Fines for Failure or Late Registration of Acts in the Greek General Commercial Registry (GEMI)

Ι. Introduction

On 8 July 2025, the Joint Ministerial Decision No. 46982/2025, dated 18 June 2025, was published in the Government Gazette (Issue B’ 3542/2025) (hereinafter “the M.D.”). The Decision provides the administrative fines imposed in cases of non-registration or late registration of acts in the Greek General Commercial Registry (hereinafter “GEMI”) The M.D. was subsequently specified by Circular No. 56823/18-07-2025, titled “First Clarificatory Circular on the Imposition of Administrative Sanctions in GEMI: Guidelines for the First Adjustment Stage, Corrections, and Registration of Pending Acts Without the Imposition of Administrative Sanctions”.

It should be noted that the imposition of fines was already provided under Article 50 of Law 4919/2022 on GEMI; however, its implementation was subject to further specification through the issuance of a Ministerial Decision, which had not been issued until recently. For this reason, the penalty applied in practice until now in certain cases of late registration (e.g. financial statements) was the temporary suspension of the entity’s submissions to GEMI, pursuant to Article 29 of Law 4919/2022.

ΙΙ. Scope of Application

The M.D. applies to all persons or entities obligated to register in GEMI, as, in particular, all capital companies (S.A., L.L.C., P.C., European Company, Partnership Limited by Shares), cooperatives, partnerships (G.P., L.P., Joint Ventures, European Economic Interest Grouping, and Civil Company under Article 784 of the Civil Code), as well as branches or agencies of foreign companies.

ΙΙΙ. Types of Violations and Fines

The amount of fines imposed varies depending on several parameters, including the type and size of the obligated entity, the nature of the violation, the competent for the particular entity GEMI, among others. For example, late filing of financial statements may result in fines ranging from €1,000 (foreign branch) up to €100,000 (companies listed on the Athens Stock Exchange).

In cases of recidivism for the same violation within three years, the fine is doubled, while in cases of repeated recidivism, it is tripled.

A table summarizing the types of violations and the corresponding fines is provided below.

ΙV. Procedure for the Imposition of Fines and Submission of Objections

Η διαπίστωση των παραβάσεων μπορεί να πραγματοποιείται αυτεπάγγελτα από τις αρμόδιες αρχές (μέσω αυτοματισμών του Γ.Ε.ΜΗ. ή στο πλαίσιο ελέγχων), κατόπιν γνωστοποίησης από άλλη δημόσια υπηρεσία, δειγματοληπτικού ελέγχου ή ακόμα και κατόπιν καταγγελίας από φυσικό ή νομικό πρόσωπο. Μετά τη διαπίστωση της παράβασης, η αρμόδια Υπηρεσία Γ.Ε.ΜΗ, καλεί εγγράφως τον υπόχρεο να συμμορφωθεί εντός δέκα (10) εργάσιμων ημερών. Εφόσον δεν υπάρξει ανταπόκριση, εκδίδεται ηλεκτρονικά πράξη ειδοποίησης επιβολής προστίμου μέσω της θυρίδας μηνυμάτων του πληροφοριακού συστήματος του Γ.Ε.ΜΗ. και αποστέλλεται ταυτόχρονα σχετική ειδοποίηση μέσω ηλεκτρονικού ταχυδρομείου. Εντός προθεσμίας δεκαπέντε (15) ημερών από τη λήψη της ειδοποίησης επιβολής προστίμου, οι υπόχρεοι μπορούν να διατυπώσουν τις απόψεις τους ηλεκτρονικά με αίτηση που διατίθεται μέσω του ηλεκτρονικού συστήματος διαχείρισης προστίμων στο Γ.Ε.ΜΗ. και να εκθέσουν τεκμηριωμένα τους λόγους για τους οποίους δεν πρέπει να επιβληθεί το πρόστιμο. Μετά το πέρας της ως άνω προθεσμίας ή εφόσον η τεκμηρίωση για τη μη επιβολή δεν έγινε δεκτή από το Γ.Ε.ΜΗ., κοινοποιείται στου υπόχρεους η πράξη επιβολής προστίμου, είτε ψηφιακά είτε ταχυδρομικά. 

V. Fine Reduction

The amount of the fine is reduced by 50% if the obligated party, within thirty (30) days from the date of notification of the fine decision, proceeds with its payment and simultaneously with the registration, amendment, or deletion of the act for which the fine was imposed. Such payment entails the automatic waiver by the obligated party of any right to contest or dispute the fine decision. [Article 14 M.D.]

Furthermore, for companies under liquidation or special liquidation, the administrative fine is reduced by 50%. [Article 3 M.D.]

VI. Commencement of Application & Transitional Period

A grace period is provided, lasting until 31 December 2025, during which the obligated parties may carry out corrective actions, without the imposition of administrative fines.

Specifically, the obligated parties may:

• proceed with their registration in GEMI, if they are subject to registration obligations and have not yet registered
• carry out any pending registration, the omission of which entails the imposition of a fine. Particular emphasis should be placed on the submission of the financial statements for the 2024 fiscal year, if not already submitted,
•  carry out the registrations for which their entries have been temporarily suspended
• submit a request to the competent GEMI service for the correction of errors caused by their own fault
• respond to notices received, either via automated messages or from the competent GEMI services

The imposition of fines under the M.D. will commence on 1 January 2026.