Second cycle of “Saving Energy II”: How can you prove the legality of your building for subsidy purposes?

We are just a breath away from the announcement of the new “Exoikonomo” program, which will be announced in accordance with the government’s recent announcement in mid-July. Indeed, citizens are very interested in subsidies for energy upgrades to their homes. However, a key factor in the eligibility of an application is the urban planning legality of the property, so citizens should be careful, as the application will take the form of a sworn statement and there will be financial and criminal consequences after the file has been checked. For this reason, it is advisable for interested parties to first consult a competent engineer to find out whether their home meets the specifications and may be eligible for the new “Saving at Home” program and to rectify any irregularities in a timely manner.

How is the legality of a building proven?

The legality of the building is proven by the following documents:

Form building permit. It should be noted that the total area of the square meters of the space to have building permit and to be used as a residence.
Any unauthorized constructions must be regularized in accordance with a law on unauthorized constructions.
Certificate from the municipality/engineer for a building constructed before 1955.
Buildings constructed before 1955 are considered legally existing. In this case, a relevant certificate from an engineer is required.
Certificate of inclusion of the unauthorized construction in a law on unauthorized constructions.
If the residence (or part thereof) was built without a permit after 1955, it must be regularized.
Certificate of definitive exemption from demolition by the Town Planning Department.

In my apartment, instead of the two window frames shown on the building permit, I have three, and the engineer I called for my energy audit says that this is unauthorized. Is this true?

Indeed, changing openings is considered an arbitrary act, which is regulated by the law on arbitrary acts with a fine of €250. Therefore, before the 1st Energy Certificate is issued, this arbitrary act must also be rectified.

I will submit the building permit. Who will understand if I don’t take care of it?

All documents proving the legality of the building are scanned and uploaded to the electronic system of the Ministry of Environment, where they can be checked to verify the accuracy of the information provided and prevent fraud. In the event of an inaccurate declaration, the relevant penalties will apply.

Do I have to pay the entire fine for the unauthorized construction before joining the “Saving at Home” program?

If there are any outstanding legalization/regularization issues with the property, these must be resolved before submitting the application. Please note that before submitting the application, the property must be covered by the law on the regularization of unauthorized buildings and at least 30% of the total fine must have been paid. In the case of participation in the “Saving at Home” program, the fine for unauthorized construction must be paid before the final disbursement of the grant.

I was told that the Ministry accepts building permits for differences of up to 7 square meters. Is this true?

This 7 m² deviation accepted by “Exoikonomo” DOES NOT APPLY TO UNAUTHORIZED CONSTRUCTIONS. It is the deviation between the usable area of the property recorded in the Energy Certificate and the main use area declared in E9 (which, however, has been correctly declared in accordance with the provisions in force). For this reason, in this case, a relevant check is carried out to ensure that all documents referring to the area of the building (building permit and/or other legal document, E9, Energy Certificate) agree with each other.

I have an unauthorized building. Is it better to join the “Exoikonomo” program or take the fine discount and upgrade the energy efficiency myself?

Based on the economic program, the maximum subsidy a household can receive is 70%. According to the law on unauthorized construction, the discount on the fine for energy upgrades is 50% for excesses of up to 250 square meters in horizontal or vertical properties used as residences. Therefore, the interested party should calculate whether it is in their interest to claim the subsidy from the new Economy programme, which corresponds to the energy upgrade costs, or to opt for the reduction of the fine for the unauthorised building or building with unauthorised additions. However, since the majority of buildings have excesses of less than 80 square meters and were built in the past, it seems that the “Exoikonomo” subsidy is more advantageous.

What are the violations of a building that are examined because they are considered arbitrary and must be rectified before inclusion in the “Save Energy” program?

Exceeding building density, coverage, additional spaces, change of use of spaces, changes in dimensions, and generally anything related to surface area.
Excesses in volume, height
Structural elements that appear to be legal but were not included in the coverage diagram calculations, e.g., extended balconies.
Change of appearance in relation to approved designs.
Structures above the maximum height
Illegal filling or failure to level the final ground level (e.g., basements converted into floors)
Fences with a solid height of over 1 meter
Change in apartment square footage – Apartment division
Violation of boundaries and distances from adjacent buildings
Violation of mandatory green space
Construction of a warehouse in an open area or on a roof
Change of use (e.g., warehouse converted into a residence)
Closing of floodlights
Closing of Semi-Open Space
Change in the position and size of external openings

If a residence built after the war does not have a building permit and has not been declared under the law on the regularization of unauthorized constructions, but is declared normally in E9, is it eligible? What supporting documents must be submitted for the above residence?

Declaring the residence on Form E9 does not imply that the building is legally constructed. A building permit or corresponding legal document must be submitted, as applicable.

Is a residential building subject to Law 1337/1983 (the “Tritsis” law) eligible?

Interested parties should pay particular attention in this case. For unauthorized buildings constructed before 1983, which were declared under the “Tritsis” law, it is not enough to have submitted a declaration and completed phase A (as thousands of properties were exempted from demolition at the time), but they must have completed all the provisions of the Tritsis law. If they have not done so, the only option is to enter into the new law on unauthorized buildings, because formally, according to the law, they are still unauthorized (but they are not demolished).

Are homes under construction or unfinished homes included in the program?

Unfinished homes aren’t eligible for the Program. When the Program talks about “homes,” it means ones that are finished and already hooked up to electricity.

In the case of apartments that appear as a single store in the building permit but are declared as two separate residences in E9 and E1, can they be included in the Home Energy Saving II program?

First, the unauthorized use/change of use must be regularized in accordance with the legislation in force, and then an application must be submitted to the Program.

Are properties built with assistance included in the Program?

In general, properties for which there is a Land Registry certificate confirming that they are subsidized by the Greek State or a building permit for an addition to an existing subsidized building are included in the Program.

What happens in cases of refugee or workers’ housing?

For a building or part thereof which, on the basis of special provisions, has been constructed without the obligation to obtain a building permit from the town planning department (e.g. a building constructed by the Welfare Department), a relevant document must be submitted by the competent service (e.g. Welfare Department of the General Directorate of the Region where the records are currently kept).

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Preparation & interventions

In view of the program’s resumption, interested parties should act quickly to gather the information required to submit their application. In this regard, RunMyProject by B2Green may be the right tool for identifying ideal proposals for interventions under the new “energy saving” program in categories such as:

By clicking on the above categories, eligible beneficiaries (& not only) of the “Save II” to find the right partner for them, for the corresponding category of intervention.