The jobs in demand in Greece for workers from abroad are concentrated in a few clear areas: farm work and seasonal harvesting, tourism and hospitality, fishing, construction and plant operation, and parts of health and care work, with steady demand for customer service, reception and some technical roles. Greece does not publish a single fixed "shortage occupation list" that grants a visa. Instead, the government sets, each year, a maximum number of positions that employers may fill by inviting workers from outside the EU, broken down by employment sector and based on the European ESCO occupational classification. That figure is a ceiling, not a promise. A shortage in a sector only helps you if a named employer in Greece offers you a contract and applies for you through the official invitation procedure, known as metaklisi (μετάκληση). This guide explains where the gaps are, how the official numbers are produced, how to read them, and what a shortage does and does not mean for your chances of a work permit in Greece.

Jobs in demand in Greece at a glance

Several official sources point in the same direction, even though they measure different things. The annual admission planning for workers from outside the EU has long been dominated by agriculture. When the Ministry of Labour replied to a parliamentary question about an earlier allocation under the previous two year system, it explained that roughly three quarters of all positions were reserved for the primary sector, most of them seasonal jobs lasting between three and nine months. Tourism is the other large magnet for foreign labour.

The European Employment Services network publishes labour market information for Greece. It lists health professionals, customer services clerks and stationary plant and machine operators among the occupations in shortage, based on the most recent analysis it holds. The same analysis reports the highest job vacancy rates in human health and social work, education, arts and entertainment, public administration and administrative and support services, with accommodation and food services and construction also showing vacancies.

In practice, the sectors most often discussed in connection with foreign workers are:

• Agriculture and livestock: harvesting, packing, greenhouse work, tree crops such as olives and citrus, and animal husbandry, much of it seasonal.
• Tourism and hospitality: kitchen staff, cooks, waiting staff, cleaners, housekeeping and reception, mainly in the summer season.
• Fishing: crew on fishing vessels, which has its own category in the invitation procedure.
• Construction and industry: building trades, labourers and operators of fixed plant and machinery.
• Health and care: health professionals and social care, where language and professional recognition are decisive.
• Services and technical roles: customer service, reception and some ICT support and digital roles, particularly in Attica.

Treat this list as a map of where employers struggle to recruit, not as a list of jobs you can simply apply for from abroad. Each route still depends on a lawful offer, an approved application and a visa.

How Greece decides which jobs foreign workers can fill

The legal backbone is the Migration Code, which governs entry, residence and work for third-country nationals. Greece amended the Code through a law on promoting legal migration policies, which, according to the official fiscal report on the bill, also transposes the recast EU Single Permit Directive and reforms how admission volumes and invitations work. The Ministry of Migration and Asylum has confirmed to Parliament that the amended framework is in force.

Under the amended article of the Migration Code on admission volume, the key points are:

• Who decides: an act of the Cabinet (Πράξη Υπουργικού Συμβουλίου), issued on the proposal of the Minister of Labour and Social Security.
• When: in the last quarter of each year, covering the year ahead. The act stays in force until the next one takes effect, so there is no gap between cycles.
• What it covers: the maximum number of positions for dependent employment, highly skilled employment and seasonal work, set per employment sector using ESCO occupations.
• Countries of origin: the act may name specific third countries and set a number of positions per country.
• Flexibility: the ceiling can be raised by up to 15% to cover unforeseen and urgent needs, up from a 10% margin under the older system.
• Age: employers may invite workers aged over 18 for the main employment categories.

For seasonal farm work, demand is also measured through the applications employers submit to the Decentralised Administrations. The ministry has told Parliament that the ratio of workers to farm capital, meaning crops and livestock, used to judge agricultural applications is now set by a decision of the Ministry of Rural Development and Food rather than by the Cabinet act. This matters because an agricultural employer can only invite as many workers as its registered land or herd justifies.

The consultation behind the numbers

The figures are not invented in a ministry office. A Labour Ministry decision published in the Government Gazette sets out the consultation that feeds the Cabinet act. In the last quarter of each year, the Minister of Labour sends written invitations to a set of bodies, and the invitation must be publicised, including on the ministry's website. The invited bodies include:

• the Economic and Social Committee of Greece;
• the Public Employment Service, DYPA;
• the chambers and the relevant employer federations;
• agricultural cooperative organisations and the National Federation of Agricultural Cooperatives;
• fishermen's associations.

