Cyprus Succession Law and inheritance rules

This guide covers the inheritance rules of Cyprus under the Wills and Succession Law, Cap. 195. It explains when Cyprus law applies, the forced heirship shares, what happens with and without a will, and the position of foreign nationals who own property in Cyprus.

Legislation and scope

Succession in Cyprus is governed by these laws:

• the Wills and Succession Law, Cap. 195, which sets the forced heirship shares and the intestacy rules;
• the Administration of Estates Law, Cap. 189, and its regulations, which govern probate and the administration of estates;
• Regulation (EU) No 650/2012, which decides which country's law governs a succession, for deaths on or after 17 August 2015;
• the Children (Relationship and Legal Status) Law, Law 187/1991, on children born outside marriage.

Which law governs a succession

For deaths on or after 17 August 2015, the EU Succession Regulation decides which country's law governs the succession. That law governs the whole estate, land included, wherever the property is (Article 23), though local special rules on certain assets still apply (Article 30).

By default it is the law of the country where the deceased had their habitual residence at death. A person can instead choose the law of a country whose nationality they hold. Cyprus succession law usually applies when the deceased was habitually resident in Cyprus at death and made no other choice.

Deaths before 17 August 2015: domicile

For earlier deaths, Cap. 195 sets its own scope. It governs the whole estate of a person domiciled in Cyprus, and the immovable property in Cyprus of a person domiciled elsewhere (Article 5).

A person has either the domicile of origin they acquired at birth or a domicile of choice. A domicile of choice in Cyprus is acquired only by settling there with the intention of staying permanently or indefinitely. Nobody acquires it only because they live in Cyprus in the naval, military, air force or civil service of the United Kingdom (Articles 6 and 9).

Succession by will

Succession occurs either by will (if the deceased has left a will) or according to intestacy rules (if the deceased has left no will).

Almost anything can be left in a will, including land, money, and personal items. Any person over 18 who is of sound mind (i.e., with full mental ability and mental health) can make a will.

Revoking a will

A will is not permanent. The person who made it can revoke (take back) it at any time before their death, in one of these ways (Article 37):

• a later will that expressly revokes the earlier one;
• a later will that conflicts with the earlier one, which revokes it to the extent the two conflict;
• the testator destroying the will with the intention to revoke it, for example by burning or tearing it;
• another person destroying it with that intention, in the testator's presence and at their direction.

A codicil counts as part of the will, so a codicil can revoke a will too.

A will is revoked automatically if the testator marries after making it. The birth of a child after the will revokes it too, but only where the testator had no children when the will was made. Neither rule applies where the will shows it was made with that marriage or birth in mind (Article 38).

You can find all the rules in our guides to making a valid will in Cyprus and to probate in Cyprus.

Forced heirship regime in Cyprus

Under Cypriot law, people cannot leave their property in any way they like. There is a "forced heirship regime" in Cyprus.

The Wills and Succession Law, Cap. 195, splits an estate into a "statutory portion" and a "disposable portion" that can be left to anyone. The statutory portion goes to the lawful heirs: the spouse and the relatives in the order the intestacy rules set. These limits apply when Cyprus law governs the succession (see Legislation and scope).

The size of the disposable portion depends on who survives the deceased:

• A child, or a descendant of a child, survives (with or without a spouse): the disposable portion is up to ¼ of the net value of the estate.
• A spouse or a parent survives, but no child or descendant of a child: up to ½ of the net value.
• No spouse, no child or descendant of a child, and no parent: the whole estate.

Everything above the disposable portion is the statutory portion. A will that gives away more than the disposable portion is not void: the gifts are cut back in proportion until they fit within it. There is one exception. Where the deceased leaves a spouse but no child or other descendant and no parent, a will that leaves the spouse more than the disposable portion is not cut back (Article 41(2)).

So a person who leaves no spouse, no children or their descendants, and no parents can leave their property to anyone.

Relevant law: Article 41 of the Wills and Succession Law, Cap. 195.

Succession by intestacy (not leaving a will)

If there is no will and Cyprus law governs, the estate is shared after its debts are paid. The spouse's share depends on which relatives survive (Article 44):

• children, or the descendants of a child who died earlier: the spouse takes the same share as each child;
• no children or descendants, but a relative up to the third degree of kinship, such as a parent, grandparent, brother or sister, nephew or niece, uncle or aunt: the spouse takes half;
• no relative up to the third degree, but one of the fourth degree, such as a first cousin: the spouse takes three quarters;
• no relative up to the fourth degree: the spouse takes the whole estate.

