Teach English in Greece

Yes, you can teach English in Greece. Almost all work sits in private language schools called frontistiria, plus private tutoring. Contracts usually run September to June, pay is typically 900 to 1,400 euro a month, and a 120 hour TEFL qualification is the baseline. An EU passport makes it straightforward. UK and US teachers need employer sponsorship and a national visa.

Teaching English in Greece at a glance

Who can legally teach English in Greece

This is the single most important thing to settle before you spend time applying, and it is the part most guides skate over. Greece is not a market where enthusiasm overcomes paperwork. Greek law divides applicants into two groups: EU and EEA citizens, who have freedom of movement, and everyone else, who needs permission an employer has to obtain for them. Your passport largely decides how hard the job hunt will be.

UK and US citizens. Both are third country nationals in Greece. American teachers have always been in this position, and British teachers joined them on 1 January 2021 when freedom of movement ended. In practice that means a job offer, an employer willing to sponsor you, a national long stay visa commonly called a type D visa, and then a residence permit tied to that job. Most frontistiria are small businesses and will not take on that cost and delay when they can hire someone who does not need it, so the realistic routes are international schools, online teaching, and EU citizenship through ancestry where you qualify for it.

One route open only to Americans. The Fulbright US Student Program runs an English Teaching Assistant award in Greece, placing a recent US graduate at Athens College, part of the Hellenic American Educational Foundation, for the academic year. It is funded, it handles the legal side, and it is badly under-known. The national deadline for the 2027 to 2028 year is 6 October 2026, so it needs planning roughly a year ahead. Check the official Fulbright Greece award page for the current cycle.

EU and EEA citizens, including Irish passport holders. You have freedom of movement, so you do not need a work visa or a permit. You can arrive, job hunt in person, and start work. You register with the local authorities and get a Greek tax number, the AFM, and a social insurance number, but that is administration rather than permission. Being able to say “I have the right to work here” in the first line of your email puts you ahead of most of the inbox.

Everyone else. Canadian, Australian, South African and other non EU applicants face the same constraint as UK and US teachers. The practical route is usually to already hold residency or working rights in the EU, or to target the small number of international schools that sponsor. A 90 day visitor entry does not permit paid work anywhere in the Schengen area, and schools that once quietly ignored this are far more cautious now.

What English teachers actually earn in Greece

Greek salaries are modest by northern European standards, and honest guides say so. The trade off is a lower cost of living and a quality of life that keeps teachers coming back year after year.

Two things shape your real income more than the headline figure. The first is that most contracts are term time, September to June, so July and August are unpaid unless you pick up camp work or keep tutoring. Budget across ten months, not twelve. The second is that private tutoring is not a side note in Greece, it is how experienced teachers lift their income meaningfully. Greek families invest heavily in English exam preparation, particularly for Cambridge and Michigan qualifications, and a teacher with a good local reputation can fill their evenings.

Where the jobs are

Frontistiria. There are thousands of these private language schools across the country and they are the overwhelming majority of the market. Classes are small, students range from young children to adults, and a lot of the teaching is geared toward recognised English exams. This is where nearly every new arrival starts.

Private tutoring. Legal to do alongside a contract and widely expected. Word of mouth through your school’s parents is how most teachers build it.

Summer camps. June to August, mostly on the coast and islands, combining English lessons with activities. A useful bridge across the unpaid summer and a good first foot in the door.

International schools. Concentrated in Athens and Thessaloniki, far better paid, but they hire qualified schoolteachers rather than TEFL teachers.

Teaching online from Greece. A realistic supplement, especially if you are already resident. It also keeps income running through the summer gap.

Qualifications you need

A TEFL certificate of at least 120 hours is the practical minimum, and the schools that pay best increasingly want to see that the qualification is externally regulated rather than self accredited. A regulated Level 5 qualification carries more weight than an unregulated certificate of the same length, because it can be checked on a public register rather than taken on trust.

A bachelor’s degree in any subject is expected for most contracted school posts. Tutoring and camp work are more flexible about it.

You do not need to speak Greek to teach, though learning some makes daily life far easier and is appreciated by colleagues and parents. You also do not need to have grown up speaking English. Greek schools want teachers with genuinely strong English and the ability to teach it well, and a proficient non native speaker with a strong qualification and clear classroom skills is hired in Greece regularly, whatever some older guides claim.

The hiring calendar, and why timing matters more here

Greece runs on a clear annual rhythm and applying at the wrong point in it wastes your effort.

• March to May. Schools know their September staffing needs. Speculative applications start landing well.
• June to July. Attention shifts to end of year exams and then to holidays. Responses slow considerably.
• Mid August to October. The real hiring window. Most contracts are filled here, often quickly and often in person.
• January. A smaller second round as schools replace mid year departures.

Being physically in Greece during the August to October window is a genuine advantage. A lot of frontistiria hiring is still done through a conversation and a trial lesson rather than a formal online process.

Cost of living

This is what makes the salaries work. Outside central Athens, a one bedroom flat commonly runs somewhere around 400 to 600 euro a month, less again in Thessaloniki and smaller cities, and food, transport and eating out are all well below UK and Irish prices. Teachers on a frontistiria wage generally live comfortably rather than lavishly, and most find that a little tutoring on top is what turns a tight month into a relaxed one. Athens and the popular islands are the expensive exceptions, and island rents in particular can spike during the tourist season.

Best places to teach

Athens has the largest concentration of schools, the most tutoring demand and the best transport, at the highest cost. Thessaloniki is the strong second choice, a young university city with a lower cost of living and a real social scene. Patras, Larissa and Heraklion have steady school networks with far less competition from other foreign teachers. Crete and the larger islands suit teachers who want the lifestyle and can handle a smaller job market and seasonal rents.

Frequently asked questions

Can I teach English in Greece without a degree?
Sometimes. Most contracted frontistiria roles expect one, but private tutoring, summer camps and some smaller schools are more flexible if you hold a strong TEFL qualification and interview well.

Can UK and US citizens teach English in Greece?
Legally yes, practically it is much harder. Both need employer sponsorship for a national visa and residence permit, and most small language schools will not arrange it. US graduates can apply for the Fulbright assistantship at Athens College, and anyone with a European born parent or grandparent should check whether they qualify for an EU passport.

Do I need to speak Greek?
Not to teach. Lessons are typically delivered in English. Some Greek helps enormously with housing, admin and everyday life.

Is teaching English in Greece well paid?
Not by northern European standards. Pay is modest, but the cost of living is low and tutoring income closes much of the gap.

What happens over the summer?
Most school contracts end in June and resume in September without pay in between. Teachers cover it with summer camps, private students or online teaching.

How long do teaching contracts last?
One academic year, renewed annually. Many teachers stay several years with the same school.

Last updated: 19 September 2026