Before the meeting, each employer body must submit a written estimate of how many third-country nationals its sector will need in the following year. The estimate must cover only occupations in that sector, classified under ESCO, and must say whether the need is for dependent work, seasonal work, fishing work or highly skilled work. It must be justified with evidence such as the number of employers in the sector, its activity over the previous two years, its outlook, and the labour already available from Greek citizens, EU citizens and third-country nationals who already live in Greece legally.

DYPA's role is to supply two sets of data: the available labour supply among Greek citizens, EU citizens and legally resident third-country nationals for the occupations in the previous year's act, and its statistics on registered unemployment. The ministry's competent directorate then weighs the consultation minutes and employers' reports on shortages, the domestic labour supply, the unemployment rate, and the number of invitation applications submitted and completed over the previous two years, by occupation. Its report goes to the Minister and informs the proposal to the Cabinet.

This design is the closest Greece comes to a formal labour market check at the level of planning. It is a check on sectors and occupations, carried out once a year, rather than a test of each individual vacancy. If an occupation has many registered jobseekers in DYPA's records, that is a reason for the ministry to set a lower ceiling.

What changed under the amended Migration Code

Older guidance online often describes a system in which the Regions ran the consultation and a joint ministerial decision set limits every second year, by regional unit, occupation and country of origin. That model, described by the Ministry of Labour in its reply to Parliament on an earlier allocation, has been replaced. The current approach is national, annual and sector based, with the Labour Ministry leading and DYPA data built into the process.

The ministry has also told Parliament about other changes that affect shortage sectors directly:

• The employment contract required for an invitation is now six months instead of one year, which suits employers with medium length needs.
• Workers may change employer with more flexibility, after prompt notification to the one-stop service of the Decentralised Administration, under clear conditions.
• Temporary work agencies can act as the direct employer in the invitation procedure, provided they already have a cooperation contract with the business where the work will be done and meet criteria set by a joint ministerial decision, which also lists the sectors where this is allowed.
• Consulates must inform the one-stop service within 30 days of approving or refusing a national visa, and the one-stop service must then inform the employer within 15 days.

The official fiscal report on the bill also described a separate invitation of a set number of workers for a public project or another project of special importance, with a non refundable fee per worker paid by the employer. If you are being recruited for a large infrastructure or investment project, ask the employer which legal basis it is using and confirm it with the Decentralised Administration.

Agriculture and seasonal farm work

Agriculture remains the clearest case of labour shortages in Greece. Fruit, vegetables, olives, citrus, vineyards and greenhouse crops all need concentrated labour at harvest, and livestock farms need year round workers. Parliamentary questions from farming areas, such as citrus growers and island producers, repeatedly raise the difficulty of finding hands at the right moment.

For seasonal work, the Ministry of Migration and Asylum has explained to Parliament that third-country seasonal workers need an employment approval from the one-stop service and a national D visa, and may work for up to nine months in any twelve month period. The Ministry has also referred to a multi year seasonal permit that allows repeated entries. Employers apply electronically through the ministry's platform. Seasonal work is a distinct legal category: our separate guide on seasonal work covers the visa, permit and procedure in detail.

Year round farm jobs, for example on livestock units, normally use the general route for dependent employment rather than the seasonal one. The difference matters for how long you can stay, whether family can join you and whether the time counts towards long term residence, so check which category your contract falls under before you travel.

Greece has also used a bilateral agreement with Egypt to fill farm vacancies. When the agreement on seasonal agricultural workers was ratified, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs presented it as a response to farmers' needs, with Egypt selecting the workers so that Greek consulates can issue visas more easily. A Ministry of Migration and Asylum circular sets out how it works:

• the agreement covered up to 5,000 workers in its first year;
• only employers apply, online, with proof of their farm or livestock registration and a statement on suitable accommodation;
• candidates come from a pool pre-approved by Egyptian authorities after interviews, and the system assigns them to employers automatically, without officials choosing individuals;
• the employer signs a contract with each worker, covers the travel ticket to Greece and must provide accommodation that meets the legal standards;
• the worker then applies for a national seasonal work visa at the Greek consulate and, while the visa is valid, for the seasonal residence permit.

