Tell us about your agency, the sectors you recruit for and your source countries, and we will reply in writing.
Thessaloniki is Greece's second-largest city and the seat of the Region of Central Macedonia. Its employers rely on a commercial port, an industrial belt on the city's western edge, a food sector the Region actively supports, and a steady flow of visitors. AtoZ Serwis Plus would like to hear from agencies abroad, workforcesuppliers, and other recruitment partners who can present non-EU candidates when an employer in or near the city submits a written request for a specific need. The Municipality of Thessaloniki (Dimos Thessalonikis) is only the centre of a much larger urban area, so a written request would always name the real workplace, whether that is inside the municipal boundary or in a neighbouring municipality near Thessaloniki.
Each placement would involve three parties, each with separate roles. The Greek employer, or a Greek agency whose activity the Ministry of Labour has been lawfully told about, would make the hiring decision and hold the contract and the invitation file, if one is used. The partner abroad works within its home country’s recruitment law, gives candidates an accurate picture and assembles their papers. AtoZ Serwis Plus would sit between them, matching the written brief to profiles and keeping both sides on one set of documents. We are neither a Greek private employment agency nor a temporary work agency, and AtoZ Serwis Plus has no office in Greece; nothing here signals a vacancy, a job order or an employer commitment.
Under Greek rules, a private employment agency must place workers without charging them and collects its fee from the employer. In contrast, a temporary work agency cannot bill a worker for an assignment to a user company. AtoZ Serwis Plus applies the same standard to every cooperation: no candidate pays anything to us, to a partner or to any intermediary acting for either. Agencies that accept this can register as a recruiter.
The Municipality presents the city as the centre of the country’s second-largest urban area, with a large student community, and the Ministry of Development describes Thessaloniki and northern Greece as the heart of its production model. That means several kinds of employers, each with its own profiles and shifts. ELSTAT, the Hellenic Statistical Authority, publishes current figures.
Enterprise Greece lists Thessaloniki among the Greek portsthat cano serve as a gateway to Europe, and the Ministry of Development points to the port's extension with a new pier and plans for a freight transhipment centre on the site of the former Gonou military camp. Requests from this cluster could cover warehouse operatives, forklift and reach-truck operators, lorry drivers and maintenance mechanics. Ask each employer which Greek operator certificate a forklift rolerequiress, whether shifts run at night or on weekends, and whether the candidate will work at the port, at a depot in Kalochori,i or elsewhere in the western zone.
The industrial area (VIPE) at Sindos, west of the city and outside the Municipality of Thessaloniki, has received state funding to upgrade its water network, wastewater treatment and roads, and the suburban railway reaches it. Plants there could hire machine operators, welders, electricians, maintenance fitters, and production line staff. Useful questions cover welding positions, reading technical drawings, and real production-line experience. Manufacturing falls within the digital work card system, so every shift is logged in real time.
The Region of Central Macedonia backs Thess InnoFood, the country's first zone hosting innovative agri-food activity. It runs its own directorate for the agricultural economy and fisheries. Food plants and packers could look for production operatives, butchers, bakers and packing staff. Check hygiene training and comfort with cold rooms and early starts. A factory role is not one of the listed seasonal sectors, so the employer would normally invite through the dependent-work route; ask the Municipality it plans to use.
The Municipality promotes the city for its UNESCO-listed monuments, museums, and food culture. A city hotel may need cooks, room attendants, and waiting staff for most of the year, unlike the summer resorts of Chalkidiki, so it may prefer a six-month or longer contract over seasonal approval.
The Ministry of Development lists metro works, a flyover, two new hospitals and port works among the projects in and around Thessaloniki. Contractors could look for formwork carpenters, steel fixers, tilers and site electricians. Ask for photographs of finished work and safety training, and check whether the contractor holds a certificate for a strategic or public project, which can open a priority procedure.
Sourcing starts only once a Thessaloniki employer submits its request in writing: the role, the workplace, the duration, the hours, the pay basis,s and what is offered for housing. Before that, nobody advertises, collects documents or hints that a job exists. Match experience to the task rather than the title: a “warehouse worker” at a port depot and one at a food plant do different things.
