record of the entity: its identity data, all registered acts and changes and its current status. The general-purpose document for banks, tenders, notaries and use abroad.
  • Γενικό Πιστοποιητικό Νομικής Κατάστασης (General Certificate of Legal Status) — whether the entity is active, in liquidation, dissolved, deleted or subject to insolvency-related entries. This is the instrument used in place of a separate non-dissolution or non-bankruptcy certificate.
  • Γενικό Πιστοποιητικό Εκπροσώπησης (General Certificate of Representation) — the full history of the entity’s management and representation.
  • Πιστοποιητικό Έγκυρης Εκπροσώπησης (Certificate of Valid Representation) — who currently binds the company, in what capacity and for what term. The document to request when signing authority must be proved.
  • Πιστοποιητικό Καλής Λειτουργίας (Certificate of Good Standing) — full information on the status and operation of the business.
  • Αντίγραφα και αποσπάσματα πράξεων και στοιχείων (Copies and excerpts of acts and data) — the καταστατικό (articles of association) and its codified versions, corporate resolutions and the filed financial statements.
  • Ανακοινώσεις Γ.Ε.ΜΗ. (GEMI announcements) — the published registration notices, freely viewable in the public search.
  • Βεβαιώσεις και πιστοποιητικά ελεύθερης μορφής (Attestations and free-format certificates) — for facts not covered by the standard certificate types, including certificates concerning natural persons.

Frequently Asked Questions

What is the business register in Greece called?

The Γενικό Εμπορικό Μητρώο (General Commercial Register, GEMI), supervised by the Ministry of Development and operated through the GEMI services of the chambers of commerce.

Is the Greek company register free to search?

Yes. The public search requires no account and shows the GEMI number, tax number, name, legal form, status, seat, activities, date of incorporation, persons and roles, together with announcements and filed acts.

Are sole traders registered in GEMI?

Yes, where the activity is commercial. Commerciality is tested against the official activity-code checker, and the trader remains personally and unlimitedly liable.

Which certificate proves who can sign for a Greek company?

The Πιστοποιητικό Έγκυρης Εκπροσώπησης (Certificate of Valid Representation), which states the current representatives, their capacity and their term of office.

Are Greek financial statements public?

Yes. Annual financial statements are filed and published in GEMI and are publicly viewable through the register.

Can I look up beneficial owners of Greek companies?

No. Public access to the Central Register of Beneficial Owners was suspended with effect from 1 December 2022 following the Court of Justice judgment, and access remains limited to competent authorities and obliged entities.

Sources

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