In a later reply, the ministry said the agreement had been extended by two years, that the National Federation of Agricultural Cooperatives helps match employers with candidates, and that a new electronic platform for applications under the agreement had been opened. If you are an Egyptian national, the agreement means your route runs through your own national authorities. Paying a private intermediary does not get you into the pool.

Greece has also discussed mobility arrangements with other countries. The Ministry of Foreign Affairs has described the aim of concluding a migration and mobility partnership with India, but check the status of any arrangement with the relevant Greek embassy before you rely on it.

Tourism, hospitality and the island economy

Tourism is the second pillar of demand. EURES describes the South Aegean, Crete and the Ionian Islands as regions where tourism drives strong seasonal demand, and accommodation and food services employ a large share of all employees in Greece. Typical roles include cooks and kitchen assistants, waiting and bar staff, housekeeping and cleaning, reception, maintenance and drivers for hotel transfers.

Three features shape these jobs. First, they are heavily seasonal, with most hiring before the summer and contracts ending in autumn. Second, many hospitality employers are small, family run businesses; EURES notes that micro enterprises with fewer than ten staff make up the great majority of firms in Greece. Third, accommodation is a recurring issue on islands where rents rise sharply in season, so ask in writing whether staff housing is provided and on what terms.

The ministry has confirmed that employers can file seasonal applications electronically for tourism, as for agriculture and fishing. For roles that continue all year, such as hotel maintenance or management, the general dependent employment route is more appropriate.

Construction, industry and machine operators

Construction demand rises and falls with public works, private building and investment projects. EURES data show that construction had a significant vacancy rate, although it fell from a higher level in the preceding period, a reminder that demand in this sector moves quickly. Building trades, labourers, steel fixers, formwork carpenters and plant operators are the roles most often mentioned by employers.

The EURES shortage list also includes stationary plant and machine operators, a group that covers manufacturing, food processing and packing lines. Greece's industrial base is smaller than the EU average, but food processing, packaging and logistics around Athens, Thessaloniki and the main agricultural regions create steady demand for operators, warehouse staff and technicians.

Official analysis does not always match employers' complaints. An older Cedefop mismatch analysis listed building frame workers and construction labourers as surplus occupations, while employers still report shortages. The gap often reflects pay, location, conditions and specific skills rather than a simple lack of people, which is why the annual consultation asks employer bodies to justify estimates against existing labour supply.

Professional driving is a related shortage area, but it involves licence rules that are separate from immigration. Our separate guides on foreign truck driving licences and on foreign bus drivers explain the recognition, exchange and professional competence requirements.

Health and care work

EURES lists health professionals among Greece's shortage occupations, and human health and social work has one of the highest vacancy rates in its data.

For foreign workers, this sector is the hardest to enter quickly. Doctors, nurses, midwives, pharmacists and similar professions are regulated, so you need recognition of your qualifications, a licence or registration from the competent Greek body and, in most cases, good Greek. Academic recognition goes through DOATAP; our separate guide on finding a job in Greece from outside the EU explains the steps.

Care for older people in private homes is often arranged informally, which raises the risk of undeclared work. If you are offered a care job, insist on a written contract, social security registration and a clear statement of hours, rest days and accommodation.

Office, customer service and digital roles

EURES lists customer services clerks among the shortage occupations, which includes receptionists and ticket or counter clerks. In Attica, EURES describes demand concentrated in services, tourism, technology and data roles. Multilingual customer support and some ICT roles also recruit internationally.

These positions are usually filled by EU citizens or by people already living in Greece. For third-country nationals, highly skilled employment and the EU Blue Card have salary and qualification conditions tied to thresholds that change, so check them with the Ministry of Migration and Asylum. The digital nomad permit is for remote work for employers outside Greece and is not a way to fill a Greek vacancy.

Where demand is weaker

A balanced picture also includes surplus occupations. EURES lists legal, social and cultural professionals, science and engineering professionals, and teaching professionals as occupations in surplus in Greece. Unemployment among young people has also been higher than the EU average, and some regions still face high unemployment.

