Cyprus Special Investment Compartment

Free Movement of People

Cypriot citizen can reside and work within the EU and travel visa-free to 150 countries (https://www.passportindex.org/?country=cy).

All immediate family members can obtain Cyprus Citizenship too: the spouse of the Successful Applicant, his/her children under the age of 18 and the adult dependent children (for ages between 18 and 27 years old)

Free Movement of Capital, Services and Goods

On top of investment into the Fund, the Applicant must fulfill the following:

• Maintain clean criminal record. Individuals whose property is frozen within the EU, cannot be considered as having a clean criminal record.
• Own a private residence in Cyprus with a purchase price of at least €500.000 excluding VAT.

Other terms and conditions:

The Applicant must hold a residence permit in the Republic of Cyprus in order to obtain the Cypriot Citizenship. If the Applicant does not already hold a residence permit, one may apply for the permanent residency on the basis of Regulation 6(2) of the Aliens and Immigration Law, simultaneously with the application for naturalization.

In the event that the application for permanent residency is submitted solely for naturalization purposes, then the terms and conditions of the Citizenship Scheme apply, and no additional requirements are imposed.

The investments mentioned above must be maintained for at least three years from the date of naturalization.

The investments, for the purposes of the Citizenship Application, need to be concluded with fresh funds by the investor, i.e. wired to Cyprus from abroad.

What the applicant should have in mind:

• The approval of Citizenship under the relevant Decision is granted by the Cyprus Council of Ministers
• The application package is submitted to the Ministry of Interior. The economic criteria are assessed by the Ministry of Finance.
• The Applicant and his/her spouse may apply jointly. Upon approval, the application process for the children may begin.

After the assessment of both Ministries, the application is presented to the Council of Ministers The completion of the process usually takes up to 3-4 months

Once the Citizenship is granted, the main applicant may apply for Cypriot Passport and Identity Card for all the family members.

Cyprus citizenship presents and option to become Cyprus tax resident individual – by staying in Cyprus 60 days during the year

An individual, who does not remain in any other state for one or more periods which altogether exceed 183 days in the same tax year and who is not tax resident in any other state for the same tax year, may be considered to be a tax resident of Cyprus, provided that the following conditions are cumulatively met:

• he should remain in Cyprus for at least 60 days during the tax year;
• he should pursue any business in Cyprus and/or to work in Cyprus and/or to be a director in a company tax resident in Cyprus at any time during the tax year;
• he should maintain a permanent residence in Cyprus, which can be either owned or rented by him.

It is clarified that an individual who cumulatively fulfils the above conditions is not considered as tax resident of Cyprus in the tax year, if in that year the exercise of any business and/or employment in Cyprus and/ or the holding of a post to a taxable person of Cyprus have ceased.

For the purposes of calculating the days of stay in Cyprus:

• the day of departure from Cyprus is considered as a day outside Cyprus;
• the day of arrival in Cyprus is considered as a day in Cyprus;
• arrival in Cyprus and departure from Cyprus within the same day is counted as one day in Cyprus;
• departure from Cyprus and return to Cyprus within the same day is counted as one day outside Cyprus.

Thus, an incentive is given to an individual who is not a tax resident in any other state for the same tax year to transfer his tax residence to Cyprus and to be taxed only on income from the activities the individual exercises in Cyprus.

It is noted that for employment purposes in Cyprus with earnings in excess of Euro 100,000, an individual is allowed for an exemption from tax of 50% of the salary for a period of 10 years, which significantly reduces his income tax liability. At the same time, an individual is granted exemption from income tax or defense tax on dividends and interest received either in Cyprus or abroad, provided that such individual is considered as non-domiciled in Cyprus.