At first screening, the partner collects only two things: a CV and evidence of the core skill. Evidence can be a trade certificate, a short video of the candidate operating a forklift or welding, photographs of finished work or a reference from a former supervisor. Passport copies and other identity papers come later, when the employer or the Greek agency sends a written list. Screening calls should test what the employer actually needs, for example:
Be honest with candidates about language. Some employers can work with basic English for practical roles while others want a little Greek; ask the employer rather than assume. Ask candidates how they feel about a northern winter and about life in a large city far from family; retention starts at screening.
A request is only as good as the business behind it. Beforecontacting a candidate, the parties would agree to check the employer in the General Commercial Registry (GEMI), which anyone can search online by tax number, GEMI number,r or company name to see the legal form, registered seat, status,s and the people who run the company. AADE, the tax authority, issues every business a tax number (AFM), and that number would be matched against the name on the request. A Greek agency taking part would supply evidence of its notification to the Ministry of Labour; a temporary work agency inviting workers as its direct employer must also meet capital conditions set by the municipality.
The written job order would name the workplace by street and municipality, which matters in Thessaloniki because Sindos, Kalochori, and the eastern suburbs are in separate municipalities. It would state the role and tasks, the number of people, the contract length, the weekly hours and shift pattern, the pay basis, any accommodation and what it costs, and who pays for travel. A draft contract in a language the candidate understands would follow before interviews are confirmed. The full list of checks, document flows, and responsibilities between the partner and AtoZ Serwis Plus should be set out in a written agreement before cooperation starts.
Stop if an employer cannot name a site, asks candidates for money, offers to“sort the papers later”, wants workers on a short-stay visa, or cannot show it meets the invitation conditions.
Nationals of EU states, the EEA and Switzerland can take a job in Greece without a permit. Anyone staying more than three months must register with the police service that handles foreign nationals; in the city, that is the Hellenic Police Aliens Directorate, part of the General Police Directorate of Thessaloniki. For these candidates, the main checks are the employer, the contract and the housing.
For everyone else, the starting point is an employer’s invitation. A short-stay Schengen visa, or a stay without a visa, allows up to 90 days in any 180-day period for visits only and never covers ordinary employment. A Greek residence permit for work covers work in Greece only: it allows short trips to other Schengen countries but not a job there. Greece runs no general regularisation programme, so a Thessaloniki employer can take on non-EU staff either by inviting them or by hiring people whose existing Greek permit already allows work.
Two bilateral schemes exist: an agreement with Egypt on seasonal farm workers, under which the Egyptian side selects candidates, and a memorandum with Bangladesh on migration and mobility that includes seasonal permits. Other nationalities follow the general procedure, within the ceiling and any country list in that year’s act. Albania is one of the few non-EU countries whose driving licences Greek rules allow to be exchanged, which can matter for driving roles in the logistics cluster.
The legal basis is the Migration Code, which was substantially amended to introduce a single application procedure for a combined residence and work permit. Each year the Government fixes, by an act of the Council of Ministers, how many non-EU workers may be admitted in each sector, and invitations can be approved only within that ceiling.
A permit granted this way lasts several years and can be renewed as long as the conditions are met, provided the worker applies before it expires. After an initial period with the first employer,, the worker may changemployerserornd earlier if the employer siously breaches change employers soonerworker. Under t he rules, the government decides a complete single-permit application within 90 days. That is a statutory period, not a promise about any file.
Seasonal work has its own track, reserved for agriculture, forestry, livestock, fishing and tourism. Workers are named in the application; one approval can stretch to nine months within twelve months, and a multi-season approval lets the same person return. Suitable housing must be shown. Licensed temporary work agencies that meet capital requirements can also directly employ invited workers, and projects certified as strategic have a priority procedure.
Full-time work in Greece is 40 hours a week. Hours above the contract earn a premium, and overtime beyond that must be entered in ERGANI before it is worked, stay within daily and annual limits, and earn a higher premium. Work between 10 pm and 6 am is night work with its own premium, and Sundays and public holidays also pay extra, which matters for port and plant shifts. Hotels and food service fall outside the special sixth-day option for five-day businesses; ask the employer which weekly regime the contract uses. Annual leave increases with service, and Christmas and Easter bonuses, plus a leave allowance, are paid on top of wages.
