Greece’s Education Ministry will remove more than 285,000 non-active, decades-long students from university registers in December, Education Minister Sofia Zacharaki announced this week.

Under Law 5224/2025, so-called “perpetual students” who have exceeded both the minimum study period and the legally granted extension will be permanently deregistered from universities nationwide. The measure aims to resolve a decades-long issue in Greek higher education: students who remain enrolled indefinitely without completing their degrees.

According to ministry data, 83,970 of these long-term students are still registered at the National and Kapodistrian University of Athens, the country’s oldest institution.

The main administration building of the University of Athens, in the Greek capital’s center.

Since the revised law was announced, roughly 30,000 students have applied to complete their studies, taking advantage of the deadline offered. Those who fail to declare their intention to finish by the specified period will be automatically removed from university records at year’s end.

Universities in Greece have already begun informing affected students of the upcoming changes. The legislation stipulates that students admitted before 2016 will be expelled two months after September 2025 re-examination results are posted.

The ministry emphasized that exceptions or extensions may be granted but only to those who apply on time and meet strict criteria.

At the Athens University of Economics and Business (formerly ASOEE), records still list students first enrolled in 1933.

Education Minister Zacharaki described the reform as “a clear commitment to the future of Greek universities and to the students who work hard to succeed”.