Greek Open-Air Markets Get Up to 12 More Months to Allocate Stalls

The process for allocating positions in Greece’s open-air markets will now have up to 12 months to reach completion under an amendment submitted to a bill on post-disaster housing assistance and other support.

The amendment changes the timetable set out in Article 187 of Law 5297/2026, which requires vacant positions across all open-air markets to be advertised. The initial four-month period for marking and recording stalls by recognized primary vendors’ associations will increase to seven months.

From the eighth month, authorities will publish the lists and open the appeals process. The final lists must be validated and the positions assigned by the eleventh month. From that month, regional governments and the market authorities in Attica and the Thessaloniki metropolitan unit must publish and advertise all vacant positions, divided equally between producers and professional vendors.

By the end of the twelfth month, the authorities must publish the final allocation results and assign the stalls. If the deadline passes without the required procedures being completed, responsibility will transfer to the Ministry of Development. Markets where one or more steps have already been completed will not need to repeat those steps, but authorities must finish the outstanding actions within the same 12-month period. The provision takes effect on August 29, 2026.