Cyprus Permanent Residency through Property Investment

1. What the Cyprus PR programme is

Cyprus Permanent Residency by investment (commonly called the "Fast-Track PR") is a route for non-EU/EEA nationals to obtain an indefinite right to reside in the Republic of Cyprus by acquiring qualifying real estate and meeting a small set of income and integrity criteria. It is granted under Regulation 6(2) of the Aliens and Immigration Regulations and processed by the Department of Civil Registry and Migration (CRMD) within the Ministry of Interior.

Unlike traditional "golden visa" schemes that have been wound down across parts of the EU, the Cyprus programme is structured as a residency permit, not as a direct path to citizenship. A complete and well-prepared file is typically decided in two to three months, after which the investor and their family receive a permanent residency card.

Important. The figures, percentages, and timelines below reflect the rules in force as of 2026-05-27. The Council of Ministers can revise the threshold, income requirements, and VAT treatment without notice. Always cross-check with your Cypriot lawyer before committing.

2. Eligibility — what you actually need

2.1 Qualifying investment

• Minimum €300,000 + VAT invested in qualifying Cyprus assets. For this platform we focus on the most common track: residential real estate purchased directly from a developer.
• The property must be new-build. Resale property does not qualify under the Fast-Track route. Off-plan and first-sale completed units do.
• You may combine up to two residential units to reach the threshold, provided both are bought from the same developer and meet the new-build rule.
• The investment funds must originate from outside Cyprus and be transferred into Cyprus via the banking system. A clear paper trail (bank statements, sale of business, dividends, salary, inheritance) is required.
• You must continue to hold the qualifying property for as long as you wish to retain PR status. Selling without replacement voids the permit.

2.2 Income from abroad

The applicant must demonstrate stable annual income earned outside Cyprus, sufficient to support the family without recourse to Cypriot public funds. Indicative thresholds in force at the time of writing:

• Main applicant: at least €50,000 per year.
• Spouse: +€15,000 per year.
• Each dependent child: +€10,000 per year.
• Dependent parents (of applicant or spouse): additional income required, confirmed case-by-case with the Migration Department.

Acceptable evidence includes tax returns, employer letters, dividend statements, audited company accounts, and pension entitlements. Income from Cyprus-resident employment does not count toward the threshold.

2.3 Integrity checks

• Clean criminal record in the country of origin and any country of long-term residence (police clearance certificate issued in the last 6 months, apostilled and translated).
• No prior refusal or deportation from Cyprus on serious grounds.
• Valid health insurance covering all family members included on the application.

2.4 Ongoing obligations

• Visit Cyprus at least once every two years to maintain the permit. There is no minimum-stay obligation beyond that biennial visit.
• Retain ownership of the qualifying property. Selling it cancels the PR unless a replacement qualifying property is acquired in parallel.
• No paid employment in Cyprus. PR-holders may own and direct a Cypriot company and draw income from dividends, but cannot take up paid employment locally.

3. Who is included on the application

One Fast-Track PR application can cover a complete family unit:

• The main applicant
• The spouse
• Children under 18 (automatically included)
• Dependent children aged 18 to 25, if they are unmarried, financially dependent, and enrolled in full-time tertiary education at the time of application
• Parents of the applicant and parents of the spouse, on a case-by-case basis and with additional supporting income evidence

Each adult included on the application must individually meet the clean-criminal-record requirement and submit biometrics in Cyprus.

4. What PR gives you — and what it does not

4.1 What it gives you

• An indefinite right to reside in the Republic of Cyprus.
• A path to Cypriot (EU) citizenship after, broadly, 8 years of legal residency in the previous 10 (with the year immediately preceding the application spent in physical residence). Naturalisation also requires evidence of genuine ties to Cyprus — regular presence, basic Greek language exposure, and integration into local life.
• Family-unit inclusion (spouse, children, in some cases parents) under a single application.
• Access to private Cyprus schools, universities, and the private healthcare system.

4.2 What it does not give you

• Automatic Schengen access. Cyprus is not yet a full Schengen member. PR is a national permit. Visa-free Schengen travel requires either Cypriot citizenship or a separate Schengen visa.
• The right to work as an employee in Cyprus. (Ownership of and dividends from a Cypriot company are allowed.)
• Tax residency. PR status and tax residency are distinct concepts. Cyprus tax residency is determined by physical-presence rules (60-day or 183-day tests) and is decided separately by the Tax Department.
• Permanent immunity from policy change. The programme has been tightened in the past and may be again.

5. Indicative costs

Beyond the headline €300,000 investment, several other costs apply. Figures are indicative and depend on the property, the developer, and the applicant's circumstances.

• VAT on the property. The standard rate is 19%. A reduced rate of 5% applies on the first 130 m² of a primary residence valued up to €350,000, subject to conditions tightened in 2023 — confirm with your lawyer whether you qualify.
• Transfer fees. Graduated by property value, but typically waived for first-sale property already subject to VAT.
• Stamp duty on the sales contract: 0.15% on the first €170,000 and 0.20% above, capped at €20,000.
• Application fee to the Migration Department: approximately €500, plus per-card fees for each family member.
• Legal fees: typically €3,000 to €8,000 for the full process (sales contract review, escrow handling, PR filing, biometric attendance).
• Translations and apostilles on civil-status documents: a few hundred euros, depending on country of origin.

6. The application process, step by step

1. Engage a licensed Cypriot lawyer. This is the single most important step. The lawyer reviews the developer, the contract, the title path, and prepares and files the PR application.
2. Select a qualifying property. Confirm with the lawyer that the project, the developer, and the unit all qualify under the rules currently in force.
3. Reserve and sign the sales contract. A reservation deposit secures the unit; the sales contract is then signed and submitted to the Land Registry within the contractual window. Typically 30–40% of the price is paid by the time the PR application is filed.
4. Compile supporting documents: passports, marriage and birth certificates (apostilled and translated), police clearance certificates, proof of income, bank confirmation of the funds transfer, health insurance policy.
5. File the PR application via your lawyer with the CRMD.
6. Attend a biometric appointment in Cyprus — every applicant aged 6 and over must be physically present once.
7. Receive the decision and collect the PR cards. Typical timeline: two to three months for a complete file.

7. How our platform fits in

Cyprus Properties is a curated catalogue of vetted Cyprus developers and their off-plan projects. We exist to remove the most painful step in any cross-border property decision: figuring out who is reputable, what the real numbers are, and how the unit you are looking at maps to the PR rules.

What we do:

• Vet developers (company-registry checks, beneficial ownership, track record, after-sales reputation).
• Surface starting prices, payment plans, expected handover dates, and PR eligibility flags in a comparable format.
• Connect you directly with the developer (or their legal representative) so that quotes and contracts are not run through additional broker layers that inflate price.
• Maintain a single PR-eligibility filter on the catalogue so you can shortlist only projects that meet the €300,000 + VAT threshold.

What we explicitly do not do:

• Provide legal, tax, or immigration advice.
• Represent you before the Migration Department.
• Handle escrow, fund transfers, or any part of the transaction itself.
• File the PR application or any other government paperwork on your behalf.
• Process citizenship applications.
• Make warranties about handover dates, finishing quality, or future yield.

We are a lead-generation and information platform. The transaction, the contract, and the immigration filing are between you, your lawyer, and the developer.