CYPRUS Trends and Developments Contributed by: Marios Konstantinou and Stalo Konstantinou, George K. Konstantinou Law Firm
Recently, the government of Cyprus established the Business Facilitation Unit (BFU), which oper - ates through the Ministry of Finance. The BFU facilitates the registration and running of busi - nesses of foreign interests, issues residence and employment permits to personnel, and allows for tax exemptions. Under family reunification rules, members of the family of such person - nel may also come to Cyprus. This justifies the trend for companies to consider Cyprus a prime relocation choice and to acquire real property for entrepreneurship. In November 2023, Cyprus passed Law 149(I)/ 2023, an amendment to the Civil Registry Law 2002-2021, which creates favourable conditions for highly skilled personnel in companies of for - eign interests or foreign companies. The terms “company of foreign interest” and “foreign company” are used interchangeably in the Ministry of Finance documents and refer to companies where: • shareholders are TCNs; or • TCNs hold up to 50% of the shares and have a share capital of at least EUR200,000. Law 149(I)/ 2023 came into force on 19 Decem - ber 2023. It allows highly skilled personnel of foreign companies to apply for naturalisation (citizenship) after three or four years of work and residence on the island, depending on knowl - edge of the Greek language. Respectively, the certificate of knowledge of the Greek language must be at the A2 or B1 level under the Common European Framework for Languages (CEFR). The applicant must show a twelve-month continuous and lawful resi - dence in the Republic preceding the application (absences of up to 90 days are allowed).
The Ministry of Education conducts language examinations at regular intervals. Highly skilled personnel means personnel with a university degree or equivalent or two years of experience in their field, receiving a monthly salary of at least EUR2,500 gross. Moreover, in a policy announced on 5 February 2024, the government expressed an intention to allow businesses registered under the BFU to remain in the BFU Registry even if, after share - holders acquire citizenship, they no longer sat - isfy the foreign participation requirements. Households: decentralised real estate markets and renting out Ownership patterns among new households are exhibiting a trend for decentralisation (ie, properties in urban districts or rural areas that are near a larger city). Moreover, renting out is becoming a popular investment strategy. Buy - ing a flat or erecting a cabin-sized house to rent out is increasingly considered a secure source of income. Forecast and Conclusion The real estate field in Cyprus is exhibiting resil - ience and is expected to continue its significant contribution to the economy. Legal measures aim to rectify weaknesses and ensure the sys - tem functions smoothly. New areas of oppor - tunity and new fields of regulation for the near future are expected to be the role of AI in real estate and the government’s focus on sustain - able development and green building.
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