Greece: Increase of the military service in the Army after many decades

The duration of the full military service in the Army has been increased from 9 to 12 months by a joint ministerial decision of the Ministers of National Defence and Finances, issued on the 4^th of March 2021. Consequently, the duration of full military service is now equal in all three branches of the armed forces: Army, Navy and Air Force. This is the first time in decades that the military service in the Army has been increased. Considering that the vast majority of conscripts serve in the Army, this is virtually an increase of the length of military service in Greece.

As an exception, the duration of the full military service will be 9 instead of 12 months if conscripts, after the initial training, serve the entire remaining time in certain areas close to the eastern borders or in Cyprus (cited with the code name “island ‘K’” in the joint ministerial decision) or in certain military units.

Furthermore, the duration of the military service in the Army for the first category of reduced service for reasons of family status has been increased from 8 to 9 months, making it again equal to that in the Navy and the Air Force. Equivalently, as an exception, the duration for this first category of reduced military service will be 8 months in the aforementioned areas and military units.