The national minimum wage is set by ministerial decision following annual consultation, and no invited worker may be paid less. Figures change, so AtoZ Serwis Plus does not quote them; the Ministry of Labour publishes the current rate. The employer gives a breakdown of pay and deductions; ask it to confirm in writing how wages will be paid and what the payslip will look like. Single-permit holders are treated equally with Greek staff in pay and conditions, and they can also turn to the Labour Inspectorate.
Ask the employer for a written illustration of net monthly pay for the role, showing social insurance and tax, before candidates sign. List every other deduction, including meals, transport, or accommodation, in writing before departure. For seasonal workers, rent must be agreed in writing, be proportionate, and may not be automatically deducted from wages.
Workers may need to rent privately unless the employer provides housing. The job ordershould statey whether the employer provides or arranges housing, where it is, how many people share each room, whether it is heatedine winter, and what it costs. Housing should never be called free in any message to candidates unless the employer has put that in writing. Seasonal employers must show suitable accommodation.
Commuting decides whether a placement lasts. The Organisation of Urban Transportation of Thessaloniki (OASTH) runs the city bus network, including airport lines that also serve the intercity bus terminal, and the suburban railway reaches Sindos. Shifts that begin before dawn or end late at night may fall outside public transport hours, so ask the employer how workers reach Kalochori or Sindos for those shifts and whether it provides transport. Once the worker holds a permit, they must report a move to a new address online to the Ministry of Migration and Asylum.
Documents follow the process stage, not the partner’s convenience. The opening screen needs nothing beyond a CV and proof of the main skill. After shortlisting, collect only what the employer or Greek agency lists in writing, which can include a passport copy, diplomas, trade certificates, and, if the consulate asks, a police certificate. Collect nothing that nobody has requested, and never hold original passports.
The GDPR and the Greek law implementing it govern every candidate file, and the Hellenic Data Protection Authority supervises compliance. Each party should know why it holds each document and for how long, andit should delete data on unsuccessful candidates on an agreed schedule. Sending candidate files from the EU side to a partner outside the EU requires a GDPR transfer safeguard, for instance, standard contractual clauses signed by both sides.
The employer or its Greek agency would run the final interview, by video or in person, since they make they make the hiring decision. Partners can explain the workplace and shift pattern beforehand but must never coach claims of experience the candidate lacks. An interpreter can join where the employer agrees.
Practical tests say more than talk for Thessaloniki roles. A welder could be filmed producing a test piece in the position the plant uses; a forklift operator could be filmed stacking and unstacking at height; a cook could prepare a short set menu in front of a camera. The employer would decide the test in writing, and the candidate would never pay for it. Results go only to the parties that need them.
Before travel, each worker would receive the employment terms in a language they understand, the workplace and housing addresses, an employer contact and a plain explanation of pay and deductions. Explain that the national visa allows entry but not work by itself, and that the permit application must follow quickly after arrival. Pack for a cold winter if the contract covers one.
A worker flying in can land at Thessaloniki airport. In the first days,, the employer arranges or helps with social insurancethroughh e-EFKA, the social insurance number (AMKA,) and the tax number (AFM), and should explain how wages will be paid. Before the first shif,,t the employer musprovideve the essential terms in writing (on paper, electronical,ly or through the MyErgani app) and declare the hire in ERGANI. In covered sectors such as manufacturing, retail, hotels and food service, the digital work card then records each shift.
Lorry and bus drivers also need the Certificate of Professional Competence (PEI, code 95) and a tachograph driver card, which requires normal residence in Greece and a Greek licence. Only a short list of non-EU licences can be exchanged without a full test. The Region of CentralMacedonia’ss transport directorate for western Thessaloniki, with its driving licences department at Kalochori, confirms what applies.
Partners would keep in touch with each worker during the first months. Complaints go to the Labour Inspectorate, an independent authority, through its online form (anonymously, if preferred) or by calling the citizens’ line 1555. Single-permit holders may complain like any Greek worker, and workers placed by a temporary work agency are entitled to the same treatment as the user company’s own staff, with the agency and the user company jointly liable for pay and insurance.
