Main law references

The legal framework defining the standards for organ transplantatio is set out in Directive 2010/53/EU, also referred to as the European Organs Directive.

Expression of consent or dissent to the donation and organs that can be donated

The law on organ donation in Greece is based on two fundamental principles: organs can only be donated voluntarily and free of charge.

The text of the law regulates both organ donation from deceased persons and organ donation from living persons.

As regards organ donation from deceased persons, organ removal from a potential donor is permitted provided that the deceased did not object to organ donation during his lifetime or that his relatives did not object after his death.

Organ donation after the death of the donor cannot be made to a designated recipient. The suggestion of a recipient by the body or the organ donor is not considered, but the established order of priority is followed.

The identity of the deceased organ donor is not disclosed to the recipient and his/her family. The identity of the recipient is also not revealed to the family of the deceased donor. Only the success of the transplant can be revealed.

In the case of living organ donation, explicit written consent is required, with the signature of the donor. The removal of organs from a living donor is permitted only when the transplant is to be carried out: a) to his/her spouse, b) to a patient to whom the donor has been bound by a civil union, in accordance with the provisions of Act No. 3719/2008, for more than three years.

Organs that can be donated 

Kidneys are the most frequently transplanted organ and help patients with end-stage kidney disease. Other frequently transplanted organs include livers, lungs and hearts, while the small bowel and the pancreas can also be transplanted. All organs can be donated after death, while living donors can donate a kidney as well as a part of their liver.