The Crete Home Owner's Year: Every Deadline from October 2026 to September 2027
Owning a house in Crete means something falls due in almost every quarter. This is the year laid out season by season, from the January property declaration to the June plot deadline and the new municipal fee that arrives on 1 January 2027, with the legal basis for each date.
Owning a house in Crete is not heavy on paperwork, but it is relentless, and in my view the deadlines that catch owners out are not the tax bill but the January property declaration, the short February insurance window and the June plot deadline. Below is October 2026 to September 2027, quarter by quarter, with the legal basis for each item and a flag where a 2027 date is an expectation based on 2026. Rules and figures as they stood in October 2026, checked against AADE guidance, the new Local Government Code (law 5314/2026), the Fire Service and the Greek tax press.
I am not an accountant or a lawyer, and this is not tax or legal advice. Greek deadlines move and weekends push them to the next working day, so treat every date here as the default and confirm it with your accountant.
The owner’s year in one minute. Changes to your property made in 2026 go on an E9 by 31 January 2027 (in practice the next working day, as the 31st is a Sunday). ENFIA is assessed on what you own on 1 January, notified in mid-March and payable in up to 12 instalments. An earthquake, fire and flood policy earns up to 20% off ENFIA if you claim it in a short February window on myPROPERTY. Income tax returns ran from 16 March to 15 July in 2026. Plots have to be cleared and declared by 15 June and kept clear until 31 October, the end of fire season. From 1 January 2027 a Local Development Fee of 0.30–0.70‰ replaces ΤΑΠ on the electricity bill. If you let the house short-term, each stay is declared by the 20th of the month after the guest leaves.
October to December 2026: the changeover
Fire season, and the duty to keep a cleared plot clear, ends on 31 October. Fire Service rules ban burning garden waste during fire season; fines are heavy.
The bigger change is on the electricity bill. Article 448 of law 5314/2026, the new Local Government Code (ΦΕΚ Α’ 103/29.06.2026), keeps the property levy (ΤΑΠ) and the tax on electrified spaces (ΦΗΧ) running only until 31 December 2026 and imposes the Local Development Fee from 1 January 2027. Each municipal council sets its rate between 0.30‰ and 0.70‰ of the property’s value, so your town hall’s decision this autumn fixes your 2027 bill. According to the owners’ federation ΠΟΜΙΔΑ, a tenant who pays it deducts it from the rent unless the lease says otherwise. The money side is in running costs of a home in Crete.
Then the house itself. I could not find a statutory servicing deadline for a split air-conditioner or a boiler in a private house, so this is maintenance, not law: in my view the air-conditioning gets serviced before it starts heating, and gutters and drains get cleared before the first heavy rain. Who does that if you are abroad is covered in managing a Crete home from abroad. If your home insurance renews in this quarter, do not let it lapse: the ENFIA discount is reduced pro rata for cover that ran less than a full year.
January to March 2027: the paperwork quarter
E9. Under article 23 of law 3427/2005, as amended by article 48 of law 4916/2022, any change in your property rights during 2026 is declared on the E9 by 31 January 2027. That is a Sunday; in 2026 a weekend 31st moved the deadline to 2 February. Purchases signed through myPROPERTY since July 2023 create the E9 entry automatically, but check the areas and percentages, because ENFIA is calculated from them.
Insurance discount. Article 3 par. 7Z of law 4223/2013 and decision Α.1014/2024 give 20% off ENFIA on homes worth up to €500,000 (10% above) if they were insured against earthquake, fire and flood for the full rebuild value (€900 per square metre in the 2026 round) for at least three months of the previous year. In 2026 the myPROPERTY window opened on 7 February and closed on 16 February. Expect a similarly short window in February 2027 for 2026 policies; the background is in earthquakes, insurance and the building code.
ENFIA. The last instalment of the 2026 bill is due on 26 February 2027. AADE calculates ENFIA on what you own on 1 January. The 2026 notices were all posted on myAADE by 15 March, with the first of up to 12 monthly instalments (minimum €10 each) due on 31 March. If that pattern repeats, plan for the same in 2027.
Tax returns open. In 2026 the platform opened on 16 March.
April to June 2027: the return and the plot
Income tax return. Greek tax residents file every year. According to AADE, a non-resident files under article 67 of the Income Tax Code only when they have real Greek-source income, and rent from the Crete house counts. In 2026, paying in one go by 31 July earned 4% for filing by 15 May (2026), 3% by 15 June and 2% by 15 July. No Greek tax number or online access yet? See tax number and bank account in Greece.
Fire season starts on 1 May.
