Best Bank to use to transfer funds from overseas to Greece

Hello,the best thing for you is to keep your financial affairs to yourself,otherwise this government will undoubtedly(,well the TAX office,)believe you to be taxable,they tax the unemployed on the rent they pay for an apartment so they will have a keen eye on you.Can you not just use your bank card from New Zealand,take out enough for each month.Be careful of being taxed here.

thanks for the advise, will keep that in mind, cheers
JT

I'm in the same boat as you and I've been using HSBC. I used to use Barclays in the UK but they pulled out of Greece some time ago. I'm not sure how you access your funds but opening a bank account in Greece is a bit of a bureaucratic nightmare. You'll need to acquire a tax identification number from the Ministry of Finance (I was told this by a bank manager in 2013). This is no easy matter. When talking to the bank manager make sure sure you understand your tax exposure in Greece itself. I presume you're paying tax on your income in NZ, but if you deposit money in  a Greek bank you may be tax liable in Greece. Greek laws and regulations change pretty frequently so I may be out of date. The way I live in Greece and access my income is to have money deposited in my home country (where I'm tax resident) and then just draw what I need from ABMs. ABM Withdrawal charges can be pretty hefty if you're withdrawing from a bank other than your home bank. That's why I use HSBC because they've got branches everywhere. There's one in central Athens on Voukourestiou Street between Panepistemiou and Valaouritou St. It's near a Prada shop on the same side of the street. Good luck.