This guide is informational and educational only, and is not legal or medical advice. Requirements change and clinic policies differ, so confirm the details for your own transfer with your clinic and the receiving clinic in Greece.
The Greece Route
Greece has been a familiar destination for UK patients pursuing fertility treatment abroad for years, and moving frozen embryos there follows a route we know well. The flight is short and the receiving clinics are used to working with international patients, but the paperwork side of the journey still needs proper planning. This guide sets out what that involves.
What Changed After Brexit
Before the UK left the EU, moving reproductive tissue between the UK and an EU country like Greece could sit within EU tissue-and-cells frameworks. That is no longer the case. A transfer from the UK to Greece is now handled as an international export, which means it goes through the same HFEA-governed export process required for a transfer to any non-EU country. Clinics typically require this to be arranged well in advance, so it is worth building it into your planning early rather than assuming the old EU-era process still applies.
Before your UK clinic will even apply for the export licence, they need to check your original storage consent forms. If those consents are out of date, incorrectly signed, or missing, the clinic is legally required to refuse to release the tissue. It is worth asking your clinic to verify your consents before the export process is launched, so this doesn't become the thing that holds up your timeline.
The Documents You Need
Your UK clinic applies for an export licence through the HFEA, and that licence names the courier carrying your embryos. The receiving clinic in Greece provides an agreement confirming it will accept the material. No X-ray letters are prepared for security at both airports, so the tank is inspected by hand rather than scanned, and a customs release letter is arranged for arrival in Greece.
We coordinate this pack alongside both clinics, so you are not the one chasing signatures between two countries. If your route includes a stopover, each transit point is addressed in the documentation as well.
The cryogenic tank travels as cabin baggage, which requires written approval from the airline in advance. This is arranged directly with the carrier's cargo or dangerous goods division, not through general customer service, and we handle it as part of the booking. Transfers to Greece typically run on a direct scheduled flight from the UK, such as British Airways.
The Journey, Step by Step
- A qualified courier collects your embryos from the sending clinic in a cryogenic dry shipper holding minus 196 degrees. The embryologist verifies them against your records before loading.
- At the airport, the courier presents the prepared documentation so the tank is inspected by hand rather than passed through an X-ray scanner.
- The courier carries the tank in the aircraft cabin for the whole flight, never in cargo, staying with it through any connection.
- On arrival, the receiving clinic in Greece clears the tank using the pre-arranged customs documentation.
- The Greek clinic's embryologist verifies the embryos and the vessel before they go into storage. You are kept updated at each stage.
How Long It Takes
Plan for several weeks. The flight itself takes a few hours, but the export licence and the Greek clinic's own import paperwork take time to assemble properly. Beginning early, before your treatment dates are fixed, gives the documentation room to be done without rushing.
Frequently Asked Questions
Can frozen embryos be transported to Greece from the UK after Brexit?
Yes, but as an international export rather than an intra-EU move: an HFEA export licence naming the courier, an import agreement from the Greek clinic, and airline approval for the tank as cabin baggage.
How are embryos kept safe on the journey?
They travel in a cryogenic dry shipper holding minus 196 degrees for far longer than the flight takes, carried in the cabin by a qualified courier who stays with it throughout. The receiving clinic verifies them on arrival.
Which airlines are used for transfers to Greece?
Typically British Airways or other scheduled carriers flying direct from the UK. Airline approval for the tank as cabin baggage is obtained directly from the carrier in advance.
How long should I allow?
Several weeks. The flight is quick, but the export licence and the Greek clinic's paperwork set the timeline. Start before your treatment dates are fixed.
Embryo Links handles the export licence, customs release and airline approval for transfers to Greece, with a qualified courier carrying the tank in the cabin throughout. Talk to us about your route.
Chat on WhatsAppLast reviewed: 19 July 2026.