This has two consequences. First, a university degree does not, by itself, make it easier to find work in Greece; in some fields it means competing with many Greek graduates. Second, the annual admission planning is less likely to open positions for occupations where DYPA's register shows many available jobseekers.

Regional differences across Greece

Where you work changes what is in demand. Drawing on EURES regional profiles, the broad pattern looks like this:

• Attica: services, tourism, technology and data roles. Athens jobs are the most varied, but they also attract the most candidates.
• Crete: tourism, olive oil and viticulture, combining summer hospitality with seasonal farm work.
• South Aegean and Ionian Islands: tourism dependent regions with intense seasonal demand.
• North Aegean and Peloponnese: agriculture and seasonal work, with tourism on the islands.
• Western Macedonia: a region moving away from lignite power, with higher unemployment and programmes aimed at local jobseekers.

Harvests run at different times for different crops, and the tourist season varies by island. A job that is hard to fill in one area may be easy to fill in another.

Reading the official data on labour shortages in Greece

Three types of official data help you check demand, but each has limits.

ELSTAT job vacancy statistics

The Hellenic Statistical Authority runs a quarterly job vacancy survey. A vacancy is a paid post, full or part time, that the employer is actively trying to fill from outside the firm and expects to fill within three months. The survey covers enterprises with at least three employees across the country, but it excludes agriculture and household activities. In other words, farm work and domestic care, two areas where many foreign workers are employed, are outside these statistics. The series also swings sharply with the season, rising before summer and falling in the last quarter, so compare like with like when you read a release.

EURES labour market information

EURES publishes shortage and surplus occupations, vacancy rates by sector and regional profiles for Greece. It is a convenient overview in English, but the underlying data are often a year or more old, and the page itself states the reference periods it uses. Use it to understand the structure of the market, not as a list of open vacancies.

DYPA data and the admission planning

DYPA, the Public Employment Service, provides the labour supply and registered unemployment data used in the annual consultation, and it publishes vacancies on its own platforms. The resulting Cabinet act shows the maximum number of positions by sector for the year. Even when an occupation appears with a large number, that tells you employers may apply up to that ceiling. It does not tell you how many applications will be filed, approved or completed.

Why a shortage does not mean you are eligible

Demand is not eligibility. A sector can be short of workers while your application still fails, for reasons such as these:

• No employer, no route: the invitation procedure starts with the employer, not with you. Without a named employer in Greece who applies, the shortage is irrelevant to your case.
• The ceiling is a maximum: once positions in a sector are used, applications can be blocked until the next act or the 15% margin is released.
• The employer must qualify: farms must show land or livestock that justifies the workers requested, and businesses must be properly registered and able to employ.
• You must qualify: you need a valid passport, a clean record for entry, health insurance as required, and the qualifications or experience the job demands.
• Visa decisions are separate: the consulate examines the national D visa application on its own terms, even after the employer's application is approved.
• Some routes are reserved: positions linked to a bilateral agreement may be allocated through another country's authorities.

A shortage can still make employers more willing to hire from abroad and to cover travel or housing, but it does not shorten the legal steps.

Routes that link shortages to a work permit in Greece

Several legal routes connect the jobs in demand in Greece to a right to work. This section gives an overview only.

Metaklisi for dependent employment

The standard route for a job offer from a Greek employer is the invitation procedure. The employer applies to the one-stop service of the Decentralised Administration, which checks the application against the sector ceiling. Once approved, you apply for a national D visa at the Greek consulate, enter Greece and then obtain the residence permit for dependent employment (άδεια διαμονής για εξαρτημένη εργασία). Our separate guides on employers hiring foreign workers and on applying for a work permit explain these steps, documents and fees.

Seasonal work

For agriculture, fishing and tourism, the seasonal route allows work for up to nine months in any twelve month period, with an employment approval, a national D visa and a seasonal permit. Not all temporary work is seasonal: a short contract in an office or warehouse does not qualify.

Bilateral agreements

Where Greece has an agreement with your country, the selection may run through your national authorities, as with Egypt for seasonal farm work. Check with the Greek consulate whether such an arrangement covers your nationality and sector.

EU, EEA and Swiss citizens

If you hold EU, EEA or Swiss citizenship, you do not need a work permit. You may stay up to three months, then register at the local police station for a registration certificate if you stay longer, according to EURES. You will still need a tax number (AFM) and a social security number (AMKA) to work.

