GreekChat.com Forums - Please Help Me !

I was born in Greece ( Athens ) but when I was 3 years old my parents migrated to Brazil where I grew up. When I was 42, I decided to return back to my motherland.

Being a computer programmer I needed to buy a computer in Greece so I could continue to learn and training programming and other computer skills while learning to speak a proper greek. Since my greek was quite poor I was obliged to work as portrait designer/painter and the work was infrequent and unstable so I decided to buy a computer and pay by monthly instalments for one year.

During the purchase contract I had to sign 12 promissory notes. Since my work was irregular and uncertain, after the two first instalments I started paying all the remaining instalments on arrears ( the payment delays were usually one or two weeks ).

But strangely, the computer shop officer was giving receipt for the payments but she was not giving back the corresponding promissory note alleging that when a customer delays the monthly payments the promissory notes are sent to a “central office”. Furthermore she said that I should not worry because when I finish paying all instalments, all promissory notes will be handed over back to me.

Since in Brazil I had similar experience and there, they, indeed, gave me back the promissory notes, I decided to trust her.

When I finish paying the last instalment, the shop officer, as usually, said that since I paid in arrears, the promissory note was sent to the central office and then she told me to come back to the shop office after two weeks to collect all my remaining promissory notes.

However, when I went there, to my surprise, the shop was closed. I asked to a neighbour shop owner what happened and he informed me that the company had declared bankruptcy !

I got to localize one of the owners and he told me that he was not dealing with the accounting tasks of the company and that he “had no idea” where my promissory notes were.

To my dismay, after almost one month later, I received a letter from a bank demanding me to pay all promissory notes !!!

I went there and met the bank manager and showed him all my payment receipts and told him that I already paid all instalments and that actually those promissory notes should return to me.

He, coldly, said that he did not know nothing about this purchase and when the company bankrupted, their owners used my promissory notes to pay their company debts !!!

I find outrageous and absurd having to pay all over again thanks the disgusting dishonesty of the former computer shop owners.

Since I was finding difficult to find a stable job in Greece, I decided to migrate to UK without paying my computer purchase all over again.

Ten years have already gone and I need to return to Greece to visit my mother who is very old and ill. Since I know almost nothing about the greek laws ( remember, I grew up in Brazil ), I am quite concerned on what might happen with my return.

I vaguely remember that, little before leaving Greece, I heard the news that a new law was about to be enforced by the government that establishes that whoever has a debt above a given limit would not be allowed to leave the country. If I remember correctly my debt corresponded to about 3000 US dollars. Does this law was really enforced ?

If by chance my case went to the court in my absence, can authorities arrest me because this unfair debt ?

Can I defend myself by showing the payment receipts ?

Could I demand the bank to justify my debt by proving what commercial transaction exactly originated these promissory notes ?

I would be immensely grateful for any information or advice.