Greek criminal law treats trafficking for labour exploitation as a serious offence. Anyone can raise a suspicion with the 1109 information line, with the police on 100 or through 112, and people identified as victims are referred for protection through the National Referral Mechanism. Fraudsters can copy the names of well-known employers, ports or industrial areas; any offer that mentions the port of Thessaloniki or a Sindos plant but asks the candidate for money, or arrives from a free e-mail address, should be checked with the registry and reported.
Check the current version of each source before acting.
If your agency recruits warehouse and logistics staff, welders and machine operators, food production workers, kitchen and hotel teams or construction trades, and works within the law of its own country without charging candidates, please tell us which of these Thessaloniki sectors fit your pool and which countries you recruit in. We will reply in writing and explain how we share a checked employer request. Start by registering through the partner registration form, and read the wider Greece recruitment overview for the national picture.
Register your agency and tell us which Thessaloniki sectors suit your candidates. We would contact you when a checked employer request matches your strengths.
Port operators, freight forwarders and warehouses, manufacturers around Sindos, food producers, hotels and restaurants, and construction contractors could all be relevant. Each placement would depend on a specific written request from a Greek employer that has passed the agreed checks.
No. AtoZ Serwis Plus has no vacancies or job orders of its own in Thessaloniki or elsewhere in Greece, and it has no office in the country. It acts as a link between a partner abroad and a vetted Greek employer or a lawfully notified Greek agency.
The Greek employer, or a Greek temporary work agency that directly employs an invited worker. The contract must be in writing, last at least six months for the dependent-work route, and pay no less than the statutory minimum. AtoZ Serwis Plus and the partner abroad are not parties to it.
No. Under Greek law, a private employment agency places workers at no cost to them and is paid by the employer, and a temporary work agency cannot bill a worker for an assignment. AtoZ Serwis Plus refuses any payment from candidates in its cooperation, whoever would collect it.
Enterprise Greece lists Thessaloniki among Greek ports able to act as a gateway to Europe, and the Ministry of Development points to new pier works. Requests linked to the port could cover warehouse staff, equipment operators, drivers and mechanics, often with shift work. Ask each employer exactly which site and shift pattern apply.
Not for paperwork. The Sindos industrial area lies west of the city in a neighbouring municipality, so a plant there is near Thessaloniki rather than in it. The job order and the invitation should name the real workplace address, because that address drives the permit file and the commuting plan.
Ask the employer. Practical checks for factory roles could include machine operation, welding in specific positions, reading technical drawings and basic electrical or mechanical maintenance. A short filmed test, agreed in writing by the employer, can show far more than a CV.
Seasonal invitations are open only to agriculture, forestry, livestock, fishing and tourism. A food factory is not itself one of those sectors, so a Thessaloniki food producer would normally use the dependent-work route, with a contract lasting six months or longer. The employer decides the route and should state it in the job order.
The Region of Central Macedonia describes Thess InnoFood as Greece's first zone hosting innovative agri-food activity, supported by its Thessaloniki regional unit. For partners, it signals the weight agri-food carries locally, not evidence of any particular employer need. Candidates for food roles still need checked written requests.
Tourism is one of the listed seasonal sectors, so that a hotel can invite workers by name for up to nine months within any twelve, provided it shows suitable housing. A city hotel open most of the year may prefer the dependent-work route. Ask the employer which route fits its real staffing pattern.
The Municipality promotes the city for its monuments, museums, and food culture, which can bring visitors throughout much of the year. Resorts in Chalkidiki follow a summer season and sit in a different regional unit. Shift patterns, contract length, housing and the competent directorate can all differ, so treat them as separate requests.
The employer submits it on the Ministry of Migration and Asylum’s e-services. For a workplace in the Thessaloniki regional unit, the file goes to the Aliens and Migration Directorate of Thessaloniki, part of the Decentralised Administration of Macedonia and Thrace, based in the city.
No. The Decentralised Administration of Macedonia and Thrace has a separate Aliens and Migration Directorate for Central Macedonia, which lists units such as Chalkidiki, Pieria, Kilkis, Pella, Imathia and Serres. A Thessaloniki employer with a site in one of those units should confirm which directorate handles that workplace.
The Decentralised Administration of Macedonia and Thrace states that first applications, renewals, and reissues are submitted online only through the platform run by the Migration and Asylum Ministry. Some updates, such as address or family status changes, are handled by e-mail. Ask the employer, who will guide the worker through each step.