Workers already in Greece

People already living in Greece on a permit that allows work can usually take shortage jobs without an invitation. If you hold a work permit and want to move employer, read our separate guides on changing employers and on job loss.

Pay, contracts and protections in shortage jobs

A shortage does not allow an employer to pay below the law. Pay in Greece is governed by the statutory minimum wage and by any collective agreement that applies to the sector. Minimum wage and salary figures in Greece are usually quoted gross, before employee social security contributions and tax, so always ask whether an offer is gross or net and whether accommodation or meals are deducted.

The fiscal report on the legal migration bill described equal treatment for single permit holders with Greek nationals on working conditions, social security and tax, and a role for the Labour Inspectorate in examining complaints and sanctioning employers. The recast EU Single Permit Directive, summarised by the European Parliament, sets the EU framework, including the possibility of changing employer and limits on withdrawing a permit during short unemployment.

Before you accept a shortage job, ask for:

• a written contract in a language you understand, stating the job, place of work, hours, pay and duration;
• confirmation that you will be declared to the state employment system and insured with e-EFKA;
• written terms on accommodation, meals, transport and any deductions;
• a clear statement of who pays for travel to Greece, especially under agricultural schemes where the employer may be obliged to cover the ticket.

Language and qualifications

Greek is the official language, and in most shortage sectors basic Greek makes you more employable and safer at work. In farm and kitchen work, many employers manage with basic instructions, but safety training and contracts should still be explained clearly. In health and care, good Greek is usually essential. Even some public training routes set language levels: EURES notes that DYPA apprenticeships require at least B1 Greek.

English can be enough in parts of tourism, customer service and ICT. For skilled trades, bring translated reference letters and certificates. Our separate guide on the Greek language covers legal requirements.

Warning signs and fees

Shortage headlines attract people who sell false promises. Be cautious if anyone:

• offers a "guaranteed" job or permit in Greece in exchange for a fee;
• asks you to pay for a place on a bilateral scheme, when selection runs through national authorities;
• tells you to enter on a tourist visa and "sort out papers later";
• will not name the employer, its tax number or the address of the workplace;
• asks you to sign a blank document or hand over your passport.

According to EURES guidance on living and working in Greece, private employment agencies authorised by the Ministry of Labour may mediate, and their fees are paid by employers, not jobseekers. State fees for the visa or permit should come with an official receipt.

Practical checklist for jobs in demand in Greece

1. Pick a shortage sector that fits your skills, and decide whether the work is seasonal or year round.
2. Search vacancies through DYPA and EURES, and check whether a bilateral agreement covers you.
3. Prepare your passport, CV, references and translated certificates.
4. Insist on a written job offer from an identifiable employer that agrees to apply through the official invitation procedure.
5. Do not travel to work until the employer's application is approved and you hold the correct national D visa.
6. After arrival, complete the residence permit, AFM, AMKA and social security registration.

Rules change, and the annual act on positions is renewed each year. Confirm the current position with the Ministry of Migration and Asylum, the Decentralised Administration or the Greek consulate before you commit money or travel.

Sources and References

• Reply on admission volume and invitation changes, Ministry of Migration and Asylum via Hellenic Parliament
• Reply on seasonal workers and the Egypt agreement, Ministry of Migration and Asylum via Hellenic Parliament
• Fiscal report on the legal migration bill, General Accounting Office via Hellenic Parliament
• Reply on electronic seasonal work applications, Ministry of Migration and Asylum via Hellenic Parliament
• Reply on positions for farm workers under the earlier system, Ministry of Labour via Hellenic Parliament
• Circular on the Greece Egypt seasonal workers platform, Ministry of Migration and Asylum
• Ratification of the Greece Egypt seasonal workers agreement, Ministry of Foreign Affairs
• Foreign Minister's visit to India and the mobility partnership, Ministry of Foreign Affairs
• Labour market information for Greece, EURES
• Living and working conditions in Greece, EURES
• Job vacancy survey, Hellenic Statistical Authority (ELSTAT)
• Summary of the recast Single Permit Directive, European Parliament
• Mismatch priority occupations in Greece, Cedefop