More than 3,000 complaints regarding illegal activities and violations along Greece’s coastline have already been submitted to the Ministry of Finance even before July officially began. Although the situation has slightly improved compared to last year, a total of 2,667 anonymous and named complaints were submitted in June alone, adding to approximately 300 reports that had already reached the ministry in May. Of the reported cases, more than half have already been inspected and penalties—reaching up to €60,000 in some cases—have been imposed.
Obstruction of public access to the sea, beach, or coastal areas incurs fines ranging from €2,000 to €60,000, while hindering inspections by any authority results in a €10,000 penalty. A fine of €1,000 is issued for failing to display the license plate with concession details.
Currently, inspections are conducted using traditional methods such as measuring tapes and cross-checking concession documents. However, moving into August, drones will be deployed for surveillance and aerial photography of beaches either preventively or following complaints. According to official sources, the MyCoast application, developed by the Ministry of Digital Governance, has become an invaluable tool for both inspectors and citizens.
Compared to last summer’s high rates of violations and extreme cases of illegal constructions, the current season appears to show improvement. Stricter fines, faster inspections, and better concession allocation procedures have contributed to this positive shift. Data from the Ministry shows there are 10,565 concessions in total, with 982 issued this year alone.
Of all the complaints received, the majority (1,568) relate to unauthorized beach coverage, followed by 441 concerning restricted public access. The geographical distribution of complaints filed in June, when beaches started getting crowded, reveals that Eastern Attica and Halkidiki led in violations:
– Aetolia-Acarnania: 33
– Eastern Attica: 396 (including 106 in Saronikos)
– Andros: 10
– Argolida: 17
– Arcadia: 4
– Achaia: 51
– Boeotia: 1
– Western Attica: 9
– Evros: 16
– Evia: 72
– Zakynthos: 50
– Ilia: 12
– Heraklion, Crete: 45
– Thasos: 84
– Thesprotia: 17
– Thessaloniki: 65
– Thira: 21
– Ikaria: 10
– Ioannina: 5
– Kavala: 64
– Kalymnos: 35
– Karpathos: 7
– Kastoria: 3
– Kea-Kythnos: 7
– Corfu: 79
– Kefalonia: 17
– Corinthia: 101 (including 52 in Kiato)
– Kos: 24
– Laconia: 9
– Larissa: 25
– Lasithi: 15
– Lesvos: 13
– Lefkada: 37
– Lemnos: 8
– Magnesia: 189
– Messinia: 62
– Milos: 13
– Mykonos: 33
– Naxos: 20
– Islands of the Argosaronic Gulf: 59
– Southern Attica: 29
– Xanthi: 3
– Paros: 35
– Piraeus: 4
– Pieria: 39
– Preveza: 133
– Rethymno: 16
– Rodopi: 9
– Rhodes: 164
– Samos: 12
– Sporades: 28
– Syros: 12
– Tinos: 15
– Phthiotida: 6
– Phocis: 7
When it comes to enforcement, if someone occupies a beach or coastal area without a concession contract—or beyond its terms—the Land Service issues an immediate removal order. This order requires movable structures placed illegally on the coast to be removed within 48 hours, regardless of when they were installed.
In cases of illegal construction on the coast, these structures must be demolished. Additionally, if economic activity takes place on an illegally occupied beach area (e.g., beach bars), the Land Service or the local municipality issues both an immediate removal order and a shutdown directive. Within 24 hours, the space must be sealed with tape and a sign indicating the closure, at least in Greek and English, prohibiting entry.
Fines include:
– Unauthorized construction or modification on the coast incurs a fine four times the applicable concession fee, multiplied by the number of years since the violation occurred (up to five years). Offenders are also barred from participating in any concession process for ten years after the penalty is enforced.
– Unauthorized occupation of coastal land without a concession agreement incurs a fine equal to four times the concession fee for the area occupied. The violator is banned from future concessions for five years. In case of a second offense by an adjacent business, operations are suspended for ten days, the cash register is sealed by the Independent Authority for Public Revenue (AADE), and the violator is excluded from concession processes for ten years.
– Occupation exceeding the concession contract incurs a fine four times the applicable rate for the excess area. If the overuse exceeds 30% of the allocated area and is repeated, the offender is banned from future concessions for five years; for a third time, the ban extends to ten years, operations are suspended, and the cash register is sealed.