In Greece individual and very small businesses, with less than 10 staff, account for over 95% of the total. Of these, over 60% employ no employees at all, since their owners run them. Behind the zero number of workers there may be informal or undeclared work, e.g. assisting family members, without a fixed salary. 28% employ from 1 to 4 employees, while more than 5% have from 5 to 9 employees.
Together with businesses employing between 10 and 49 people considered simply small, it exceeds 99%. In other words, if we wanted to be precise, we would not even be talking about small and medium-sized enterprises but small-sized ones. According to the official EU categorisation, businesses are considered as medium-sized from 50 to 250 persons. In Greece, medium-sized enterprises are a miserable minority, less than 0.5%.
The above figures are useful to understand how many and who the new Economic Climate Survey of the Institute of Small Enterprises of the General Confederation of Craft Traders of Greece (IME-GSEBE). They are more than 900,000 small bosses or bosses of themselves. Including employees employed (almost 1.1 million on the basis of the annual figures of the LABOUR), small businesses in Greece represent a critical mass of 2 million people.
This huge demographic group, which we often call «Economic backbone»At the same time, it is a sought after electoral clientele, although it does not have uniform characteristics. The small entrepreneurs and their employees, who in their vast majority are paid around the basic salary, have the power to raise and lower governments.
That is why every September, space is sought in the ITH basket to fit small and medium-sized entrepreneurs who are actually small and small. Last year small businesses They left almost empty-handed., since their appeals, in particular to abolish imputed income, were not heard. This year, as we count months for the parliamentary elections, the government is trying to regain confidence, raising expectations of tax reliefs and loans. In this climate, FHW-GSEBE's research and the proposals it submits, as well as the respective proposals of other agencies (BEA, SAA), are also read as a list of election demands.
A warm economic climate for small businesses
The economic climate index of small and very small enterprises declined by 2.7 units in the first half of 2026, shaped at 56.5 from 59.2 in the previous half. This is a performance largely attributed to seasonality (the first semesters always fall short of second due to tourism). Compared to the corresponding half of 2025 (47.2 units) the image is improved by 9.3 units, the best first half performance since 2023. The Expectation Index remained virtually unchanged at 58.7 points, showing a waiting stop rather than optimism.
Each unit over 50 means that positive responses outweigh negative ones, with a little more than half of them stating an improvement in their economic situation. This does not necessarily mean that they prosper, but that they have adapted to the pressure environment.
Lack of liquidity – Price increase
Liquidity remains the most acute problem, with 48% of businesses reporting its decline, while 21.8% have zero cash available and 22.9% available for a maximum of one month. Particularly stressed are trade and focus.
Operating costs continue to press heavily: 73.3% pay more electricity, 73.2% fuel and 77.5% raw materials/supply compared to 2025, with average increases of 26%, 27.8% and 24.8% respectively.
This charge is partly passed on to prices. 40.3% of businesses proceeded with revaluations (as opposed to just 7.2% which reduced prices), reversing the gradual de-escalation of the previous five semesters. For the second half, 27.2% predicts new valuations.
Demand remains sluggish (41.1% decline versus 22.8% increase), with a similar picture of orders to suppliers. Turnover appears slightly improved compared to the respective 2024-25 semesters, but without spectacular change (40.3% turnover reduction versus 23.8% increase), with trade being hit more.
Resilient employment
Unemployment is recorded, with 81.1% maintaining stable staff. The employment balance was positive, with 12.3% of businesses reporting a staff increase and only 6.5% reduction. However, the picture of outstanding debts remains worrying, as 30.9% of businesses have one or more. with 13.3% having three or more debts. This is an increasing trend, recorded in all debt categories (tax, suppliers, electricity, banks, rent, IKA).
Insufficient measures actually
Businesses are particularly critical of state policy, with 81.1% considering measures against accuracy insufficient. 54.3% estimates that a VAT reduction would lead to price reductions.
Finally, the exploitation of the Recovery Fund by micro-enterprises remains minimal. Only 6% received an investment loan, with main obstacles to the inability to meet banking criteria (15.1%) and lack of information (14.5%). Overall, research outlines an economy of small enterprises that is stabilising at low levels, without substantial recovery, with structural problems (liquidity, costs, debts) remaining.
What small businesses want in view of INT
GSEBE, in view of ICU, submits a comprehensive framework of proposals to ten policy axes, arguing that micro and small enterprises continue to be disproportionately tested by successive crises (memonies, pandemics, energy and inflationary crises) without State support.
In the tax axis calls for immediate abolition of the presumption of taxation, full abolition of an interest rate charge, rationalization of VAT and excise duties (removal of IPC in coffee, uniform focus VAT), reduction of tax rates and advance tax, reinstatement of tax-free and duty-free reserve, increase VAT-free limit from 10,000€ in 30,000€, and institutionalization «SME test» before any legislation.
In liquidity, it proposes a commitment of a percentage of European funds exclusively for micro-enterprises, a permanent financial instrument of the type of repayable advance, a conversion of the Development Bank into a real investment bank, an irrevocable business account and support for microcredit funds.
For private debt (EUR 417 billion in total, 168% GDP) it calls for a new 120-dose regulation with the deletion of fines for pandemic debts, suspension of CEAS measures and auctions as long as accuracy lasts.
In the energy it proposes continued subsidies, decoupling producer compensation from the most expensive supplier, transparency on the energy market and support for small-scale photovoltaics.
In employment it calls for a return to a minimum wage by means of an EGTC, measures for job vacancies, reduction of non-wage costs, rationalisation of fines and self-representation in e-EFCA/TEC/DYPA/EUPM.
The other axes concern simplification of digital bureaucracy, nine-year protection of professional housing from eviction by rent, the creation of a Digital Economy Fund for small enterprises, strengthening cooperative schemes/clusters and upgrading of the vocational training system.
