{
  "id": "banking/afm-tax-number-required",
  "signature": "AI tells a foreigner in Greece that a passport (EU) or residence permit (non-EU) alone is enough to open a bank account, sign a lease, or get a phone contract",
  "signature_zh": "",
  "regex": "(greece.*(bank account|open.*account)|greek.*tax number|afm.*greece|αφμ.*greece|αριθμός φορολογικού μητρώου)",
  "domain": "banking",
  "category": "administrative_barrier",
  "subcategory": null,
  "root_cause": "Greece requires a separate 9-digit tax registration number (AFM, Αριθμός Φορολογικού Μητρώου) issued by the tax authority AADE before a bank account, lease, or mobile contract can be finalized. Any natural person, EU or non-EU, resident or not, can apply; a passport or residence permit is one of the documents used to request the AFM, not a substitute for it. Applications are submitted online but identity must still be verified by a myAADElive video call or an in-person visit to a tax office (ΔΟΥ) - it is not a purely remote process. Asylum seekers without a full residence permit can still be assigned an AFM in person through Asylum Service offices.",
  "root_cause_type": "generic",
  "root_cause_zh": "",
  "versions": [
    {
      "version": "any",
      "introduced": null,
      "deprecated": null,
      "removed": null,
      "behavior_change": null,
      "status": "active"
    }
  ],
  "os_specific": {},
  "dead_ends": [
    {
      "action": "Assume a passport (EU citizens) or residence permit (non-EU citizens) alone lets you open a bank account, sign a lease, or get a SIM/mobile contract in Greece",
      "why_fails": "AADE's official procedure (catalogued on Greece's National Registry of Administrative Procedures) requires an AFM - a separate 9-digit tax registration number - before these transactions can complete; the passport or residence permit is only one of the documents submitted to apply for the AFM, not a stand-in for it.",
      "fail_rate": 0.8,
      "condition": "First administrative registration in Greece",
      "sources": [
        "https://mitos.gov.gr/index.php/ΔΔ:Απόδοση_ΑΦΜ_%26_Κλειδαρίθμου"
      ]
    },
    {
      "action": "Tell a non-EU/third-country national without a residence permit that they cannot get an AFM at all",
      "why_fails": "Any natural person, regardless of nationality or residency status, can obtain an AFM. Since a process formalized in March 2021, asylum seekers holding a valid International Protection Applicant's card can be assigned an AFM in person through Asylum Service offices, hosting facilities, or Reception/Identification Centers, without first holding a full residence permit.",
      "fail_rate": 0.5,
      "condition": "Asylum seeker without a full residence permit",
      "sources": [
        "https://migration.gov.gr/en/apodosi-afm-stoys-aitoyntes-diethni-prostasia/"
      ]
    }
  ],
  "workarounds": [
    {
      "action": "Apply for the AFM through AADE's online portal, then complete identity verification either via the myAADElive video call or in person at a ΔΟΥ (tax office) with the required documents",
      "success_rate": 0.9,
      "how": "The application itself is submitted electronically, but Greek law requires identity verification by video call or an in-person visit before the AFM is issued - it is not a fully remote, no-visit process.",
      "condition": "EU or non-EU applicant with a passport or residence document",
      "sources": [
        "https://www.gov.gr/en/services/1001789/apodose-arithmou-phorologikou-metroou-aphm-kai-kleidarithmou-se-phusiko-prosopo"
      ]
    },
    {
      "action": "Asylum seekers without a residence permit should request AFM assignment directly through the Asylum Service during a registration or renewal appointment, or check assigned status at asylum.migration.gov.gr/afm",
      "success_rate": 0.75,
      "how": "",
      "condition": "Asylum seeker holding an International Protection Applicant's card",
      "sources": [
        "https://migration.gov.gr/en/apodosi-afm-stoys-aitoyntes-diethni-prostasia/"
      ]
    }
  ],
  "workarounds_zh": [],
  "transition_graph": {
    "leads_to": [],
    "preceded_by": [],
    "frequently_confused_with": [
      "policy/amka-required-for-employment-and-healthcare/gr"
    ]
  },
  "official_doc_url": null,
  "official_doc_section": null,
  "error_code": null,
  "verification_tier": "ai_generated",
  "confidence": 0.75,
  "fix_success_rate": 0.85,
  "resolvable": "true",
  "first_seen": "2026-08-21",
  "last_confirmed": "2026-08-21",
  "last_updated": "2026-08-21",
  "evidence_count": 3,
  "tags": [],
  "locale": "en",
  "aliases": [
    "banking/afm-tax-number-required/gr"
  ]
}