Greece has been named among the world's top retirement destinations by Forbes, which highlighted Athens, Corfu, Kalamata and Thessaloniki as standout locations offering significantly lower living costs than the U.S. average.
The magazine included Greece in a list of 96 retirement destinations across 24 countries and five continents, part of a broader trend of Americans seeking lower living costs, different lifestyles and often more politically stable environments abroad. Forbes evaluated destinations based on cost of living, taxation, health care quality and affordability, ease of returning to the U.S., crime rates, political stability, and risk of social isolation, along with residency requirements and exposure to climate change and natural disasters.
Describing Greece as an "ancient cultural treasure in the sunny Mediterranean," Forbes noted that living costs outside Athens are typically at least a third lower than the U.S. average, with good and affordable health care, though private health insurance is required.
The magazine noted a tax treaty preventing double taxation for Americans, along with a preferential tax rate available to qualifying foreign retirees under certain conditions.
Most retirees pursue Greece's renewable Financially Independent Person Visa, which requires proof of at least roughly $60,000 in annual passive income for a couple.
Greece also offers a two-year digital nomad visa that can count toward the five years required for permanent residency.
Health Minister Adonis Georgiadis shared the Forbes item on social media, highlighting its praise for Greece's health care system.
"Read what Forbes says about our health system… Happy Assumption Day, my friends, far from the misery and complaints some want to impose on us," he wrote.