Greece punches far above its economic weight in global trade — Piraeus is one of the Mediterranean’s principal container gateways and the first European call for many Asian services entering through Suez. But Greek customs is rarely the hard part. Distribution is: a container clearing Piraeus in a day can still take a week to reach a customer on Crete or Rhodes.
At IFN we connect businesses with vetted, independent freight forwarders worldwide through our global freight network. Our premium Greece members are listed first below — followed by the ports, customs and vetting detail you need to brief them properly.
IFN member freight forwarders in Greece
Cold-searching for a forwarder means trusting a website. Working through a freight network means working with companies screened before admission — for operating history, financial standing and reputation — and that have something to lose by underperforming.
IFN spans 93+ countries. Members are individually vetted, covered by our cargo payment protection programme against non-payment and insolvency, and they meet face to face each year at IFN Global Connect.
Cargo Line International P.C.
- Location: Stratigou Makrigianni 3, 2nd Floor, 12243 Egaleo, Athens
- Established: 1984 — over four decades in the Greek market
- Company size: 11–50 employees
- Website: cargoline.com.gr
- IFN status: Founder Member
- Cargo payment protection: Active
- Services: air freight, sea freight, LCL, dangerous goods, warehousing, trucking, customs clearance, rail and specialist handling categories
Cargo Line International is among the longest-established companies in the IFN network anywhere — trading since 1984, which means it has operated through Greek EU accession-era trade liberalisation, the euro transition, the financial crisis of the 2010s and the transformation of Piraeus into a major transshipment hub. In a market where a great many forwarding companies did not survive the crisis years, four decades of continuous operation is a meaningful signal in itself.
The Egaleo location is well judged. Egaleo sits in western Athens on the corridor between the city centre and Piraeus, close to the port and to the Attiki Odos motorway that feeds the national road network. It puts the company within easy reach of the container terminals while remaining in the commercial centre where customs agencies and importers operate.
Their declared service scope covers air and sea freight, LCL consolidation, dangerous goods, warehousing, trucking and customs clearance, extending into rail and specialist handling — a genuinely full-service profile rather than a niche one, which suits a market where the same shipment may need ocean, road and ferry legs to reach its destination.
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Looking for more options in Greece?
IFN’s Greek coverage is currently a single well-established member, and our network continues to expand. If you need coverage in Thessaloniki and northern Greece, or a specialist for a particular island or commodity, contact our team. We can advise as our Greece coverage grows, or connect you with members in Italy, Turkey, Cyprus and the wider Mediterranean who already handle Greek trade.
Browse the IFN Member DirectoryBefore you brief any Greek forwarder, it is worth understanding which port you should be quoting, how Greek VAT affects your cash flow, and what island distribution really involves. The rest of this guide covers exactly that.
What a freight forwarder in Greece handles
A forwarder is not a carrier. They buy transport capacity in volume, resell it, and manage everything around it. In Greece the surrounding work covers:
- Booking ocean, air, road or rail capacity — including the Balkan road corridors north into Bulgaria, North Macedonia and beyond
- Customs clearance — import and export declarations filed with the Greek customs authority (Telonio) through the ICISnet system
- Duty, VAT and deferment handling — including the mechanisms that stop 24% import VAT tying up your working capital
- Transit documentation — T1/T2 under NCTS, which matters enormously in Greece because so much Piraeus cargo moves onward into non-EU Balkan markets
- ICS2 filings — the EU’s advance cargo security declarations
- Island distribution — coordinating coastal shipping and ferry services to the Aegean and Ionian islands
- Transshipment and feeder coordination at Piraeus for onward Mediterranean and Black Sea moves
- Warehousing, bonded storage and consolidation
- Cargo insurance placement
For the role explained from the ground up, see our complete guide to international freight forwarders.
Greece’s major ports and airports
Seaports
| Port | Region | Best for |
| Piraeus (GRPIR) | Attica | By far the largest Greek port and one of the Mediterranean’s leading container gateways. First European call for many Asian services; major transshipment and Balkan gateway |
| Thessaloniki (GRSKG) | Central Macedonia | The northern gateway — serves northern Greece and provides the shortest route into Bulgaria, North Macedonia, Serbia and the southern Balkans |
| Volos (GRVOL) | Thessaly | Central Greece industry; Ro-Ro and short-sea links to the eastern Mediterranean |
| Patras (GRGPA) | Western Greece | The Italy connection — principal Ro-Ro and ferry gateway to Ancona, Bari, Brindisi and Venice |
| Heraklion (GRHER) | Crete | Largest island port; Cretan agricultural exports and consumer imports |
| Igoumenitsa (GRIGO) | Epirus | Ro-Ro to Italy; northwestern gateway |
Airports
| Airport | Location | Best for |
| Athens Eleftherios Venizelos (ATH) | Athens | Greece’s dominant air cargo gateway — pharma, high-value goods, perishables, urgent spares |
| Thessaloniki Makedonia (SKG) | Thessaloniki | Northern Greece and Balkan-facing air cargo |
| Heraklion (HER) | Crete | Island air freight, perishables, seasonal volumes |
The routing decision that matters: Piraeus is the default and usually correct — it has the deepest carrier coverage and the fastest connections to Asia. But if your cargo is destined for northern Greece or the Balkans, Thessaloniki removes roughly 500 km of domestic trucking and sits far closer to the Bulgarian and North Macedonian borders. And if you are moving goods between Greece and Italy, the Patras–Ancona and Igoumenitsa–Bari Ro-Ro corridors are often faster and cheaper than any container routing. Ask your forwarder to compare.
