The new legislative framework gives expatriate Greeks the opportunity to vote for the first time from their place of residence, as long as those interested proceed immediately with the necessary procedures, as time is running out, given that twelve days are required from the last registration in the special electoral rolls abroad until the announcement of the elections.

In the case that the government decided to call a snap election in the Spring, e.g on April 9, a date which is reportedly one of those considered suitable by government officials, then their announcement is placed on March 10. In this scenario, the registration process in the special electoral rolls for ex-pats will end on February 27.

The conditions

It should be noted that using the possibility of exercising their right to vote at their place of residence (permanent or temporary) abroad is available to Greek citizens who:

Have an active right to vote

· They are already registered in the electoral rolls

· Register in the special electoral lists abroad

Register on the platform

In particular, for the registration of those interested in the special electoral lists, they must:

· have resided in Greece for a total of 2 years, in the last 35 years from the date of submission of the application

· have submitted a tax return in the current or previous tax year

· have their personal Taxisnet passwords handy.

For registration in the special electoral rolls abroad, the process goes through the digital platform: apodimoi.gov.gr

In the case of an application for the registration of a dependent member of the first degree, the interested parties must select the field “Grant consent”, for the processing of the personal information.

The steps of registration

According to the instructions of the Ministry of the Interior and the relevant manual that has been issued (https://www.ypes.gr/wp-content/uploads/2021/11/EgcheiridioChrisisEklogeon%CE%95xoterikou-v2-4-20211111 .pdf), the following steps are foreseen:

Step 1: The voter enters the corresponding codes of the Independent Public Revenue Authority (A.A.D.E.) into the apodimoi.gov.gr application, is certified as a user, and enters the application.

Step 2: He searches for his registration in the basic electoral roll and selects it so that his basic information is automatically filled in the application.

Step 3: He enters his permanent residence address, contact telephone numbers, and e-mail address. He chooses the country and city in which he wishes to exercise his right to vote, from the respective lists of specific fields.

Step 4: The voter uploads electronic copies of the supporting documents of the conditions of paragraph 4 of article 4 of Law 4648/2019, i.e. public documents of residence of two (2) years in the Greek Territory by choosing the public issuing body.

Alternatively, the voter chooses the category of the supporting document, fills in the requested information, and authorises the Ministry of the Interior to search for it ex officio.

In the event that the voter is registered in the special foreign electoral rolls to exercise his right to vote in the European elections, in a polling station that will be established in a member state of the European Union, THE ABOVE JUSTIFICATIONS ARE NOT REQUIRED TO BE POSTED.

Step 5: The voter confirms that the details of his application are true, he becomes aware that his application has the status of a responsible declaration and chooses to submit it definitively.

After the final submission of the application the voter receives in his e-mail proof of successful submission of the application with a protocol number and the process of checking and finalizing the application begins.

If the application is accepted, the voter is registered in the special foreign electoral roll for a period of eight (8) years. If the application is rejected, the voter is informed of the right to appeal.

Voters, if they are unable to fill in and submit the online application for voter registration, change, and suspension or deletion, have the option of addressing the competent consular authorities of the country. In-person, with their TIN and with the help of an accredited employee of the consular authorities, complete and submit their application in accordance with Article 4 of Law 4648/2019, apodimoi.gov.gr.

In the event, however, that the interested parties reconsider, choosing to exercise their right to vote in Greece, they are given the opportunity up to three days before the announcement of the national elections to withdraw their relevant application, finally exercising their right to vote at the polling station, where they were initially registered in Greece.