The rest of the estate does not pass in equal shares to everyone. It passes by class, and a nearer class excludes a more distant one (Article 46).

Relevant law: Articles 44 and 46 of the Wills and Succession Law, Cap. 195.

Classes of relatives

Where there is no will and no surviving spouse, the estate passes to the relatives in classes. Each class excludes the ones after it (First Schedule of Cap. 195):

1. Children, in equal shares. The descendants of a child who died before the deceased take that child's share between them.
2. Parents, and brothers and sisters, with the descendants of a brother or sister who died earlier taking that person's share. A parent who died first is replaced by the nearest living ancestor. A half-brother or half-sister takes half the share of a full brother or sister.
3. The nearest ancestors. Where the father's side and the mother's side each have ancestors of the same degree, each side takes half.
4. The nearest relatives up to the sixth degree of kinship, in equal shares.

If no spouse and no relative up to the sixth degree survives, the estate passes to the Republic of Cyprus (Article 47).

The degrees of kinship are set out in the table in the Second Schedule of the Wills and Succession Law: The Wills and Succession Law - Chapter 195 - cylaw.org.

Specific testamentary provisions

Under Cypriot law, property can be left to a religious institution. If the deceased has relatives up to the third degree of kinship, the will making such a gift must be executed at least three months before the death (Article 33 Wills and Succession Law).

The deceased can appoint a guardian for their child or children. The court may remove the guardian and select another (Article 34).

Gift in contemplation of death

A gift in contemplation of death, called "donatio mortis causa", is made by a person who is ill and expects to die soon of that illness. The donor hands movable property to the recipient, who keeps it as a gift if the donor dies of that illness.

It covers movable property only and must be made before at least two witnesses aged 18 or over and of sound mind (Article 40).

The donor can take the gift back at any time. The gift has no effect if the donor recovers from the illness or outlives the recipient (Article 40(2)).

Inheritance tax in Cyprus: none, but other costs

Cyprus charges no inheritance tax. Estate duty was repealed for deaths on or after 1 January 2000, and there is no separate gift tax.

An estate still has tax and fee steps to go through:

• Within six months of the death, the legal representatives file a statement of the deceased's assets and liabilities with the Tax Department. No will is probated and no letters of administration are granted until the Tax Commissioner's certificate of no objection is filed in court. Until the Tax Commissioner approves, the deceased's property cannot be transferred and money in the deceased's bank accounts cannot be withdrawn.
• Registering inherited property at the Land Registry costs €10 per property for the application and €5 per property for each heir's title. A legatee under a will who is not a lawful heir pays a fee on the property's 2013 assessed value: 0.01% up to the third degree of kinship, 0.3% beyond it.
• Probate has court and professional costs.
• Inheriting is not a sale for Capital Gains Tax. If the heir later sells the property, the 20% tax is charged on the gain over the deceased's acquisition value, adjusted for inflation, or over the value on 1 January 1980 if the property was acquired before then.

Read more about the Cyprus taxation system.

Trusts in Cyprus

A person can create a "trust" instead of a will. A trust allows an individual (the trustee) to hold property for the benefit of another (the beneficiary). A trust may be created together with a will (complementary).

In a trust, individuals called trustees hold property on behalf of another person, the beneficiary. The trustees hold the legal title to the property, while the beneficiary holds a beneficial title.

Often, the trustees hold the property until a specific event occurs, such as until the beneficiary reaches 18 years of age. At this point, the legal title to the property is transferred to the beneficiary.

A trust can be used to:

• Hold the property for a child.
• Hold the property for future generations of the family.
• Create a fund (pool of money) for family members.
• Provide for someone secretly.
• Provide for a charity.

Paternity and succession

The Children (Relationship and Legal Status) Law, Law 187/1991, governs the areas of paternity and succession. The most common situation is when a child is born out of marriage ("out of wedlock"), but the father will not recognise it.

Voluntary recognition: Articles 16 and 17

A father can recognise a child born outside marriage as his own, with the mother's consent. He does this by sworn declaration before the Registrar of the Court or in his will (Articles 16 and 17).

If the mother has died or lacks legal capacity, the father's declaration alone is enough. If the father has died or lacks legal capacity, a paternal grandparent can recognise the child. The mother can refuse consent only by claiming that the man is not the child's biological father. A voluntary recognition cannot be withdrawn.

Judicial recognition: Article 20

The mother or the child can ask the court to recognise paternity. The process is called judicial recognition.

