I am a US citizen... I am planning a move to Greece and want to obtain my Greek citizenship prior to going... what do I need to do... who do I contact and how long does this process usually take??

From the following site: About Us - U.S. Citizen Services/Greek Citizenship Code - United States Embassy, Athens-Greece

Chapter A

ACQUISITION OF GREEK CITIZENSHIP

By Birth
Article 1

1. The child of Greek parents acquires Greek citizenship by birth.
2. Greek citizenship is acquired upon the birth of a child in Greece if the child does not acquire another foreign citizenship by birth or its citizenship is unknown at the time of birth.

By Recognition
Article 2

A foreign child born out of wedlock, who is legally recognized by a Greek national voluntarily or by full judicial acknowledgment, becomes a Greek citizen if during the acknowledgement the foreign child had been a minor (before reaching the age of 18).

By Adoption
Article 3

1. A person who has been adopted as a minor by a Greek national becomes Greek from the day of his/her adoption.

By enlistment in the Armed Services
Article 4

1. Aliens of Greek ethnic origin, admitted to military academies as officers or non-commissioned officers of the armed services or enlisted in the armed services as volunteers, in accordance with current regulations, lawfully acquire Greek citizenship from the time of their admittance to such institutions or from their enlistment.

2. Aliens of Greek ethnic origin who enlist as volunteers in time of mobilization or war, in accordance with the current regulations, may acquire Greek Citizenship by petition to the Secretary General of the Prefecture, and without any further formalities.


3. Those receiving promotion to officers, whether in the standing Armed Services or in the reserves, acquire the Greek Citizenship without any further formalities.

4. The military oath taken by the persons mentioned in paragraphs 1, 2, and 3, substitutes for the oath of the Greek citizen.

5. The children of aliens of Greek ethnic origin, who acquire Greek Citizenship, in accordance with the previous paragraphs, become Greek citizens at the same time their parents acquire Greek citizenship provided that at the time of their parents' petition to the Secretary General of the Prefecture they are minors.

By Naturalization

Article 5
Conditions of Naturalization

1. An alien may acquire Greek citizenship by naturalization provided that:

a. he/she has reached the age of eighteen

b. he/she has no appeal pending for prior convictions during the last ten years before the submission of the naturalization petition to a sentence of deprivation of freedom of at least one year, or regardless of the sentence and the time the conviction was issued, for crimes involving: insulting the constitution, treason, homicide or intentional severe bodily injuries, crimes involving trade and trafficking of narcotics, money-laundering, international financial crimes, crimes involving means of high technology, monetary crimes, resisting authorities, kidnapping a minor, crimes involving sexual bondage or financial sexual exploitation, theft, fraud, embezzlement, extortion, usury, law regarding intermediaries, forgery, false statements, defamation, smuggling, crimes involving weapons or antiquities, direct importation of illegal aliens to the interior of the country or the facilitation of their transport, or accommodation in hiding them or for violating legislation for their establishment and movement in Greece.

c. there is no pending deportation

2. An alien who is born in another country is required to:

a. Reside legally in Greece for ten of the last twelve years before he/she can apply for naturalization. For the alien who is recognized as a refugee, residency of five years for the past twelve years would be enough before the application. Under the above circumstances the time that the alien resided in Greece as a diplomat or an officer of another country would not count. The ten-year residency requirement does not apply to a spouse of a Greek citizen; or for an alien who has been a resident of Greece for at least three years and has a child; and also for aliens who were born and reside continuously in Greece. For spouses of Greek diplomats, who have completed, at any time, one year of residency in Greece, and are posted abroad, the time spent at the overseas post counts for the above mentioned required period.

b. Sufficient knowledge of the Greek language, Greek history and Greek culture in general.


3. Athletes of Olympic games who have completed five years of legal residence in Greece in the last twelve-year period can get Greek citizenship according to the provisions of articles 5 through 9 of the present code, as long as they have the right to compete with the Greek national team, in accordance with the international rules of the game after the recommendation of the national committee and the agreement of the Greek Olympic Committee.

Article 6
Supporting Documents

The alien who wishes to be naturalized as a Greek citizen, submits to the city or the community hall of his/her place of residence a request for naturalization, which is addressed to the Ministry of Interior, Public Administration & Decentralization with the following attachments:

a. Naturalization statement. This statement is submitted to the Mayor or the President of the Community and in the presence of two Greek citizen witnesses.

b. Deposit fee defined by the effective, current legislation. Greek descendants are not obligated for the deposit fee.

c. Copy of the passport or other travel documents.

d. Residence permit or other documents establishing legal residence in the country.

e. Birth certificate or if it's not possible to obtain such, a baptismal certificate. If the alien is a refugee and he/she is unable to produce the birth certificate, he/she can present the political asylum decision, and

f. Tax return or a copy of the tax declaration for the last fiscal year.

[deleon]I am a US citizen... I am planning a move to Greece and want to obtain my Greek citizenship prior to going... what do I need to do... who do I contact and how long does this process usually take?? [/QUOTE]

You can get in to this website of greek law firm - to have answers


www.freewebs.com/grlawe

After reviewing the all information answered
I must say that the greek procedure is totally diffirenet from other european countries
So better not to loose the chance and to make mistkes with the application - because the greek procedure very cathchy
Try to get a advocate please