Greece visa guideA Greek business visa is a Schengen short-stay visa (type C) filed in the business category, for meetings, conferences, training and other business-related activities of up to 90 days in any 180-day period. It does not allow employment. You apply at a GVCW visa centre, such as Chandigarh, Jalandhar or New Delhi, and the Embassy of Greece's Consular Office in New Delhi decides.
Greece keeps the business papers to two letters, an invitation from Greece and a cover letter from your employer, each confirming your identity, the purpose, and the period and place of stay. Its 2026 checklist notice adds your employer's certificate of incorporation.
Do Indians need a visa for a business trip to Greece, and which one?
Yes. Meetings in Athens, a conference in Thessaloniki or a supplier visit on Crete all need a Schengen short-stay visa, type C, filed in the business category. The Embassy of Greece's checklist names the purposes it has in mind: meetings, conferences, training, or other business-related activities. A stay can last up to 90 days in any 180-day period across the Schengen area, and there is no e-visa route.
The decision is made by the Embassy of Greece's Consular Office in New Delhi for every application lodged in India. It also sets the validity and the number of entries.
Greece business visa at a glance
- VisaMeetings, conferences, training, business events
- Schengen type C, business category
- Stay
- Up to 90 days in any 180-day period
- Decided by
- Embassy of Greece, Consular Office, New Delhi
- Filed atChandigarh, Jalandhar, New Delhi and other cities
- GVCW visa centres
- Core papersInvitation from Greece, cover letter from your employer
- Two letters plus your employer's incorporation certificate
- FeeBoth paid in rupees
- €90 visa fee and €30 GVCW service fee
Embassy of Greece New Delhi checklist and GVCW Greece India, checked 14 Oct 2026
A business visa is not a work visa. GVCW's FAQ says a Schengen visa is not appropriate if you want to take up employment, or establish a business, trade or profession, in Greece. Those plans need a Greek national visa.
Where do applicants from Punjab apply?
Through Global Visa Center World (GVCW), the operator of Greece's visa centres in India; Greece does not use VFS. Because one Consular Office in New Delhi decides everything, there is no jurisdiction rule tying you to a city. For Punjab the practical choices are GVCW Chandigarh (Elante Offices) and GVCW Jalandhar (Aman Plaza), or New Delhi at the Shivaji Stadium Metro Station.
The centre you pick affects timing. GVCW counts 5 extra days for files lodged outside New Delhi, because they are sent to the Delhi centre first and passed to the Embassy the next day. A manager flying out soon may find the drive to Delhi worth it.
Two GVCW services suit busy professionals:
- Prime Time: submit on a Saturday, between 10:00 and 15:00, at an extra charge per applicant. GVCW says it does not make processing faster.
- Mobile biometrics: GVCW staff collect fingerprints at your location anywhere in India. When we checked on 14 October 2026, it started from ₹7,000 per application depending on group size and location, on top of the visa and service fees. It applies to applicants aged 12 and above.
Otherwise, every applicant comes to the centre in person to give 10 fingerprints and a photo. Fees are paid in rupees in cash or by UPI, though GVCW's notice says the New Delhi centre is taking cash only for now. Track open dates on our Greece appointment availability page.
Which documents depend on your situation?
Greece keeps the business-specific part short, and its 2026 checklist notice spells it out. You need:
- A cover letter from your employer.
- The certificate of incorporation of your employer, a line added in the 2026 notice.
- An invitation letter from the inviting company or organisation in Greece.
Both letters must confirm, at a minimum, your identity, the purpose of the trip (for example meetings, conferences, training or other business-related activities), and the intended period and location of your stay. "At a minimum" is a floor. Stating who pays for travel and hotels, naming a contact person in Greece, and showing how the two companies know each other leaves the officer less to guess.
The rest follows the Embassy's common list for India, with Greek details:
Employee sent by an Indian company
- What changes
- Payslips for the last three months and your employment contract, beside the employer's letter and incorporation certificate
Proprietor or director
- What changes
- The company's certificate of registration; the cover letter comes from your own firm, signed by an authorised person
Spouse travelling with you
- What changes
- Spouse's name endorsed in both passports; otherwise the original marriage certificate apostilled by the MEA, or failing both an affidavit
Someone else is paying
- What changes
- Greece's official sponsorship form, and the sponsor's financial documents as a separate set in each application
Attending a conference run by a non-profit, aged 25 or under
- What changes
- You may qualify for a visa fee waiver; bring the organiser's invitation
For money, the checklist wants an original bank statement with three months of movements, stamped and signed by the bank, and Indian ITR acknowledgements for the last two assessment years, attested. Original documents must be accompanied by a copy.
