{"id":955,"date":"2026-10-17T15:45:10","date_gmt":"2026-10-17T12:45:10","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/upgradesolutions.gr\/?p=955"},"modified":"2026-10-17T18:20:45","modified_gmt":"2026-10-17T15:20:45","slug":"digital-work-card-greece-16-november-2026","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/upgradesolutions.gr\/en\/digital-work-card-greece-16-november-2026\/","title":{"rendered":"Greek Digital Work Card: Which Businesses Must Join from 16 November 2026 and What Employers Need to Know"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

From 16 November 2026<\/strong> the Digital Work Card becomes mandatory, with penalties, for seven more sectors: consulting firms, head offices, advertising, business support offices, warehousing, repair shops, waste management and gambling. For many small businesses with office staff, this is the first time working time will be recorded electronically and checked in real time.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Below we look at the topic from two angles: what Greek labour law provides<\/strong> and what it means for payroll and the books<\/strong> of the business.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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16\/11\/2026<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Full application and penalties for the second group of sectors<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n\n\n\n

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15 minutes<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Maximum time to transmit each clock-in to ERGANI II<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n\n\n\n

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10.500 \u20ac<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Maximum fine per employee without a work card<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n\n\n\n

The legal framework in one paragraph<\/h2>\n\n\n\n

The Digital Work Card is governed by Ministerial Decision 49758\/26.05.2022 (Gazette B\u0384 2668), as in force, and articles 580 and 581 of the Greek Labour Law Code (P.D. 62\/2025). In 2026 it was extended in two phases: MD 15441\/2026<\/strong> (B\u0384 3051) brought in the first group, with penalties from 12\/10\/2026, and MD 18047\/2026<\/strong> (B\u0384 3791) the second group, with a pilot from 29\/6\/2026 and penalties from 16\/11\/2026<\/strong>. The practical details are set out in the Ministry of Labour’s interpretative circular 25291\/23.09.2026<\/a>.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Is your business covered?<\/h2>\n\n\n\n
\"Three-step<\/figure>\n\n\n\n

The key factor is your main activity code (KAD) in TAXIS<\/strong>. If it does not belong to the covered sectors, the whole business is exempt, even if it carries on a covered activity as a secondary one or has a branch with such a code. There is also an exception few people know: if the main KAD is covered but shows no revenue in the E3 form of the last financial year, and the actual main activity is not covered, the business is exempt.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Sector (second group)<\/th>Main KAD<\/th><\/tr><\/thead>
Water collection and treatment, sewerage, waste, remediation<\/td>36, 37, 38<\/td><\/tr>
Warehousing and support activities for transportation<\/td>52.1<\/td><\/tr>
Head offices, management consultancy activities<\/td>70<\/td><\/tr>
Advertising, market research, public relations<\/td>73<\/td><\/tr>
Office administrative and business support activities<\/td>82<\/td><\/tr>
Gambling and betting<\/td>92<\/td><\/tr>
Repair of computers, personal and household goods, vehicles<\/td>95<\/td><\/tr><\/tbody><\/table><\/figure>\n\n\n\n

The detailed activity codes (up to five digits) are listed in tables 12\u201318 of MD 18047\/2026. The first group, already in force, includes IT and telecommunications, health and social care, employment and cleaning services, hairdressers, beauty centres and funeral services.<\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n

Which employees clock in and which do not<\/h2>\n\n\n\n
\"Office
Office staff are the main category affected in the new sectors. Photo: Beatriz Cattel \/ Unsplash<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n
Category<\/th>Work card?<\/th>Labour lawyer’s note<\/th><\/tr><\/thead>
Full-time at the business premises<\/td>Yes<\/td>Two clock-ins a day, at the usual place of work.<\/td><\/tr>
Part-time<\/td>Yes<\/td>Two clock-ins for a continuous schedule, four for a split shift.<\/td><\/tr>
Teleworking<\/td>No<\/td>Only for teleworking days declared in advance.<\/td><\/tr>
Field work<\/td>No \/ Yes<\/td>No on days spent off-site. Yes when the employee comes to the business premises.<\/td><\/tr>
Permanently at an exclusive-use customer site<\/td>Yes<\/td>Clocks in there, e.g. a technician or a shop-in-shop.<\/td><\/tr>
Managerial staff<\/td>No<\/td>Declared in the working-time organisation without a digital schedule.<\/td><\/tr>
Employees on loan (temporary agency)<\/td>Yes<\/td>The obligation also covers employee lending.<\/td><\/tr><\/tbody><\/table><\/figure>\n\n\n\n

The rules and what they mean in practice<\/h2>\n\n\n\n
Rule<\/th>In practice<\/th><\/tr><\/thead>
Transmission to ERGANI II within 15 minutes<\/td>Applies to every channel (app, scanner, API). A delay counts as a failure.<\/td><\/tr>
Even number of clock-ins per day<\/td>Every clock-in needs a clock-out. Up to 3 unmatched clock-ins per employee per month are tolerated.<\/td><\/tr>
10-minute preparation time<\/td>The employee may clock in up to 10 minutes before the start and clock out up to 10 minutes after the end.<\/td><\/tr>
Flexible arrival up to 120 minutes<\/td>Only with a written agreement (article 580 par. 2A of the Labour Law Code). Earlier arrival is not allowed.<\/td><\/tr>
Schedule changes: advance or retrospective system<\/td>Under the retrospective system, the choice is declared by the end of the month and changes are recorded by the end of the following month.<\/td><\/tr>
Technical problem<\/td>Notify the Labour Inspectorate within 24 hours at the latest and make a late declaration in ERGANI II.<\/td><\/tr>
Employee mistakes<\/td>The employer may not cut pay or charge leave. Systematic refusal is dealt with through the employment contract or the work regulations.<\/td><\/tr><\/tbody><\/table><\/figure>\n\n\n\n

The accountant’s view: work card, payroll and tax<\/h2>\n\n\n\n