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Greece: EU Compliance Guide for PrestaShop Merchants

By Compliance Editorial Team Updated July 4, 2026 4 min read

Greece applies the EU consumer and product framework and adds Greek-language consumer information and a packaging Extended Producer Responsibility (EPR) system administered through HERRCO under the oversight of the national recycling body EOAN. If you run a PrestaShop store and ship to Greek customers, this hub explains the authorities, the applicable EU laws and the national details that most often catch distance sellers out.

Overview

Selling into Greece means operating under two layers of law. The first is the EU baseline: regulations such as the General Product Safety Regulation and the Omnibus rules apply across all 27 member states, so the starting point is the same whether you ship to Athens or Amsterdam. The second is the Greek layer: consumer policy administered by the General Secretariat for Consumer Affairs, Greek-language expectations, and a packaging EPR system with clear national administration. The substance is harmonised, but the language, registrations and enforcement bodies are national.

Consumer & market-surveillance authorities

Consumer policy and enforcement in Greece are led by the General Secretariat for Consumer Affairs, which sits within the Ministry of Development. It is responsible for consumer protection, product-information and safety oversight, and action against unfair commercial practices. It handles complaints and can pursue traders whose practices harm consumers.

Market surveillance and packaging oversight also involve sector authorities, the national recycling body EOAN (the Hellenic Recycling Agency) for EPR, and the customs service, which handles imports and can stop non-compliant goods at the border.

  • General Secretariat for Consumer Affairs (Ministry of Development) – consumer protection and unfair-practice enforcement.
  • EOAN (Hellenic Recycling Agency) – oversight of packaging EPR and recycling schemes.
  • Customs – border controls on imported goods.

Applicable EU laws

The following EU regulations apply to your Greek sales, with Greek implementation where relevant.

  • GPSR – product safety, traceability and responsible-person obligations.
  • Omnibus – price-reduction transparency and review authenticity, transposed into Greek consumer law.
  • PPWR – the Packaging and Packaging Waste Regulation, interacting with Greece’s packaging EPR.
  • European Accessibility Act – accessibility duties for e-commerce and certain products.

National specifics

Language

Consumer information for the Greek market should be provided in Greek. This covers essential product characteristics, safety warnings, instructions for use, and the mandatory pre-contractual and contractual details a distance seller must give. A Greek-language storefront, with Greek safety and instruction text on products, is the dependable approach; English-only listings for the Greek market are a common and easily spotted weakness.

Packaging EPR registration

Greece operates packaging EPR through collective schemes under EOAN oversight. The best-known packaging scheme is HERRCO (the Hellenic Recovery Recycling Corporation), which administers the blue-bin recycling system and manages collection and recovery on behalf of its members, with producers paying contributions based on the packaging they place on the market. Businesses that place packaging on the Greek market are generally treated as producers and should register with a scheme such as HERRCO and ensure their contributions are reported and paid before shipping.

Notable national law

Greece transposes the EU consumer directives, including the Omnibus price-transparency changes, through its national consumer-protection legislation. This governs pre-contractual information, the right of withdrawal for distance contracts, guarantees and protection against unfair and misleading practices. The General Secretariat for Consumer Affairs applies these rules, so mapping your PrestaShop checkout and product pages against Greek information duties is a sensible step before selling.

Penalties & enforcement

The consumer authority can investigate complaints, require corrective measures and impose sanctions for information failures, unfair practices or unsafe products, and can order products withdrawn from the market. Packaging EPR obligations under EOAN oversight carry their own duties and consequences for non-registration. As with other markets, treat the enforcement picture qualitatively: Greece has a defined consumer authority and clear EPR expectations, so consistent compliance from the first sale is the safe strategy.

Merchant checklist

  • Provide consumer information, safety warnings and instructions in Greek.
  • Register for packaging EPR with a scheme such as HERRCO under EOAN oversight before shipping.
  • Align checkout and product pages with Greek consumer-information duties.
  • Apply the Omnibus 30-day prior-price rule and show honest reference prices on discounts.
  • Meet GPSR traceability and responsible-person requirements.
  • Keep documentation ready in case of an inspection or consumer-authority request.

Related & next steps

National specifics change over time. Always confirm current Greek requirements with the General Secretariat for Consumer Affairs (Ministry of Development) before relying on this summary.