![\"Brain](\"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/10\/greek-flags-parade-credit-amna-giannis-kolissidis.jpg\")
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What do Greeks who repatriated after the economic crisis in Greece<\/a> think? Credit: AMNA\/Giannis Kolesidis<\/p>\n Greece\u2019s government recently released new data suggesting that the country may be transitioning from the crisis-era brain drain to a period of brain gain.<\/p>\n Labor and Social Security Minister Niki Kerameus said the \u201cRebrain Greece\u201d platform, launched in 2023, is gaining momentum<\/a> in its mission to bring highly skilled Greek professionals back to the country. She added that so far the program has attracted over 2,000 registered workers and businesses.<\/p>\n Kerameus met with representatives of more than 30 companies participating in the upcoming Rebrain Greece event in New York on December 7, aimed at connecting the Greek diaspora<\/a> with job opportunities in Greece.<\/p>\n Rebrain Greece provides a platform for Greeks living abroad to explore promising career prospects in their homeland. Similar events have already been held in Amsterdam, Stuttgart, D\u00fcsseldorf and London.<\/p>\n \u201cOur goal is both national and shared. You need specialized personnel, and we want to repatriate as many of our compatriots as possible back to the country. We want to create new, well-paid job opportunities,\u201d Kerameus said.<\/p>\n \u201cOur effort is to identify other talent pools, since we have largely exhausted the domestic workforce, to go beyond our borders and find Greeks who left in search of better professional opportunities. We want to attract them back to our homeland,\u201d she added.<\/p>\n A recent survey by the National Documentation and Electronic Content Center (EKT)<\/a> offers important data on the Greeks who have returned to their homeland.<\/p>\n The survey asked the returnees about their experience abroad, their return to Greece, the labor market, and the prospects for the future. The research sample included 602 citizens from the 13 regions of the country, who lived and worked abroad during the decade 2010-2019 and today have returned permanently and are working in Greece.<\/p>\n The majority of returnees who participated in the survey were men (72 percent), aged 35-54 (71 percent), highly qualified (79 percent hold a bachelor\u2019s or master\u2019s degree), with studies in Greece (87 percent, all or part of studies).<\/p>\n Brain gain in Greece to accelerate with better institutions<\/p>\n To the question \u201cWhat would help the repatriation of more Greeks abroad?\u201d, 79 percent answered \u201cBetter functioning of the institutions\u201d and 78 percent \u201cImprovement and modernization of the structures and infrastructure of the state\u201d.<\/p>\n Most (73 percent) said that the experience abroad made them more competitive, and they applied the know-how and skills they acquired during that time to their current work in Greece.<\/p>\n The main reasons that led to relocation abroad were economic and professional (89 percent), and only 10 percent were personal and family reasons.<\/p>\n Sixty percent of the returnees were absorbed by the private sector, while only 11 percent became civil servants. Also, 13 percent were self-employed and 3 percent were business owners.<\/p>\n Tax incentives, especially targeted at Greeks who repatriate, were not an important reason for returning as 84 percent said they did not take advantage of any tax incentive to return.<\/p>\n More than 67 percent of the repatriated have a family in Greece and 52 percent of respondents have children.<\/p>\n The main employment sectors of those who returned<\/p>\n Construction 11 percent Regarding monthly earnings in Greece (gross monthly), 44 percent receive earnings of up to 1,500 euros, 27 percent from 1,501 to 3,000 euros, and 17 percent from 3,001 upwards.<\/p>\n More than one million left Greece in the period 2010-2022<\/p>\n Greece has experienced a\u00a0significant brain drain<\/a>\u00a0in the aftermath of the economic crisis. Thousands of talented Greeks emigrated to other countries, often in search of better economic opportunities and career prospects. The departure of skilled professionals has deprived Greece of valuable human capital, which is essential for economic growth and innovation.<\/p>\n
\nEducation 10 percent
\nNew Technologies \u2013 Information Technology 10 percent
\nConsulting Services 7 percent
\nHealth 7 percent
\nWorking remotely for companies abroad 7 percent
\nWholesale \u2013 Retail 6 percent
\nTourism 6 percent.<\/p>\n