Quality Inspection in India for Greek Importers

Quality inspection in India for importers in Greece

Greece buys woven apparel, ceramic tiles, furnishing textiles, bags and rugs from India. An inspection before shipment checks workmanship and AQL, and also the Greek-language instructions that Law 2251/1994 requires, Greek fibre labels on textiles, and the packaging weights an importer needs as a registered packaging producer in Greece.

Last reviewed 14 Oct 2026

India's exports, our categories (2025)

US$77 million, flat on 2024 (UN Comtrade)

Instructions

In Greek or international symbols (Law 2251/1994, art. 5β)

Packaging

Importers register in EOAN's EMPA register and join a collective system

EU–India FTA

Concluded 27 Jan 2026; not signed or in force on 14 Oct 2026

Time difference

India is 3:30 ahead of Athens in winter, 2:30 in summer

Key takeaways

India shipped US$77 million of the consumer goods we inspect to Greece in 2025, led by woven apparel, plus US$31 million of ceramic tiles (UN Comtrade).
Article 5β of Law 2251/1994 requires instructions for use, care and maintenance in Greek or in internationally recognised symbols.
Under Law 4819/2021 an importer placing packaged goods on the Greek market registers in the EMPA register kept by EOAN and joins a collective system.
The EU–India free trade agreement was concluded on 27 January 2026 but was not signed or in force on 14 October 2026.

What Greece buys from India

India reported exports to Greece of US$77 million in 2025 across the categories Clear To Load inspects, about the same as in 2024. Clothing is the largest part, and woven garments outsell knitwear more than two to one. Ceramic tiles sit outside our consumer basket but, at US$31 million, are bigger than any line inside it.

Source: UN Comtrade, India's reported exports to Greece, calendar year 2025, FOB. Sacks and bulk bags (6305) are excluded.
Category (HS)	2025, US$ million
Ceramic tiles (6907)	31
Woven apparel (62)	23
Home textiles (6301–6304), of which furnishing articles (6304) 7.5	10
Knitted apparel (61)	10
Bags and cases (4202)	7
Rugs and carpets (57)	5
Worked stone (68)	5
Furniture and lighting (9401, 9403–9405)	4

Apart from tiles and woven apparel, every line is under US$10 million. That is worth knowing when planning inspections: the price is per man-day at one factory, not a share of order value, so a small order costs the same to inspect as a large one from the same factory.

Where Greece's orders are made in India

Woven garments come mainly from Delhi NCR, where Gurgaon, Noida and Faridabad are Towns of Export Excellence for apparel and where we have inspectors. See woven shirt inspection and dresses, kaftans and resortwear. Tiles come from Morbi, Gujarat, the Town of Export Excellence for ceramic tiles; see vitrified and porcelain tile inspection.

HS 6304 covers furnishing articles such as cushion covers and bedspreads. The usual checks are stitching at the closure, colourfastness of printed and dyed fabric, and size against the insert; see cushion covers and cushions. For rugs, see rug and carpet inspection.

Greek on the label and in the box

Greece's consumer protection law, Law 2251/1994, gained an article 5β in 2018. It requires the producer to give the consumer clear and complete instructions for use, care and maintenance, in Greek or in internationally recognised symbols, in writing or on a durable medium. Products that are simple to make, use and maintain are exempt only if the manufacturer gives no instructions in any language. In practice, if an English leaflet goes in the box, the same information must be there in Greek or in recognised symbols.

For an order made in India that means three checks:

Instructions and care leaflets in Greek, the approved version, in every sampled unit's packaging.
Fibre labels on garments and home textiles with Greek fibre names, as Regulation (EU) 1007/2011 requires the language of the member state where the goods are sold.
Care symbols where they are used in place of words, matching your specification.

Many buyers supply one multilingual EU label set. That works if the Greek text is complete; we check it against your approved artwork, not the factory's copy.

Packaging: EMPA registration and weights

Law 4819/2021 (article 11) places packaging obligations on producers, and that includes importers placing packaged products on the Greek market for the first time. They register in the National Register of Producers of Packaging and Other Products (EMPA), kept by the Hellenic Recycling Agency (EOAN), and meet their duty by joining a collective system such as HE.R.R.Co, the blue-bin system licensed by EOAN. Registered producers show their EMPA number on sales documents.

The factory's part is data. Collective systems charge members for the packaging they place on the market, by material, so ask the factory for a packaging specification sheet and have the inspector weigh the cartons, polybags and inserts of sample units against it. The weights go in the report. From 12 August 2026 the EU Packaging Regulation (EU) 2025/40 also applies; ask your collective system what it changes for your declarations.

Rules that apply

EU-wide import rules (EORI, TARIC, the GPSR responsible person, REACH, the EUDR for wooden furniture and ISPM 15 for pallets) are on our EU import compliance checklist. For Greece's main categories, see EU textile labelling, the GPSR and azo dyes and restricted substances.

Trade agreement. The EU–India free trade agreement was concluded on 27 January 2026, and the Commission sent its signing and conclusion proposals to the Council on 11 September 2026. As of 14 October 2026 it was not signed or in force, so normal EU duty rates apply. Ask your customs broker for rates; we do not quote them.

Working hours, reports and booking

India Standard Time is UTC+5:30 with no summer time. Greece is 3 hours 30 minutes behind India in winter and 2 hours 30 minutes behind in summer. Our office hours, 9:30 am to 6:30 pm IST, Monday to Saturday, are 6:00 am to 3:00 pm in Athens in winter and 7:00 am to 4:00 pm in summer, so a Greek buyer has the whole morning with us. Reports arrive within 24 hours of the inspection, after supervisor review, with a verdict of Cleared to load, Hold or Not cleared.

A pre-shipment inspection costs US$249 per man-day, report included. Travel is free in Jodhpur, US$99 per man-day in Jaipur, Delhi NCR, Saharanpur, Moradabad and Kolkata, and charged at actual cost elsewhere, such as Morbi. Small mixed orders from several factories need one man-day per factory. See pricing, or book an inspection and say the goods are for Greece.

Sources

Frequently asked questions

Do products for Greece need instructions in Greek?

Yes, where instructions are given. Article 5β of Law 2251/1994 requires instructions for use, care and maintenance in Greek or in internationally recognised symbols. Simple products are exempt only if the manufacturer provides no instructions in any language.

Can garments for Greece use a multilingual EU label?

Yes, if the Greek fibre names and text are complete. Regulation (EU) 1007/2011 requires fibre names in the language of the member state where the garment is sold. We check the sewn-in label against your approved artwork.

Who registers packaging for goods made in India and sold in Greece?

The importer that first places the packaged goods on the Greek market. It registers in EOAN's EMPA register and joins a collective system. The Indian factory does not register, but it supplies the packaging weights.

Can you weigh packaging during the inspection?

Yes, if you ask when booking. The inspector weighs the packaging of sample units by material, records it in the report and flags differences from the factory's specification.

Is the EU–India trade agreement in force for Greek imports?

No. It was concluded on 27 January 2026 but, as of 14 October 2026, it had not been signed or entered into force. Normal EU duty rates apply.