Indicative ocean transit times to Piraeus
| Origin | Typical port-to-port |
| Shanghai / Ningbo | 24–32 days |
| Shenzhen / Guangzhou | 22–30 days |
| Singapore | 16–22 days |
| Jebel Ali (Dubai) | 12–18 days |
| Mumbai (Nhava Sheva) | 14–20 days |
| Rotterdam / Hamburg | 12–18 days |
| New York | 16–22 days |
Indicative only, and highly sensitive to Red Sea routing. When Asia–Europe services divert around the Cape of Good Hope rather than transiting Suez, add roughly 10–14 days — and note that Piraeus, as an early Mediterranean call on the Suez routing, is disproportionately affected by such diversions. Always confirm the actual routing and any war-risk surcharges on your quote.
Greek customs and VAT
Greece applies the EU customs code, so the framework will be familiar if you have imported into Italy, Germany or the Netherlands. The friction is in the national implementation and, above all, in VAT cash flow.
What you need in place
- EORI number — mandatory for any business importing or exporting. Non-EU companies need one issued by an EU member state
- Greek VAT registration or a fiscal representative — non-EU businesses acting as importer generally need a fiscal representative established in Greece
- Correct TARIC classification — the EU 10-digit code, determining duty, licensing and any anti-dumping measures
- Proof of origin — EUR.1 certificates, REX statements or supplier declarations, which unlock preferential duty under the EU’s trade agreements
- ICS2 entry summary declaration — filed before arrival
- T1 transit documentation where goods move onward to non-EU Balkan destinations
- Product compliance — CE marking, REACH, food and cosmetics rules, plus ISPM 15 treated wood packaging
The VAT issue: Greek standard VAT is 24% — among the higher rates in the EU — charged on customs value plus duty at the border. It is recoverable if you are VAT-registered, but you pay first and reclaim later, and Greek VAT refunds have historically not been fast. On regular container volumes that is a serious working-capital drag. Ask your forwarder specifically about VAT deferment and whether a customs warehouse arrangement suits your flow — postponing the charge is usually far better than financing it.
Reduced VAT rates of 13% and 6% apply to certain categories, and some Greek islands have historically benefited from reduced rates — though these regimes have been progressively narrowed. If your goods are island-destined, confirm the current position rather than relying on older guidance.
The island question — what most guides ignore
This is the part of Greek logistics that catches out foreign shippers, and it has nothing to do with customs.
Greece has more than 200 inhabited islands. Once your container clears Piraeus, reaching Crete, Rhodes, Corfu, Mykonos, Santorini or the smaller Aegean islands means a coastal shipping or ferry leg, and that leg operates on its own logic:
- Ferry schedules, not shipping schedules. Many routes run on fixed sailing days rather than daily service. Missing a sailing can mean waiting several days
- Severe seasonality. Summer brings tourist demand that consumes vehicle-deck capacity and drives up rates; winter brings weather cancellations, particularly on Aegean routes exposed to the meltemi and winter northerlies
- Equipment constraints. Not every island port handles full containers. Cargo is frequently devanned at Piraeus and moved as palletised groupage on Ro-Ro
- Strike exposure. Greek coastal shipping has a history of industrial action, which can suspend services at short notice
The practical implication is that a delivery date to an island destination is a genuinely different commitment from a delivery date to Athens or Thessaloniki. If your cargo is island-bound, ask your forwarder to state the routing, the sailing frequency and the realistic transit — not just a port-to-port time to Piraeus.