Travel medical insurance is where corporate travellers slip. For applications lodged in India, the Embassy accepts policies from Indian insurance companies only if they are on the approved list, a rule in force since 1 October 2013. A group or credit-card policy that is not on the list does not count, however generous. Cover must be at least €30,000, valid in all Schengen states for the whole stay.
How much is the Greece business visa fee?
The visa fee is €90, shown on GVCW's fee table as ₹9,810 on 14 October 2026, plus GVCW's service fee of €30 per application, charged in rupees at the day's European Central Bank rate. Researchers on scientific research, and representatives or participants of non-profit organisations up to 25 years old attending seminars, conferences or similar events run by non-profits, are exempt from the visa fee. Nothing is refunded if the visa is refused. Our filing fee is shown at the top of this page.
How long does it take, and when should you apply?
GVCW says up to 15 days, extendable up to 45 working days when other Schengen states must be consulted, with 5 extra days for centres outside New Delhi. The EU Visa Code gives a standard 15 calendar days and a ceiling of 45 calendar days. Use the longer GVCW figures when you plan.
You can lodge up to six months before the trip. GVCW's latest date is 15 working days before departure, stricter than the EU's 15 calendar days, so treat 15 working days as the cut-off. The Visa Code allows a consulate to accept a later application in justified cases of urgency, but that is the Embassy's call, not something to plan around.
Conferences and trade fairs are announced months ahead. Collect the invitation early and lodge as soon as you are inside the six-month window.
Why do Greece business visas get refused for Indian applicants?
Greece issues refusals on the EU's standard form, with the reasons and the appeal procedure. On business files these faults come up again and again.
Letters that miss the minimum
An invitation that never states your identity, or a cover letter with no dates or place of stay, fails the checklist's three-point minimum. Check both letters against identity, purpose, and period and place before anyone signs.
The two letters disagree
Different dates, a different purpose, or a Greek host who seems not to know your company leave the purpose of the stay unproved. Send each side the other's draft and attach proof of the relationship, such as invoices, purchase orders or emails.
Employer papers left out
Since the 2026 checklist notice, the employer's certificate of incorporation belongs in the file. A cover letter on letterhead without it leaves the employer unverified.
Insurance that is not on the list
A corporate policy from an Indian insurer outside the approved list does not meet the Embassy's rule for applications lodged in India. Buy a compliant policy for the trip even if your company already covers you.
A visit that sounds like a job
"Joining the site team" or "deputation" reads as employment, which a business visa does not cover. Describe meetings, training sessions or conference days, with dates for each.
After a refusal you can appeal under Greek law, following the procedure and deadline in the refusal letter, or apply again once the reasons are fixed. The full list of refusal grounds is on our Schengen refusal reasons page.
Tips for a stronger business file
- Mirror the three points. Put identity, purpose and period and place in the same order in both letters, so the officer finds them in seconds.
- Attested ITRs. Two assessment years of acknowledgements, attested before you book. A plain printout does not meet the checklist.
- A day-by-day schedule. Company, city, address and purpose for each day, matching the hotel bookings and the invitation dates.
- Intra-Schengen legs. If the trip continues to Italy or Germany, add that flight, train or car-hire booking and the hotel there.
- Frequent trips. The Visa Code allows multiple-entry visas of up to five years for travellers who show a need to travel frequently and have used earlier visas lawfully. Indians who have obtained and lawfully used two Schengen visas within three years can be issued a two-year multiple-entry visa under the April 2024 EU cascade, normally followed by a five-year one.
- Carry copies. GVCW notes that a visa does not by itself entitle you to enter, and border officers may ask about your purpose and means. Keep the invitation and employer letter in your hand luggage.
Is training allowed on a Greece business visa?
Yes, within limits. The Embassy's checklist lists training among the business purposes the two letters can describe, alongside meetings and conferences. A supplier's course on equipment you have bought, or a training programme at your Greek partner's office, fits that. What does not fit is productive work for the Greek company, paid or not, which GVCW's FAQ treats as employment outside a Schengen visa.
If the training is part of a study or internship programme, the checklist has a separate purpose with its own papers: a certificate of admission or registration at the institution, or a cover letter from the inviting company, and student cards or certificates from the institution where you are enrolled. For the bigger picture on travel to Greece, see the Greece country page; for a holiday after the meetings, read the Greece tourist visa guide.
