Conscription in Greece As of 2008 , Greece ( Hellenic Republic ) has mandatory military service ( conscription ) of 9 months for men between the ages of 18 and 45 . Citizens discharged from active service are normally placed in the Reserve and are subject to periodic recall of 1 – 10 days at irregular intervals . Duration . Universal conscription was introduced in Greece during the military reforms of 1909 , although various forms of selective draft had been in place earlier . In more recent years , conscription was associated with the state of general mobilisation declared on July 20 , 1974 due to the crisis in Cyprus ( the mobilisation was formally ended on December 18 , 2002 ) . The length of a tour has varied historically , between 12 – 36 months depending on various factors particular to the conscript , and the political situation . Although women are accepted into the Greek army on a voluntary basis , they are not required to enlist , as men are . Soldiers receive no health insurance , but they are provided medical support during their army service , including hospitalization costs . As of 2010 , Greece has mandatory military service of 9 months for male citizens between the ages of 18 and 45 . However , as the Armed forces had been gearing towards a complete professional army system , the government had promised that the mandatory military service would be cut to 6 months by 2008 or even abolished completely . However , this timetable is under reconsideration as of April 2006 , due to severe manpower shortages . These were caused by a combination of ( a ) financial difficulties , which meant that professional soldiers could not be hired at the projected rate , and ( b ) widespread abuse of the deferment process , which meant that 66 % of the draftees deferred service in 2005 . In August 2009 , the mandatory service was reduced to 9 months for the Land Army , while it has remained unchanged for the Navy and the Air Force . Both of them have reduced the number of conscripts they take , with an aim towards full professionalisation . Greek males between the age of 18 and 60 who live in strategically sensitive areas may be required to serve part - time in the National Guard ( " Ethnofylaki " Greek : " Εθνοφυλακή " ) . Service in the Guard is paid . In 1998 , the Greek Parliament voted law 2641 which mandated enrollment of Greek men and women between 18 and 60 years of age into a Civil Defence Organisation ( " Palaiki Amina " Greek : " Παλλαϊκή Άμυνα " , ΠΑΜ ) . It was envisaged that the Civil Defence Organisation would respond to enemy action , natural disasters and all sorts of emergencies , but the law was never enforced . Reserve officers . Reserve Officers ( ROs ) are selected among draftees with sufficient educational and physical qualifications . Educational qualifications include possessing a secondary education Lykeion diploma , while physical qualifications are determined in a series of standardized athletic tests . In practice , almost all draftees in possession of a Lykeion diploma will have an YEA ( Υποψήφιος Έφεδρος Αξιωματικός , YEA , Reserve Officer Cadet ) indication on their conscription invitation , although serving as a reserve officer is not mandatory , and a draftee can decline the offer , albeit in practice most prefer not to decline if asked and instead try not to pass the physical tests . Those who finally choose and pass all the physical and psycho - attitudinal tests necessary to be accepted as Reserve Officer cadets , are first sent for a longer ( compared to soldiers ' and NCOs ' ) training period in one of the Reserve Officer cadet schools , typically for 16 weeks , after which they are nominated ΔEA ( Δόκιμος Έφεδρος Αξιωματικός , DEA , Probationary Reserve Officer , PRO ) . Service as a PRO is different from a simple conscript ' s in many ways : PROs are generally subject to a harder training at first as cadets , but are also offered many privileges such as better dwellings , infrastructures and education . After their graduation from cadet academies , PROs are not required to live in barracks but can reside outside the camp and follow the same work schedule of permanent officers , and even receive a salary equal to 60 % of a permanent sublieutenant ( ca . 600 euros ) plus certain bonuses depending on social and service criteria . However , after the reduction of the tour ' s duration from 18 to 12 months in 2003 , and from 12 to 9 in 2009 , there is less incentive to become a PRO , as PROs were always required to serve 5 extra months compared to soldiers and NCO conscripts . In times where the tour duration was longer ( 18 months or more ) , the perceived difference in serving time was not as great as with shorter tours , while with shorter tours many conscripts just choose to get over with it as soon as possible . Reduced tour . Currently ( 2009 ) , the length of a tour is 9 months , but conscripts may serve a reduced tour for various social or other reasons . Some common categories of conscripts serving reduced tours are : Temporary Deferments . All healthy males are required to enlist at the age of 18 . However , deferments are granted upon request to students who wish to attend higher or further education . The duration of the deferment is 5 – 6 years , subject to recall if a student fails to demonstrate any academic progress within a year . However , this provision is not enforced . Deferments can also be granted for reasons of health ( including rehabilitation from drug abuse ) , and range in duration from 6 months to 2 years . These are awarded by medical committees comprising military physicians , army officers and recruitment