VAT Exemption Articles in Greece: the Updated List (Law 5144/2024)
Old and new numbering of the Greek VAT Code (Law 5144/2024) side by side, with each article's heading exactly as the law states it. Where the exemptions actually sit, which old number now means something else, and how to pick an exemption reason on a 0% VAT document.
The Greek VAT Code was renumbered by ν.5144/2024. The articles did not change in substance, they changed number, and for several years yet you will meet both numbering systems: the old one, from ν.2859/2000, survives in circulars, in contracts, in software settings and in order feeds. Below is the mapping, with each article's heading exactly as the law states it.
Two different things, and they get confused constantly. An article of the VAT Code is what this page tabulates. A myDATA VAT exemption reason code is a different thing: a number from 1 to 31 that you send on the document itself. Those codes are in the reference tables for VAT exemption reasons.
Where the exemptions actually are
Although this page covers the whole renumbering, the exemptions are grouped together: articles 27 to 34 in the new numbering. That block holds the exemptions inside the country, on importation, on exportation, in international movement of goods, in tax warehouses, the special exemptions, and the two covering intra-EU transactions. The other articles in the table are here so you can translate an old reference, not because they are exemptions.
Old and new numbering, with the law's own heading
| Old article (ν.2859/2000) | New article (ν.5144/2024) | Article heading |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | 1 | Imposition of the tax |
| 2 | 2 | Scope of the tax |
| 3 | 3 | Taxable persons |
| 5α | 6 | Intra-Community distance sales of goods and distance sales of goods imported from third territories or third countries |
| 5β | 7 | Taxable persons who facilitate certain supplies of goods through an electronic interface |
| 6 | 8 | Supply of immovable property |
| 10 | 13 | Importation of goods |
| 11 | 14 | Intra-Community acquisition of goods |
| 12 | 15 | Transactions treated as an intra-Community acquisition of goods |
| 12α | 16 | Vouchers |
| 13 | 17 | Place of supply of goods |
| 14 | 18 | Place of supply of services |
| 15 | 20 | Place of intra-Community acquisition of goods |
| 16 | 21 | Chargeable event and chargeability of the tax on the supply of goods and services |
| 17 | 22 | Chargeable event and chargeability of the tax on the importation of goods |
| 18 | 23 | Chargeable event and chargeability of the tax on the intra-Community acquisition of goods |
| 19 | 24 | Taxable amount on the supply of goods, on the intra-Community acquisition of goods and on the supply of services |
| 20 | 25 | Taxable amount on the importation of goods |
| 21 | 26 | Rates, calculation of the tax |
| 22 | 27 | Exemptions within the country |
| 23 | 28 | Exemptions on the importation of goods |
| 24 | 29 | Exemptions on exportation outside the European Union, on transactions treated as such, and on international transport |
| 25 | 30 | Exemptions in the international movement of goods |
| 26 | 31 | Exemptions under the tax warehousing regime, other than customs warehouses |
| 27 | 32 | Special exemptions |
| 28 | 33 | Exemptions on the supply of goods to another member state |
| 29 | 34 | Exemptions on the intra-Community acquisition of goods |
| 30 | 35 | Right to deduct the tax |
| 31 | 36 | Determination of the deductible tax |
| 32 | 37 | Exercise of the right to deduct the tax |
| 33 | 38 | Adjustment of deductions |
| 34 | 39 | Refund of the tax |
| 38 | 43 | Return and related obligations |
| 39 | 44 | Special scheme for small enterprises |
| 39α | 45 | Special scheme for payment of the tax by the recipient of goods and services |
| 39β | 46 | Special scheme for payment of the tax at the time the consideration is collected |
| 41 | 48 | Special scheme for farmers |
Three places where the renumbering bites
An old number in a new text means something else. The most dangerous pair is 6: under the old numbering it was the supply of immovable property, under the new one it is intra-Community distance sales of goods. Two entirely unrelated transactions behind the same number.
Circulars published before October 2024 use the old numbering and are not retroactively corrected. If you copy an article number out of a 2020 circular, you are copying old numbering. Run it through this table first.
Choosing the article is a tax decision, not a technical one. The table tells you which article is which. It does not tell you which one applies to your transaction, and two articles that look related can cover completely different operations.
How you pick a VAT exemption reason in Wrapp
When you issue a document in Wrapp and select a 0% VAT rate, an extra field appears automatically where you pick the exemption reason from the list. Your choice is transmitted to myDATA along with the document, so that ΑΑΔΕ sees the correct justification for the zero VAT.
myDATA does not check whether the reason you picked fits the transaction. A document with the wrong exemption reason goes through clean and gets a ΜΑΡΚ, and the mistake surfaces later, in the VAT return. That is why the check has to happen before issuing.
If you are not sure which article fits your case, ask your accountant. For specific transactions, the guides on the invoice to a third country, the intra-community invoice and OSS distance sales show how each one is issued in practice.
Frequently asked questions
What changed with the new Greek VAT Code (Law 5144/2024)?
Law 5144/2024 recodified Greek VAT legislation, so the well-known exemption articles were renumbered. The substance of the exemptions is broadly the same, but invoices must now reference the new article numbers.
When do I need to state a VAT exemption article on an invoice in Greece?
Whenever you issue a document with a 0% VAT rate, you must also declare the exemption reason, meaning the article of the VAT Code that justifies the zero rate. This information is also transmitted to myDATA, the Greek tax authority's e-invoicing platform.
How is the exemption article reported to myDATA?
If you issue your documents through an AADE-certified e-invoicing provider such as Wrapp, you simply pick the exemption reason from a list when you set VAT to 0%, and the article is transmitted to myDATA automatically with the document.
Who decides which exemption article applies to my business?
Choosing the correct article is a tax decision that depends on your activity and the specific transaction. If in doubt, confirm the article with your accountant before issuing the document.
Need help?
If you have a question about this topic or want to make sure everything is set up correctly, contact us and we will look at it together.