Final submissions on the out-of-court debt settlement platform reached a six-month high in October, totalling 4,144. New application starts also remained strong, topping 7,000 for the second consecutive month.
New successful restructurings totalled 1,965, including 552 under the requirement for creditors to participate. The initial debts restructured amounted to €524 million.
By the end of October, a total of 72,232 successful restructurings had been completed, covering initial debts worth €21.77 billion.
Protecting the primary residence
In less than a month and a half since the new arrangement took effect on 21 September 2026, 675 borrowers had started an application to save their primary residence in exchange for voluntarily liquidating their remaining real estate assets.
Participation by vulnerable groups continues to show a positive trend. In October, 294 successful restructurings were completed, 39 of them involving people with disabilities (PWD).
By the same month, successful applications to the out-of-court mechanism had secured a total of 674 suspensions of auctions, providing meaningful protection for citizens’ assets during the process.
Bilateral arrangements
In September, bilateral loan arrangements with the four largest financial institutions (Intrum, Cepal, DoValue, Qquant) also returned to a high pace. Arrangements totalling €500 million were reached for 4,561 debtors.
A new legislative initiative by the Ministry of National Economy and Finance establishes a strict framework to protect borrowers, strengthen transparency, ensure fair treatment of debtors and effectively supervise claims management companies (servicers).
It introduces explicit obligations and deadlines for creditors and gives citizens the right to full information free of charge, while also providing for heavy penalties and automatic compensation in cases of abuse.
New measures
The measures include:
A fixed interest rate of 3% for vulnerable and eligible debtors who restructure debts owed to financial institutions through the out-of-court mechanism. The rate will remain fixed throughout the arrangement. The measure will apply to payments made from 1 December 2026.
Right to free information: Borrowers will be entitled to receive, free of charge, a full and detailed breakdown of their debt—including contracts, payment history and how the interest rate is calculated—within 45 days.
Suspension of interest accrual if information is delayed: If a credit servicer fails to respond promptly to a request for information, the claim will stop accruing contractual and default interest until the information is provided in full.
Cap on interest accrual: A maximum debt limit will apply to claims arising from all types of loan and credit agreements.
Automatic recalculation of debts: Financial institutions and servicing companies will be required to recalculate the outstanding balance of claims automatically, in accordance with the law, without the debtor or guarantor having to submit an application, file a lawsuit or take any other action.
Standardised restructuring proposal before an auction: Creditors will be required to submit a suitable, viable and substantiated restructuring proposal to the debtor in writing at least three months before an auction takes place.
Introduction of a special bilateral restructuring procedure: A standalone, standardised and time-limited digital process will be established for bilateral negotiations and the final settlement of debts. Explicit maximum time limits will apply to all parties involved: the creditor must inform the debtor of the possibility of a restructuring within 60 days of the loan reaching 90 days in arrears, while the debtor will have two months to submit an application and supporting documents. The entire process must be completed within six months at the latest, ensuring a swift outcome and preventing delaying tactics.
Mediation: Disputes may be resolved, or mediated, through the Hellenic Financial Ombudsman.
More instalments for public-sector debts: The options for paying overdue debts to the tax authorities and social security agencies in instalments will be expanded to up to 120 monthly instalments. The new measure extends the period in which debts can qualify: the cut-off date will move from 31 December 2023 to 31 December 2024, allowing later debts incurred or assessed up to the end of 2024 to be included.
Higher fines for servicers: The maximum fine the Bank of Greece can impose on servicers will increase tenfold, from €500,000 to €5 million.
Borrowers in good standing
Borrowers in good standing—that is, those who have entered into a restructuring arrangement and are meeting its terms—will receive protection under an exceptionally strict framework governing claims management companies and creditors:
Absolute ban on enforcement measures: During the arrangement, creditors will be expressly prohibited from terminating the agreement, issuing or enforcing a payment order, imposing an attachment, or conducting or continuing any auction.
Protection even if an instalment is missed through the creditor’s fault: The protection will apply even if a borrower fails to pay one or more instalments, provided this is solely because the creditor did not supply the information necessary for payment in time.
Automatic invalidity: Any debt-collection or legal action taken against a borrower in good standing in breach of the above provisions will be automatically void. If an auction has begun, it will be suspended immediately.
Mandatory compensation through waived instalments: In the event of a breach, the creditor will automatically be required to credit the debtor with an amount equal to five monthly instalments, to be offset against the final instalments of the arrangement, and extend the arrangement by five months without any interest or charges.
Heavy administrative fines: For each such breach against a borrower, the General Secretariat for the Financial Sector and Private Debt Management will impose an administrative fine of €50,000 to €500,000 on the creditor or servicer. The fine will be doubled for repeat offences.
Citizen Services – myEGDIXlive
To help people make more effective use of the available debt restructuring tools, the General Secretariat for the Financial Sector and Private Debt Management offers appointments nationwide by video call or telephone, either through the platform https://www.gov.gr/ipiresies/polites-kai-kathemerinoteta/ex-apostaseos-exuperetese-politon/exuperetese-me-telediaskepse-kai-telephonike-epikoinonia-apo-ten-eidike-grammateia-diakheirises-idiotikou-khreous-egdikh or by calling 213.212.5730.