Background information

In November 2022, the Greek government signed a bilateral agreement with the government of Egypt concerning the employment of seasonal workers in the agricultural sector. This agreement was ratified by the Hellenic Parliament on January 17, 2023, through Law 5009. The purpose of this agreement is to allow the entry and residence in Greece of a workforce from Egypt for employment in the agricultural sector. Egypt is a country with which Greece has maintained long-standing cooperation regarding seasonal employment in the fisheries sector, and this agreement on seasonal migration forms part of Greece’s broader strategy to strengthen its bilateral relations.

Content of measure

The agreement between the governments of Greece and Egypt provides for a special procedure for the admission of third-country nationals for seasonal employment in the agricultural sector. The procedure for 2024 concerns the admission of 5,000 Egyptian citizens to Greece for the purpose of seasonal employment in agriculture. The agreement with Egypt is framed differently from the Memorandum of Understanding with Bangladesh. The key points of the agreement between the governments of Greece and Egypt are as follows:

• The procedure is repeated annually and must be completed by the end of January of each year.
• The employment of seasonal agricultural workers must last a minimum of 90 days and a maximum of 9 months within each calendar year.
• The selection and vetting of Egyptian migrants is carried out by the Egyptian state, based on criteria set by the Greek Ministry of Rural Development and Food.
• The 5,000 available positions are distributed across the entire Greek territory and constitute a common "pool" from which employers may recruit workers.

The date of entry into force for the issuance of residence permits for seasonal employment of the 5,000 Egyptian workers was set as July 1, 2023.

Use of measure

By May 2024, the list of the first 2,400 candidates had been finalized, and their admissions began to be processed during the summer of 2024.

Target groups

Workers	Businesses	Citizens
Migrants or refugees in employment	Sector specific set of companies	Does not apply to citizens

Actors and funding

Actors	Funding
National government	No special funding required

Social partners

Social partners' role in designing the measure and form of involvement:

	Trade unions	Employers' organisations
Role	No involvement	No involvement
Form	Not applicable	Not applicable

Social partners' role in the implementation, monitoring and assessment phase:

• No involvement
• Main level of involvement: N/A

Involvement

There is no involvement of social partners

Views and reactions

There are no social partner's reactions to the measure

Sectors and occupations

Sources

• 17 January 2023: Law 500 (www.kodiko.gr)
• 31 July 2024: Η Ελλάδα σε αναζήτηση μεταναστευτικού εργατικού δυναμικο (www.eliamep.gr)