officials . Incarcerated criminals are automatically deferred . Citizens whose brothers are currently serving in the armed forces may have their tour deferred until the discharge of their brothers . A deferment is also granted to candidates in most electoral contests for the duration of the elections . Finally , a small number of deferments can be granted at the discretion of the Defence Minister for compelling social reasons not explicitly stated in the legislation . Permanent Deferment . The following categories of citizens are not required to serve in the armed forces of Greece : Conscientious objectors . In 1997 , the Greek parliament voted a law that established alternative and unarmed service for conscientious objectors and in 2001 , amended the Constitution to recognise the right to conscientious objection . As of 2004 , alternative service is twice as long as the military service minus a month , i . e . 23 months , and unarmed service is 1 . 5 times as long as the military service , i . e . 18 months . Men serving alternative service at an institution that cannot provide them with food and accommodation receive a living expenses stipend about 210 euros per month . Since the reduction of the full service to 9 months , the alternative service is 17 months and unarmed service lasts 13 and 1 / 2 months . The ministry had stated that after the changes in the army - due to the reduction of the service - will de seen practically and the new structure functions , then will be made a new plan for a reduction of the term to 6 months ( and so to 11 months for the alternative and to 9 months for the unarmed service . Draft evaders and citizens living abroad . Draft evaders living in Greece are not allowed to leave the country . Prior to 2002 , the passports of draft evaders living outside Greece were not renewed after the expiration of the original . Upon re - entering Greece , these people were generally forced to conscribe . However in 2002 , the right was granted to all Greek citizens to be issued passports , regardless of their draft status . In 2004 , partial amnesty was granted to draft evaders , allowing them to visit Greece for up to 30 days in a single calendar year . Greek military law allows Permanent Residents Abroad to defer military service till repatriation to Greece . Until 2005 , Permanent Residents Abroad status ( for draft purposes ) was only granted to persons who had been born abroad or who had moved abroad before the age of eleven and to those who had immigrated to a specific set of countries before 1997 . This definition excluded many thousands of citizens who were living abroad and who were regarded as ' draft evaders ' by the authorities . The law was amended at the end of 2005 to grant Permanent Resident Abroad status to persons who have lived abroad for at least eleven years , or have worked abroad for at least seven years . Non - Greek European Union citizens have the right of unlimited permanent residency and employment in Greece without the obligation of conscription . Aspects of Military Life . Training . Military training in the Hellenic Army consists of three cycles . The first cycle includes Basic ( lasting 6 weeks ) and Specialist Training ( lasting 3 – 7 weeks ) . Basic and Specialist training take place in dedicated training facilities . The second training cycle is conducted in combat units , and lasts for 6 months . The third phase of training comprises the remainder of a conscript ' s tour and also carried out in regular army units . According to current standing orders , conscripts are required to train for a total of 7½ hours daily . However , a large number of conscripts are excused from training as they are on secondment to other assignments such as security or clerical and menial work . Moreover , many training activities tend to be theoretical in nature , and few opportunities are provided for the conscripts to practice the skills they are taught . As a result , the level of effectiveness of the training , particularly during the second and third cycles , is debatable . Duties . Apart from their military training , draftees also have other duties such as cleaning the camp , making food , serving other draftees in the military restaurants , et cetera . On emergencies draftees might be called for assistance in Forest fires or other natural disasters Accommodation . Draftees live in barracks . Each barracks contains its own toilet facilities and sometimes its own canteen . The barracks are divided into dorms each providing accommodation for a varying number of draftees , depending on the military installation ; this number can be as little as 15 draftees or as high as 75 , such as the dorms of the Hellenic Air Force ' s 124 Basic Training Wing . Leaves of Absence . During their tour , conscripts are entitled to a total of 18 days leave of absence . Farmers and students serving in the armed forces may be excused from their duties for an additional 18 days ( maximum ) . Parents are entitled to extra five days of leave per child . Up to ten days of leave can be awarded for outstanding performance , at the commanding officer ' s discretion . Conscripts may be awarded leave for health reasons , performing hazardous duties , NGO work or other reasons . In addition , it is current practice to award two days of leave per month of service in front - line units , although there is no explicit provision for this in the conscription law . In practice , all these breaks are usually taken in small blocks rather than long holidays . There is also another practice called " unwritten leaves " , these are leaves who carry normal leave papers but