Plot clearing. Owners, usufructuaries and tenants of plots inside town plans and settlements, within 100 metres of their edge, and out-of-plan plots with buildings on them must clear vegetation and declare it on akatharista.apps.gov.gr by 15 June. Not clearing costs €1 per square metre (at least €200, at most €2,000) plus the cost of the municipality doing it; not declaring a cleared plot costs €100 or €500, and a false declaration is a criminal offence. The rules come from an annual joint ministerial decision; I could not open the 2026 text, so these figures are from press reports. What the alerts look like once summer starts is in heat, wildfires and the 112 alerts.
July to September 2027: the deadline and the fire months
The 2026 return deadline was 15 July, with tax due in one go by 31 July or in eight monthly instalments from 31 July to the end of February. AADE announces each year’s window in spring, so take 15 July 2027 as likely, not certain. Rent goes on the E2 filed with the E1. Meanwhile the plot stays clear and the burning ban holds.
If you let it: the monthly layer
A short let adds a rhythm of its own under article 111 of law 4446/2016. The registry number (ΑΜΑ) comes before the first listing. Each stay is declared by the 20th of the month after the guest leaves (one 2026 source counts from arrival instead, so ask your accountant), and corrections are possible until 28 February of the following year. The climate resilience fee collected from guests is paid over monthly, by the last day of the following month. Since 1 October 2025 the minimum standards include civil liability insurance: a second renewal date. I could not find any quarterly declaration for a private owner letting one or two homes: the rhythm is monthly plus the annual return. The full rules are in renting out your Crete home.
The honest downside
Nobody sends you this calendar. AADE posts notices to myAADE, the plot deadline moves by ministerial announcement days before it falls, and the new fee’s rate is set by each town hall. Most of the 2027 dates above are expectations built on 2026, and the costliest mistake is assuming last year’s date still holds. Abroad, most of this becomes an accountant’s annual fee, and the items outside the tax return are the easiest to assume someone else is doing.
Disclosure: Honest Crete does not sell or list property. Enquiries sent from this section go to a licensed estate agent, not to us; the full statement is below. Nothing in this article names a developer, a property, an accountant, an insurer or any other professional, and it never will.
Worth it if you own or are about to own in Crete and want one page for the diary: the four hard dates are 31 January, mid-February, 15 June and 15 July, plus the 20th of every month if you let. Skip it if you already pay an accountant to run your Greek affairs, but send them this list and ask which items they cover, because the plot and the insurance claim sit outside the tax return.
When do I have to file an E9 after buying a house in Greece?
A change in Greek property rights made during a year is declared on the E9 by 31 January of the following year, under article 23 of law 3427/2005 as amended. When the 31st falls on a weekend the deadline moves to the next working day, as it did in 2026. Purchases signed through the myPROPERTY system since July 2023 generate the E9 entry automatically, but the owner should still check it is correct.
When is ENFIA paid in 2026 and 2027?
ENFIA 2026 was notified by 15 March 2026 and can be paid in up to 12 monthly instalments, the first on 31 March 2026 and the last on 26 February 2027. ENFIA 2027 will be calculated on the property owned on 1 January 2027. If the 2026 pattern repeats, the notice arrives in March 2027 with the first instalment due at the end of that month.
Do I have to file a Greek tax return if I only own a holiday home in Crete?
According to AADE, a non-resident files a Greek income tax return only when they have real Greek-source income, such as rent from the Crete house. A non-resident who owns a holiday home and earns nothing from it in Greece still files the E9 and pays ENFIA, but has no return to file for that year. Greek tax residents file every year regardless.
What is the deadline for clearing my plot in Crete?
The standard deadline to clear vegetation from a plot and declare it on akatharista.apps.gov.gr is 15 June, and the plot must stay clear until 31 October, the end of fire season. The fine for an uncleared plot is €1 per square metre, at least €200 and at most €2,000.
What replaces TAP in Greece in 2027?
From 1 January 2027 the Local Development Fee introduced by law 5314/2026 replaces both the property levy known as TAP and the tax on electrified spaces. Each municipal council sets the rate between 0.30‰ and 0.70‰ of the property's value. The fee is still collected through the electricity bill.
How do I get the 20% ENFIA discount for home insurance?
The ENFIA insurance discount is claimed on AADE's myPROPERTY platform in a short window early in the year; in 2026 the window ran from 7 to 16 February. The policy must cover earthquake, fire and flood for the full rebuild value, for at least three months of the previous year. The discount is 20% on property worth up to €500,000 and 10% above that, reduced pro rata if the cover ran for less than a full year.
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