Prerequisites for obtaining a Greek driver's license after Greece immigration:
First, you must have Greek residency. A residence permit (green card), a pending application receipt (blue paper), or a red paper are all acceptable. You must also have an ΑΦΜ (Tax Identification Number). Regarding the red paper, it is best if it has been renewed; the more renewals, the better. If it has not been renewed, it is best to have at least four or five months of validity remaining at the time of registration. (Note: A reminder to those holding a red paper: you must absolutely not hold both a red paper and a Chinese passport simultaneously, as you could face legal trouble if discovered by the police. If a driving school asks for your passport, they are likely unaware of this; simply tell them you do not have one and that you have a red paper instead—you do not need a passport!)
Second, you must be able to spell and read Greek words. You do not need to be fluent in speaking Greek, but you must be able to spell and read the words, and it is best to understand some basic grammar. Whether you understand the meaning of certain words is less critical, as you can look them up online or on your smartphone during your studies. Furthermore, the common words in the textbook are limited, so there is no need to worry. All exam questions are multiple-choice, so just spend time memorizing them; spend a few hours studying every day. Starting from scratch, it only takes one month to learn all the words and sentences needed for the exam (one week for motorcycle questions, about three weeks for car questions).
During the exam, motorcycle and car questions are taken together, totaling 40 questions: 10 for motorcycles and 30 for cars. Time limit: 20 minutes for motorcycles and 35 minutes for cars. You can finish in two-thirds of the time, so there is plenty of time during the exam! Note: The motorcycle textbook has 172 questions, all text without images; 10 questions are randomly selected for the exam, and you fail if you get two or more wrong. The car textbook has about 1,000 questions, about one-third of which have images; 30 questions are randomly selected, and you fail if you get three or more wrong. Additionally, if you only want to take the motorcycle license exam, you must still take both the motorcycle and car written tests; if you only want a car license, you do not need to take the motorcycle test. It is quite strange that taking the motorcycle test is more troublesome than the car test, but if you have obtained a motorcycle license and later want a car license, you can be exempted from the written test. Similarly, if you hold a car license and want a motorcycle license, you must take the motorcycle written test again!
After meeting the prerequisites, let's discuss what to prepare before going to the driving school:
First: Prepare four 2-inch photos. Go to a photo studio and tell them you need photos for a Greek driver's license; they will know what to do.
Second: Go to the Εθνική Τράπεζα (I am not sure if this is commonly known as the National Bank of Greece) and spend 120 Euros to purchase a Παράβολο (I interpret this as a "receipt" or "voucher"; I am not sure if this is the exact meaning, and I welcome advice from experts). Just bring your passport or red paper, go to the teller window, and tell them you want to buy a Παράβολο for a driver's license, and they will understand. The Παράβολο consists of three parts: one for the ophthalmologist, one for the internist, and one for the department issuing the driver's license to create the card!
Then, find an ophthalmologist and an internist to get a certificate from each! (Note: The ophthalmologist is called Οφθαλμιατρική and the internist is called παθολόγο. There are many such private clinics on the street. Once you go there and tell them it is for a driver's license, they might not even examine you and will issue a certificate after receiving the Παράβολο. You are paying them, so don't worry, they will treat you warmly, haha.)
Finally, take the reports from both departments, the final Παράβολο, your ID, photos, and your ΑΦΜ to a driving school to register, and you are all set! After registering, ask them for the textbook and the computer CD; these are provided for free.
Driving school fees:
When you find a driving school (a Greek driving school is actually just an office!) and want to register, some schools may ask you for 40 or 50 Euros for the card processing fee. In fact, that money is for the final Παράβολο; they are just charging a service fee. It is up to you; if you don't want to pay, you can either change to another school or go to the department that issues driver's licenses to apply yourself. It is actually quite simple: just take those documents there, tell them you want to take the driver's license exam, and they will issue you a card. You can then use this card to find a school to study at. The purpose of finding a school is actually just to get a certificate proving that you have received training at a school.
After you finish your training at the driving school (about a month, or about 10 days if you only need a motorcycle license), you can take the exam. (Note: During training, you can actually choose whether or not to attend the driving school; as long as the money is paid and the days are sufficient, they will issue you a certificate.) After training, they will arrange a time for you to take the exam. At that time, you must bring your passport, ID, and the certificate provided by the teacher to enter the exam room. (Mobile phones must be turned off in the exam room; if a phone rings during the exam, you will be kicked out and banned from taking the exam for six months, so please be aware of this.) The entire exam is completed via computer. The exam is exactly the same as the usual mock tests. You can also request audio assistance via headphones (but you must tell your teacher before applying for the exam), so don't worry, there is plenty of time, and there is no need to be nervous! After the exam, when you leave, they will announce on the spot whether you passed. If you passed, you can book your road test, which usually takes three or four working days to schedule. If you did not pass, you must wait a week before you can take it again. (Note: You do not need to pay any fees to retake the written test.)