If the mother refuses consent to a voluntary recognition, the father can apply too, and so can the paternal grandparents where the father has died or lacks legal capacity (Article 20).

Judicial recognition is possible even after the man has died. The application is then filed against his heirs (Article 21).

The mother's right lapses five years after the birth. Where she was married when the child was conceived, the five years run from the final judgment setting aside her husband's paternity. The child's right lapses three years after coming of age, with later starting points in some cases. The father and the paternal grandparents have three years from the mother's refusal (Article 22).

Legal effect of recognition: Article 23

When recognition occurs, the child gets all the legal rights belonging to a child from the date of birth. The rule is the same whether recognition was voluntary or through the court.

Rules for British owners

For a death on or after 17 August 2015, the law that governs a British owner's estate turns on where they lived at death and on any choice in their will:

• habitually resident in Cyprus, with no choice of law: Cyprus law usually governs the whole estate, the forced heirship limits included, and a will made before 17 August 2015 under the law of the owner's nationality counts as a choice of that law (Article 83(4));
• habitually resident in Cyprus, with a valid choice of the law of their part of the United Kingdom: that law governs the whole estate, Cyprus property included;
• habitually resident in another EU country: that country's law governs, or the national law they chose;
• habitually resident in the UK or another non-EU country: that country's law governs, and its own conflict rules can send the Cyprus property back to Cyprus law (Article 34 of the Regulation).

The position after 2015

Until 2015, Article 42 of Cap. 195 lifted the forced heirship limits for the will of a person born in the United Kingdom, or whose father was born in the United Kingdom or a Commonwealth country, and for a foreign national's will of movable property. Law 96(I)/2015 deleted Article 42.

A British national habitually resident in Cyprus can instead choose the law of their part of the United Kingdom under Regulation (EU) 650/2012. English law is one example. The choice is made in a will, expressly or through its terms.

Our wills, probate and estate lawyers can draft a will with a choice of law for owners in this position.

UK inheritance tax after April 2025

Cyprus charges no inheritance tax, but UK inheritance tax can still reach the estate of a British owner.

Since 6 April 2025, the UK taxes the worldwide assets of anyone who was a long-term UK resident at death, meaning UK resident in at least 10 of the 20 tax years before the year of death.

A person who leaves the UK stays in scope for 3 to 10 tax years after departure, depending on how long they were resident. Assets in the UK, for example property or a bank account there, stay within UK inheritance tax in any case. Some assets are excluded, for example foreign currency accounts.

UK inheritance tax rates

UK inheritance tax applies at 40% above the nil rate band of £325,000, frozen until April 2031.

An extra residence nil rate band of £175,000 applies where a home passes to direct descendants (children and grandchildren, for example). It reduces by £1 for every £2 the estate is worth above £2 million. Property left to nieces and nephews does not qualify for it.

EU law: choice of succession law

For deaths on or after 17 August 2015, Regulation (EU) No 650/2012 of 4 July 2012 decides which country's law governs a succession and which country's courts deal with it. It applies in every EU country except Denmark and Ireland.

Which law applies

One law governs the whole estate. The Regulation picks it as follows:

• by default, the law of the country where the deceased had their habitual residence at death (Article 21(1));
• by exception, the law of another country with which the deceased was manifestly more closely connected at death (Article 21(2));
• the law of a country whose nationality the person holds when making the choice or at death, if they chose it, and a person with several nationalities can choose any of them (Article 22(1));
• the chosen or applicable law can be that of a non-EU country (Article 20).

The choice is made in a will or another disposition of property upon death. It can be stated in so many words, or shown by the terms of the will, for example where the will refers to provisions of the national law (Article 22(2) and Recital 39). Your Europe advises making the choice "explicitly and clearly".

The choice is limited to a law of nationality. The aim is a real link with the chosen law, and no choice made to defeat the expectations of family members entitled to a reserved share (Recital 38).

Which courts deal with the succession

The courts of the EU country where the deceased had their habitual residence at death have jurisdiction over the whole succession (Article 4). Cyprus is an EU member, so the Cyprus courts deal with the succession of a person who was habitually resident in Cyprus at death.

European Certificate of Succession

The European Certificate of Succession is issued in the EU country whose courts have jurisdiction (Article 64). The issuing body is a court or another authority competent in succession matters.

Using the certificate is optional (Article 62(2)).

The certificate is issued for use in another EU country and takes effect there without any special procedure (Articles 62(1) and 69(1)). It is a valid document for recording inherited property in a register, but the register's own law still sets the recording requirements (Article 69(5)). The rules on the certificate are in Articles 62 to 73.