Moving to Cyprus

The employer must first be registered in the Register of Companies with Foreign Interests through the Business Support Center of the Ministry of Energy, Commerce and Industry - broadly, majority third-country ownership, or a listed category such as high-technology or innovative, shipping, pharmaceutical or biotechnology companies. The Center checks eligibility, including an initial investment in Cyprus that its own criteria page puts at EUR 200,000 (that page is not this route's archived source; re-check it there). Registered companies may then employ any number of highly paid third-country nationals without a labour market test, provided each employee receives a minimum gross salary of EUR 2,500 a month (EUR 30,000 a year), holds relevant academic qualifications or at least two years of relevant experience, and has an employment contract of at least two years. Companies commit to having 30% of their total staff be Cypriot or EU citizens over five years, with the 70:30 ratio for new hires checked after 2 January 2027. TRANSITIONAL RULE: staff already holding Key Personnel permits at EUR 2,000 or more a month may renew with the same employer without a pay increase until 31 December 2026. Employees of these companies have a naturalisation fast-track in section 111B(2) of the Civil Registry Law 141(I)/2002: with Greek at B1, 12 months' continuous residence plus 3 years in the preceding 10 (4 years in all); with Greek at A2, plus 4 years (5 in all) - against the general 12 months plus 7 years.

Two permits are required: an entry permit and a temporary residence and employment permit. A labour market test must confirm that no suitably qualified Cypriot or EU worker is available, and the employment contract must be stamped by the Labour Office. Documents include a valid passport, medical examination, criminal record certificate and the stamped contract. Permits are granted for a maximum of four years overall, with exceptions for farming and agriculture, domestic work, specialty cooks and chefs, priests and tourist representatives. A worker may change employer up to three times while remaining in the same sector and occupation; after that the permit is not renewed unless the person spends at least two years outside Cyprus. After five years of continuous legal residence the holder may apply for EU long-term resident status on proof of stable financial means and health insurance, or for an immigration permit where the employment is permanent and would not create undue local competition. Family reunification is restricted for general employment permit holders and depends on occupation and salary category; not confirmed here.

Open to third-country nationals who found an innovative startup - an unlisted small enterprise up to five years after registration that has not distributed profits, developing new or clearly improved products, services or processes - either alone or as a team of up to five founders and senior executives, who between them must own at least 25% of the company. Approval is given by the Deputy Ministry of Research, Innovation and Digital Policy: a pre-revenue startup, or one with revenue under EUR 1 million, is approved if its business plan scores at least 3 on each criterion and 15 of 20 overall from independent evaluators; a startup with revenue of at least EUR 1 million qualifies if its research and development costs were at least 10% of operating costs in one of the three previous tax years. The official guidance states no minimum capital or investment figure. The Deputy Ministry decides within five weeks of a complete application; the Migration Department then examines the entry or residence application within three weeks. The guide gives the initial approval a term of three years, renewable, but the Migration Department's own page currently states a shorter term, so confirm the term before relying on it. IMPORTANT: the scheme runs only to December 2026 and is capped at 150 visas, so availability and any further extension should be re-checked before relying on it.

For non-EU and non-EEA nationals who can work remotely using telecommunications technology, either employed by a company registered abroad or self-employed with clients located abroad. Requires a stable and sufficient net monthly income of at least EUR 3,500 after contributions and taxes (EUR 42,000 a year). Apply to the Migration Department in Nicosia within three months of arrival; examination takes 5-7 weeks and the fee is EUR 70 plus EUR 70 for first registration. The permit gives one year of residence, renewable for two further years. A spouse or civil partner and minor children may reside for the same period but may not work or carry on any economic activity in Cyprus. The Migration Department states that the maximum number of permits remains 500. Because this is a temporary permit, whether its time counts toward EU long-term residence or toward the residence Cypriot naturalisation requires is uncertain; both fields are left null rather than guessed.

Criteria of the 4th revision, in force from 2 May 2023. Requires a minimum EUR 300,000 investment in one of four categories: a house or apartment bought first-hand from a development company (EUR 300,000 plus VAT); other real estate such as offices, shops or hotels (resale permitted); share capital of a Cyprus-registered company with a physical presence in Cyprus employing at least five people; or units of a Cyprus collective investment organisation. The funds must come from abroad. Separately the applicant must show a secure personal annual income of at least EUR 50,000, increased by EUR 15,000 for a spouse and EUR 10,000 per dependent minor child; for the house/apartment option this income must come from abroad, for the other three it may come partly from Cyprus. The permit covers the spouse and children under 18. Unmarried children aged 18-25 studying abroad and financially dependent apply separately, with EUR 10,000 more income each; adult non-dependent children need a proportionally higher investment and their own EUR 50,000 income. The applicant and spouse must not take employment in Cyprus, except as directors of the company they invested in. The right of residence has no time limit, but the card must be replaced every ten years; holders must show every year that the investment is kept and health insurance is in force, and give criminal-record certificates every three years. Fee EUR 500; examination about two months. Cyprus's citizenship-by-investment scheme was terminated in November 2020 and has not returned.

Issued under Aliens and Immigration Regulation 14 to a third-country national entering for short or long-term holidays, touring, or to investigate the possibility of residing in Cyprus; the holder cannot carry out an economic activity in Cyprus. Enter with a visa where one is needed and apply on form MVIS8 before it expires, with the Migration Department's list of supporting documents. The first permit is issued for one year and is renewable if the criteria are still met; a dependent spouse and minor children can hold visitor permits too. Fees: EUR 70 for issue or renewal and EUR 70 for first registration; examination usually within four months. The income an applicant must show is not stated on the Migration Department's page, so min_income_eur is left null. Because this is a temporary visitor status, whether its time counts toward EU long-term residence or toward the residence Cypriot naturalisation requires is uncertain; both fields are left null.

A visa or entry permit must be obtained before arrival; the temporary residence permit must then be applied for within one week of entering Cyprus (the EU Immigration Portal also gives 10 days in one place). Admission to a recognised higher-education or other institution for a diploma, sufficient financial resources, health insurance and a criminal-record certificate are required. Permits are granted for one year, are renewable on application made one month before expiry, and are issued only to full-time students. Work is capped at 20 hours a week and allowed only in the listed sectors - domestic activities, waste management, restaurants, recreation centres, cleaning services, wholesale trade-repairs, health and social care, agriculture, animal husbandry, fishery, manufacturing and food delivery - with the contract certified by the Department of Labour. Students who came through an EU mobility scheme and completed a master's or doctoral course may apply for a one-year permit for job-searching or entrepreneurship after their studies. Family reunification for students was not confirmed and is left null. Time as a student does NOT count toward Cypriot naturalisation (Civil Registry Law s.111B(1)), so leads_to_citizenship_years is left null, as is leads_to_pr_years.