Greek rules allow 90 days to decide a single-permit application once it is complete. That is the statutory period, not a promise about any particular case. Incomplete files, consular steps and travel all add time, so partners should never quote a start date to candidates before approvals exist.
For dependent work, the employer must offer a written contract of at least six months, pay at no less than the statutory minimum, and show it can pay. Longer contracts are possible and may suit Thessaloniki employers with year-round activity, such as plants, warehouses and city hotels.
Only for an initial period. After that, the worker may move to another employer, and sooner if the first one seriously breaches labour law or dismisses them. The permit is linked to lawful employment, so any move must be to another employer offering a proper contract. Partners should explain this before departure.
Yes. EU, EEA, and Swiss nationals need no permit to work. After three months in the country, they obtain a registration certificate from the police service for foreign nationals, which in the city is the Aliens Directorate of the General Police Directorate of Thessaloniki.
No. A short-stay visa or visa-free stay allows up to 90 days in any 180-day period for visits, not employment. An invited worker needs a national visa issued after the employer approves the application and must then apply for a residence permit. Any offer to start work on a tourist entry is a warning sign.
No. It allows its holder to work in Greece and to make short visits to other Schengen countries, but not to take a job there. WoWorkinglsewhere in the EU nerequires that country’swn authorisation. Candidates should understand this before they accept a Thessaloniki contract.
The Council of Ministers act that fixsets each year’smission ceiling may list eligible countries. Two bilateral frameworks exist, one with Egypt covering seasonal agricultural work and one with Bangladesh on migration and mobility. All other nationalities follow the general procedure within the ceiling. Check the current act before recruiting.
Greece does not run a general regularisation programme. Lawful hiring means an invitation, or employing someone whose current Greek permit already includes the right to work. Partners should not present any informal route to work in Thessaloniki.
The parties would agree to search the employer in GEMI, compare its tax number with AADE data, and confirm the Ministry of Labour notification of any Greek agency involved. A written job order and a draft contract would follow. Only then would a partner contact candidates.
The workplace address and municipality; the role and tasks; the number of people; contract length; weekly hours and shifts; the pay basis; accommodation and its cost; and who pays for travel. A draft contract in a language candidates understand should follow before interviews are confirmed.
Stop if the company cannot name a real site, asks candidates for money, suggests starting on a short-stay visa, promises papers later, or cannot show it meets the invitation conditions. A fake offer may borrow the name of the port or a known plant, so check the registry details.
Just two items: a CV and proof of the main skill, for example, a trade certificate, work, a short video, or asupervisor’ss reference. Identity documents come later, when the employer or Greek agency sends a written list. A partner never holds original passports.
Candidate files fall under the GDPR and Greek implementing law, with the Hellenic Data Protection Authority as the supervisory authority. Each party should collect only what it needs and delete data on unsuccessful candidates on an agreed schedule. Transfers to partners outside the EU need a GDPR safeguard, such as standard contractual clauses.
The employer, or its Greek agency, conducts the final interview, by video or in person, because the employer makes the hiring decision. Partners can brief candidates on the workplace and shift pattern but must never coach them to claim experience they do not have.
Filmed tests agreed in writing work well: a welding test piece in theplant’ss required position, a forklift stacking task at height, or a machine set-up. The employer decides the test. Candidates never pay for testing, and results are shared only with the parties that need them.
A full-time week in Greece is 40 hours. Anything beyond that is paid at a premium, and overtime must be recorded in ERGANI in advance; it is capped per day and per year. A Thessaloniki job order should state the expected weekly pattern and how often overtime is likely.
Yes. Work between 10 pm and 6 am is night work and attracts a premium, and Sunday and public holiday work is also paid extra. Port, warehouse and plant shifts in the Thessaloniki area may involve night work, so ask the employer to show how premiums appear on the payslip.
The special sixth-day option for some businesses on a five-day week excludes hotels and food service. That exclusion concerns only this option, so ask the Thessaloniki employer which weekly regime the contract uses and how rest days are set before candidates accept.
