How often does a car need ΚΤΕΟ, and when is the first one due?

The short answer

For a private passenger car, the first ΚΤΕΟ (periodic technical inspection) is due four years after the date the car was first registered — not four years after you bought it, if you weren't the first owner. After that first inspection, the car goes back every two years, for as long as it's on the road. This four-then-two schedule is the minimum the EU sets for category M1 vehicles (passenger cars with up to eight seats besides the driver's), and it's the one Greece's public and licensed private ΚΤΕΟ centres apply.

What "first registered" means

The clock starts from the date on the car's first registration document (η ημερομηνία της πρώτης άδειας κυκλοφορίας) — when it was first put on the road, full stop. It isn't the manufacturing date, and if you're buying a used car, it isn't the date it changed hands to you. A car first registered in March 2022 owes its first ΚΤΕΟ in March 2026, no matter how many owners it's had since.

After the first inspection

Every inspection after the first one runs on a flat two-year interval, whether the previous test passed outright or needed a re-check first. There's no exemption for low mileage or a car that's rarely driven — the interval runs on the calendar, not on use.

Where this comes from

Greece's ΚΤΕΟ system implements the EU's periodic roadworthiness-testing framework. For category M1 vehicles, the directive sets the first test at four years after first registration and every two years after that as the minimum member states must require (Directive 2014/45/EU, Article 5 and Annex I). This guide covers that private-passenger-car schedule specifically — taxis, rental cars, and vehicles used commercially can be subject to different, often shorter, intervals set separately, so don't carry this schedule over to a company car without checking.

Checking or booking yours

Your car's own ΚΤΕΟ history and next due date are on gov.gr — that's the authoritative record for your specific plate, not a calculation from a registration date you're recalling from memory. You can book with either a public ΚΤΕΟ or a licensed private one; both carry equal legal standing.

Current fees, the exact window for booking around your due date, and the penalty for testing late change from time to time. This guide doesn't state any of those figures — confirm them on gov.gr or with the inspection centre rather than relying on a number you saw somewhere else.

Turning it into a deadline you won't miss

The four-year wait for a new car is exactly the kind of date that's easy to forget by the time it matters. In Epimeleia, add the car as an item, note its first-registration date, and set a reminder ahead of the four-year mark — then reset the interval to two years for every inspection after that, so the next one is already scheduled the moment the last one is done.

Before you rely on this

This guide states only the EU-harmonised four-year/two-year test interval set by Directive 2014/45/EU for category M1 vehicles. It doesn't state a specific fee, booking window, or fine for a late inspection, because those weren't confirmed from a live official page while writing this. Confirm the current figures on gov.gr or with your ΚΤΕΟ centre before relying on one.