Few takers for state land buyout plan despite discounts and interest-free installments

A state program offering discounts of up to 80% and repayment in 60 interest-free monthly installments has failed to persuade many private occupants of state land to apply for ownership.

The main obstacles appear to be the strict conditions, the volume of supporting documents and the cost of the buyout. Some occupants are instead turning to the courts to claim ownership of the properties.

The figures show the scale of the problem. About 12,000 applications appear on the digital platform, many of them not yet finalized, compared with around 90,000 unlawfully occupied parcels. The process opened at the end of September 2024, and the deadline for expressing interest expires on Sept. 11, 2026.

With participation still low, requests for an extension have reached the Ministry of National Economy and Finance. The Dodecanese Property Owners’ Association is also seeking changes to the legal framework, saying the islands’ unusual ownership and land-registry conditions can make the current rules extremely difficult, or impossible, to apply.

One obstacle is the requirement that a property must previously have been declared on the E9 tax form. That can be difficult when the property lacks a cadastral identification number, a separate land-registry record or other information needed to identify it. The association wants a substantial extension, a transitional arrangement for the Dodecanese and an exemption from the prior E9 declaration requirement when applicants can prove that compliance was objectively impossible. It also proposes allowing long-term possession to be established by any suitable evidence.

Applicants must pay a 300-euro fee when submitting an application. The fee is offset against the purchase price and refunded if the application is rejected. The file must include documents such as a survey, a declaration of the property’s objective value, building terms, any building permit, possession titles, tax forms and evidence of the property’s use.

Long-term possession is the central eligibility requirement. Applicants qualify if they have continuously possessed the property for at least 30 years with a title, or at least 40 years without one.