What it costs
| Charge | What it is | Typical range |
| Customs duty | EU Common Customs Tariff on CIF value | Most manufactured goods 0–6.5%; textiles and footwear higher; 0% where a trade agreement and valid origin proof apply |
| VAT | On CIF plus duty | 24% standard; 13% and 6% reduced rates on certain categories |
| Customs clearance fee | Per declaration, plus line-item charges | Varies by broker |
| Port and terminal charges | THC, documentation, storage | Varies by terminal |
| Inland trucking | Piraeus to destination | Modest to Athens; substantial to northern Greece |
| Island leg | Coastal shipping or ferry | Highly variable — seasonal, and route-dependent |
Demurrage and detention: confirm your free days and the daily rate after expiry before you book. This matters more than usual for island-destined cargo, where the container may sit at Piraeus waiting for a sailing through no fault of yours — ask specifically how that scenario is treated.
How to vet a freight forwarder in Greece
Whether you are speaking to Cargo Line International or a forwarder you found elsewhere, ask these questions.
- “Are you AEO certified?” Authorised Economic Operator status is the EU trusted-trader accreditation — fewer inspections, priority treatment, simplified procedures. For regular importers it is one of the highest-value things a forwarder can bring.
- “How do you handle import VAT for my situation?” At 24%, this is the question with the biggest cash-flow consequence. If they cannot immediately discuss deferment, fiscal representation and customs warehousing, they are not thinking about your working capital.
- “Do you clear customs in-house or subcontract?” Either works, but you need to know who files your declaration and who carries the liability.
- “If my cargo is island-bound, what is the routing and the realistic transit time?” A forwarder who quotes only to Piraeus for a Crete or Rhodes delivery is quoting half the job.
- “Do you handle T1 transit into the Balkans?” Essential if your goods continue to North Macedonia, Serbia, Albania or beyond — and a genuine specialism.
- “Show me the full landed cost, not the freight rate.” A quote omitting THC, customs fees, VAT treatment and the domestic leg is not a quote.
- “Which network or association do you belong to?” OSYE / Greek forwarder association membership, FIATA, WCA or IFN. Independent vetting by a third party is worth something. You can check ours in the IFN member directory.
Red flags: rates dramatically below market, no verifiable Greek VAT number (AFM), reluctance to name their customs broker, island legs quoted as “to be confirmed”, no cargo insurance option, or payment requested to a personal account.
Frequently asked questions
How long does customs clearance take in Greece?
A clean declaration with correct documentation is often cleared within a day or two at Piraeus. Document queries, physical inspection or origin verification extend that. AEO-certified forwarders see materially fewer inspections, which is why the certification question is worth asking upfront.
Do I need a Greek company to import into Greece?
No, but you need an EU EORI number, and as a non-EU business you will generally need a fiscal representative established in Greece to handle VAT obligations. Your forwarder can usually arrange this — confirm the scope and cost in writing before you ship.
How much is import VAT in Greece?
The standard rate is 24%, applied to customs value plus duty. Reduced rates of 13% and 6% apply to specific categories. It is recoverable for VAT-registered businesses but paid at the border, so ask about deferment or a customs warehouse arrangement to protect your cash flow.
Should I ship to Piraeus or Thessaloniki?
Piraeus for Athens, the islands, and the widest carrier choice — it is one of the best-connected ports in the Mediterranean. Thessaloniki if your cargo is destined for northern Greece or the Balkans, where it saves roughly 500 km of trucking and sits close to the Bulgarian and North Macedonian borders. Price both delivered to your door.
Why is Piraeus so important for Asia–Europe trade?
Because it is one of the first major European ports reached after transiting Suez. That geography lets shippers land Asian cargo in Europe several days earlier than continuing to northern European ports, then move it inland by road or rail. It has also made Piraeus a significant transshipment hub for the eastern Mediterranean and Black Sea.
How do I ship to a Greek island?
Almost always via Piraeus, then onward by coastal shipping or ferry. Plan around sailing frequency rather than assuming daily departures, expect capacity pressure in summer and weather cancellations in winter, and confirm whether your cargo will move as a full container or be devanned and shipped as palletised groupage. Ask your forwarder for the specific routing.
Do you have members on other trade lanes?
Yes — IFN covers 93+ countries. If you are working Mediterranean or Middle East lanes, see our guides to freight forwarders in Italy and freight forwarders in Saudi Arabia, or simply contact our team with your origin and destination.
Are you a freight forwarder in Greece?
If your company provides freight forwarding or customs brokerage in Greece, IFN offers a direct route to cargo referrals from vetted independent forwarders across 93+ countries — backed by payment protection and an annual conference where the relationships actually get built. With Piraeus established as a principal Mediterranean gateway and Balkan transit volumes growing, overseas partners are actively seeking reliable Greek representation — particularly in Thessaloniki and the north, where our coverage is still developing.
Review the full list of inclusions on our membership benefits page, compare options on our membership plans page, explore our member tools and resources, or read more on the logistics industry blog.
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