The government sets it by ministerial decision after an annual consultation with experts and social partners, and invited workers must earn at least that rate. AtoZ Serwis Plus does not quote amounts because they change; the Ministry of Labour publishes the current figure.
Ask the employer for a written net pay illustration before candidates sign, and list every deduction, such as meals, transport or housing, in writing before departure. For seasonal workers, rent must be agreed in writing, be proportionate and may not be deducted automatically.
It depends on the employer. The job order should state whether housing is provided or arranged, where it is, how many share a room, whether it is heated for winter and what it costs. Do not tell candidates housing is free unless the employer has said so in writing.
The suburban railway reaches Sindos, and the OASTH bus network serves the wider city. Early or late shifts can fall outside public transport hours, so ask the employer how workers travel for those shifts and whether it runs its own transport. Put the answer in the job order.
ThMunicipality’s's transport guide lists OASTH airport lines that also serve the intercity bus terminal, and taxis wait at the airport, the railway station and the bus terminal. The employer should tell the worker in writing who will meet them and how they will reach the housing.
It can be. Northern Greece has a real winter, colder than many candidates expect. Ask whether the housing is heated and whether the employer provides workwear for outdoor or cold-room roles, and brief candidates to bring suitable clothing.
Give the worker the essential terms of employment in writing, on paper, electronically or through MyErgani, and declare the hire in ERGANI before work starts. In sectors covered by the digital work card, record every shift in real time.
A social insurance number (AMKA), a tax number (AFM) issued by AADE, and registration with e-EFKA, the national social insurance body. The employer pays contributions and withholds the employee share, as shown on the payslip. For invited seasonal workers, AMKA and AFM are issued electronically from the application.
Possibly, but it takes extra steps. A professional driver needs the right licence category, the Certificate of Professional Competence (PEI, code 95) and a tachograph driver card, which requires normal residence in Greece and a Greek licence. Never promise a licence exchange.
Only licences from a short list of non-EU countries named in Greek rules can be exchanged without a full test; Albania is one of them. Others take the Greek tests. The Region of CentralMacedonia’ss transport services, including the western Thessaloniki directorate at Kalochori, confirm the applicable rules.
To the Labour Inspectorate, an independent authority, online (including anonymously) or through thecitizens’' line 1555. Single-permit holders have the same right to complain as Greek workers. Partners should give every worker these routes before departure.
Temporary work agencies must guarantee wages and contributions and are jointly liable with the user company for pay and social insurance. Agency workers are entitled to the same treatment as the usercompany’ss own staff.
Call 1109 (the national trafficking information line), 100 (police), or 112 (the European emergency number). People identified as victims receive protection and support through the National Referral Mechanism, and they can also report labour abuses to the Labour Inspectorate.
No. Greek authorities decide approval of the invitation, the national visa, and the residence permit. No one can promise a visa, a permit, or a job, and partners should never make such a promise to candidates.
Projects certified as strategic investments or public works of special importance have a priority procedure for invited workers. Only a certificate from the competent ministry makes a project eligible. Ask a contractor for that certificate before treating its request as a priority case.
Yes, if it is lawfully notified to the Ministry of Labour and meets the capital conditions set by ministerial decision. It then acts as the direct employer and places workers with user companies, with joint liability for pay and insurance.
ELSTAT, the Hellenic Statistical Authority, publishes current labour market data. Check the reference period on ELSTAT before using any number in a proposal or briefing for candidates.
DYPA, the Greek public employment service, runs employment promotion centres in the area and has held career days in Thessaloniki. Some employers may look for local candidates through DYPA before inviting workers from abroad. Ask the employer what local search it has done.
Bring the signed employment terms, workplace and housing addresses, an employer contact, and clothing for a cold winter if the contract covers it. Understand that the national visa does not allow work by itself and that the permit application follows soon after arrival.
An agency that lawfully recruits logistics, manufacturing, food, hospitality, or construction staff in its own country, keeps clear records, briefs candidates honestly, and charges them nothing. Register through the partner registration form, describe your sectors and recruitment countries, and say which Thessaloniki sectors fit your candidates.
No. Kalochori lies west of the city in a separate municipality, so a depot there is near Thessaloniki rather than in it. The job order should give the street address and municipality, and the employer should explain how workers reach the site for early or late shifts.
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