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As of today, Greece opened its labor market for over 400 professions, excluding lawyers, architects and construction engineers and including weapon stores, security companies, explosive producers and insurance agents.

“On July 2, over 400 professions are being liberalized,” staed the Ministry of finance chief secretary Ilias plaskovitis in front of “Vima” newspaper, utterly rejecting any accusations of the delay. 

The law was voted in the Parliament on February 16 and published in the State Gazette. It states that precisely 4 months after its promulgation all regarded professions should be liberalized, in accordance with directive 123/2006, known as the European Union’s “Balkenstein” directive for service market liberalization.

All “unjustified restrictions for accessing and practicing professions,” and more specifically- the restriction in the number of people who may exercise a profession, are being overruled, together with geographical restrictions and regulations forcing minimum and maximum prices, and the issuance in advance of administrative permit for exercising a profession.

The abovementioned restrictions will be removed two months after voting the law, i. e. on July 2.

The general regulation relates to all professions, except those mentioned in the memorandum – lawyers, construction engineers, notaries and auditors. These professions will bear the following changes:

Lawyers: Territorial restrictions for exercising legal professions are removed: any lawyer may work in any court in the country. Obligatory minimum reimbursement and the system for advanced payment from the college of barristers are also replaced. The payment to a lawyer will be freely determined though a written agreement. He (not his client) is obliged to pay in time the legal payments and deductions in favor of insurance funds and third persons in the college of barristers.

Notaries: The law provides for a new determination of proportionate reimbursements, so that it declines with the increase in value of the object of the deal. Until June 2, a common decision by the Ministries of Justice and Finance is expected to come into force to determine proportionate reimbursement.

Architects, construction engineers: Regarding private construction projects, minimum obligatory remuneration, together with the system for advanced repayment by the Technical chamber of Greece are removed. In the research of public construction projects, participants should freely extend their financial offer that may be lower than the previously calculated reimbursement.

Auditors: The minimum obligatory hourly wage, valid today, will be removed.

The ministry of finance published today an exemplary list of professions, which fall within the jurisdiction of L. 3919/2011, calculating a total of 400 professions to be liberalized. 

Some of the most widespread professions, which any citizen, without restriction, will be able to practice, are:

1. Cosmetician
2. Bread and pastry producer
3. Insurance agent
4. Funeral agent
5. Dietician
6. Interpreter
7. Diver
8. Camera operator
9. Instructor
10. Taxi driver
11. Newspaper salesperson
12. Electrician
13. Private school
14. Explosives producer
15. Social worker
16. Hair stylist/Barber
17. Meat and meat products salesperson
18. Private security companies
19. Retail
20. Dock worker
21. Accountant
22. Speech-therapist
23. Obstetrician
24. Make-up artist
25. Beekeeper
26. Mediator professions
27. Safeguard
28. Tourist guide
29. Carpenter
30. Commercial transport
31. Dental technician
32. Economist
33. Weapon stores
34. Optician
35. Appraisers
36. Firework producers
37. Radio-electro-technician
38. Screenwriter
39. Director
40. Lift technicians
41. Photographic laboratory technician
42. Telecommunications technician
43. Cinema and television technician
44. Plumber
45. Physiotherapist
46. Psychologist

More specifically, 4 months after publishing the law – from June 2, 2011- any restriction regarding the following, is not valid:

-        restricting the number of people who have access to a profession

-        creates interdependence between the permit issuance and the assessment of the actual need

-        territorial restriction in the right of exercising a profession

-        determining minimum distances between those exercising the profession

-        forbids the creation of more than one facility by the same person

-        enforces or forbids the distribution of products by a specific facility

-        enforces or forbids the exercising of a profession under specific corporate norms

-        restricts taking part in corporate capital with regard of job position

-        enforces obligatory minimal prices

-        obliges those who exercise a profession to perform other specific activities

All of the abovementioned restrictions are being removed as of July 2, with no requirement of another administrative act.

On the contrary- a presidential edict will only be required if any of the restrictions mentioned above need to be retained for a certain profession, when adequate reasons are present.

The ministry of finance has sent the required letters to all respective ministries, in which it demands the removal of any contradictory decision.

Besides the removal of the abovementioned restrictions, according to member 3 of the law, after July 2 the requirement for issuing administrative permit for exercising a profession, which will be replaced by a general announcement for beginning to exercise a profession, accompanied by the respective documents.

If respective institutions do not forbid exercising the profession within three months of the announcement, the profession is free to exercise.

A presidential edict is also required in this case, only if retaining the permit procedures is required. Otherwise, the removal is done automatically.