the superiors do not write down on the draftee ' s official record , as a favour . All those practices result in a draftee ' s total days of leave extending far more than the officially allowed 18 days , reaching as much as 3 months in total of a year service or even more in exceptional cases . This practice maintains the uneven treatment of the draftees in the army , and political or military peers are used extensively for influencing superiors in giving " unwritten leaves " . It is generally acknowledged that people who are famous ( or semi - famous ) , or simply have the right connections , i . e . singers , athletes , politicians or even middle - range members of political parties have been extensively favoured by the practice of unwritten leaves . Financial repercussions . Conscripts are unsalaried , but nominal financial aid is provided , ranging from approximately 9 euro per month to 600 euro , depending on the conscripts ' rank and family status . This aid is not technically considered a salary : it is intended to help draftees with various unforeseen expenses , which are not normally covered by the military ( i . e . expenses other than food , accommodation , clothing , and transport fees ) . In 2004 , the Greek Parliament passed a law stating that men over the age of 35 would be allowed to buy off their military obligation after attending 45 days of basic training . Currently the amount required to do this is 8 , 505 euro . This price tag ( 810 euro for every month not served ) is calculated based on the income of professional soldiers adjusted for taxes . Attitude towards conscription and conscripts ( draftees ) . The military has a strong part in Greek society and structure , and is generally regarded as one of the most trustworthy institutions of the country . The military partakes in parades of Greek national celebrations . In the beginning of televised broadcasts in the country , during the Regime of the Colonels , the army also created a television channel for civilians , which dispensed with daily propaganda . In June 2006 , Greek newspapers reported that the Greek government would deploy uninsured and unpaid conscripts , in lieu of bad and / or inexistent State care and response to natural disasters . Military helicopters are often used to transport sick people from remote or rural areas of Greece , to regional hospitals or to hospitals located in Athens when the patient ' s situation is grave or the weather does not permit the use of a regular helicopter or ship , mostly because the Greek state has no interest in creating hospitals in the aforementioned areas . The helicopters are also used to extinguish forest and flash fire s during the summertime , or in search and rescue missions , like the Helios Airways Flight 522 , which crashed August 14 , 2005 , because the firefighting and search and rescue teams in Greece are few and usually grossly unmanned . People seeking long - term employment in both the public and private sector are usually required to have no pending military obligations . Among more traditional sectors of society , such as those in the rural regions , national service has been unofficially but historically perceived as a rite of passage . In part this attitude was caused by moralistic beliefs encapsulated in the proverb " Women have birth , men have the army " , meaning that both genders offer a service to their Greek motherland , women by giving birth and men by helping defend it . Furthermore , widespread popular suspicion was generated by the fact that many deferments were due to homosexuality or reasons of mental health , both cases being viewed by the Greek army as not fit to serve as they do not define the ideal Greek man . The combined effect of these attitudes had been at one time considerable prejudice against people who had not served in the army Draft - dodger s were often frowned upon and deemed useless by the then hierarchical and conservative society . By late 2008 , the attitude had turned around . The Greek Ministry of Defense mentioned that one out of three men eligible for conscription , never showed up for their tour . Draft evaders living in Greece have risen to 30 , 000 . They pay taxes and generally do whatever all other citizens are doing without anybody bothering them . The law on personal data protection disallowed any inquiry about the status of the conscription of any individual . Mandatory military service is often propagandized on the grounds that the army is perceived as the " " natural " way to go " and as a final ' school ' of socialization and maturing for young Greek men before their comeout to the real world . This mindset is still present in modern times , due to the conservativeness that permutates the society itself . The average age of draftees , nowadays though , is higher than in the past , where the conscriptees tended to be 18 – 20 years old . Nowadays , conscripts are commonly in their mid - twenties , and many have university - level education ( some having travelled abroad for studies ) prior to conscription . In past generations , the army would often be the first time a young adult would find himself on his own and away from home ; nowadays this has by and large been replaced by Higher Education studies . Nowadays , many draftees consider conscription a waste of time and a " necessary evil " , since they don ' t know how it can ' t be avoided without suffering serious repercussions . Those that do prefer not to show up or serve at all . Also the number of young men trying to achieve permanent deferment by stating ( usually mental ) health problems has highly increased in recent years .