Cyprus residency by investment

The Cyprus Residency by Investment program gives successful applicants and their families a Cyprus immigration permit of unlimited duration. The Migration Department puts the examination period at roughly two months from the date a complete application is submitted. In practice it takes about six months. It is the permit most people call the Cyprus golden visa. Investors holding this permit can apply for Cyprus citizenship after 8 years of residency there.

In 2026, applicants can obtain permanent residency in Cyprus by investing at least €300,000 in real estate, shares, or funds and demonstrating an annual income of at least €50,000. If investing in residential property, the income must come from abroad and is proved by a tax return from the country where you are tax resident; for other investment options, part of the income can be from Cyprus.

The requirements in brief:

• An investment of at least €300,000, excluding VAT, in one of four categories.
• A personal secured income of at least €50,000 a year, measured before tax.
• An examination of about two months by the Migration Department's estimate, and about six months in practice.
• An application fee of €500, plus €70 per person for the ARC card where needed.

Short answers to four common questions:

• Can I work in Cyprus? Not as an employee. A directorship in the company you invested in is the one exception, and anyone who wants a job needs a work permit.
• Can I travel in the Schengen area on this permit? No. Cyprus is not a Schengen member yet, and a Cyprus residence permit gives no visa-free entry to the Schengen states.
• Does it make me a Cyprus tax resident? Not by itself. Tax residency turns on where you spend your time under the 183-day and 60-day rules, set out in Cyprus tax residency and non-dom rules.
• Does it lead to a passport? Not directly. After eight years of legal residence you can apply for naturalisation, with Greek at B1 and a civics examination, as set out in how to get Cyprus citizenship.

Cyprus residency by investment requirements in 2026

To qualify in 2026, an applicant must invest at least €300,000 in options like new residential property, commercial real estate, or company shares. An annual income of at least €50,000 is also needed, increasing for a spouse (€15,000) and each child (€10,000). Income sources vary by investment type.

The eligible investment categories are as follows:

• Buy a residential, brand-new property.
  

  A house or apartment can be bought for at least €300,000 plus VAT. Up to two housing units can be counted toward the same total. They may come from one development company or from two. Off-plan properties are also included, irrespective of the delivery date. If the applicant and spouse buy together, the above conditions apply to both. That is, the total amount should be at least €300,000 plus VAT for one or two properties.

• Purchase commercial properties.

  It may include offices, shops, hotels, related developments, or a combination of these. It can also include resales or used properties.

• Invest in the Cyprus Company's share capital.

  To purchase shares or establish a Cyprus company and invest in its share capital, the company must be based and operating in the Republic of Cyprus, have a proven physical presence, and employ five (5) people.

• Invest in units of a Cyprus collective investment organisation (AIF, AIFLNP or RAIF)

  To purchase units in any of those mentioned above.

We recommend that our clients opt for real estate as a safer, more secure investment option for obtaining Cyprus residency.

Income requirement

The applicant must show a personal secured annual income of at least €50,000. The Migration Department measures that figure gross, before tax, and has confirmed this to us in writing.

The amount is increased by €15,000 for the spouse and €10,000 for each underage child. The spouse's income (if any) can be included in calculating income.

The income may include any of the following:

• salaries or wages,
• pensions, dividends, fixed deposits, and rental income

If the applicant invests in the residential property option, their income must be entirely from abroad. When using the other investment options, i.e. investment in commercial realty, company shares or investment units, the income can come from sources within Cyprus. It must be taxed in the Republic.

Annual obligations to verify criteria

There are some verification requirements concerning the investment residency.

Every year (annually), you should submit the following:

• Evidence that you maintain the investment, and
• Health insurance certificate for yourself and your family (in case you are not GESY beneficiaries).

Every three years, you should submit the following:

• A clean criminal record for yourself and your family from your country of origin and residence.

The requirement that you annually submit proof of your income level has been abolished.

However, you must not:

• Acquire permanent residence abroad, or
• Absent yourself from Cyprus for two years.

What it costs in total

The investment is €300,000 before VAT. A new home carries VAT at 19%, or the reduced 5% rate on the first 130 m² and the first €350,000 where it becomes the buyer's permanent residence for ten years and meets the size and value limits.

The government charges €500 for the application and €70 per person for the ARC card. Our due diligence and legal support fee is €3,000 for a single applicant and €3,500 for a family.

Two worked examples

Both examples assume a new house or apartment bought from a developer for €300,000 before VAT, at the standard 19% rate. A first sale that carries VAT pays no Land Registry transfer fees, and no stamp duty is payable on a contract signed on or after 1 January 2026.

A single applicant:

• Property: €300,000, plus VAT of €57,000.
• Application fee: €500.
• ARC card: €70.
• Our due diligence and legal support: €3,000.

Total: €360,570.

A family of four, a couple with two children under 18:

• Property: €300,000, plus VAT of €57,000.
• Application fee: €500, covering the whole family.
• ARC cards: €280, at €70 for each of the four.
• Our due diligence and legal support: €3,500.

Total: €361,280.

If the home becomes the buyer's permanent residence and meets the limits above, the VAT on a €300,000 home of up to 130 m² falls to €15,000, which takes €42,000 off each total. The examples leave out document translation and health insurance. Our property lawyers handle the purchase itself.

Dependent persons

The immigration permit issued to the investor covers these people as dependants:

• Spouses and children up to 18 years old.

Each spouse can hold a permit of their own, on a separate application with its own fee, and the second spouse does not have to meet the criteria. If the investor's permit is cancelled, the spouse's permit falls with it.

A permit granted to such a child stays valid after they turn 25, after they marry, after they finish studying and after they stop depending on their parents. Their own spouse and children cannot be added to it, and it is cancelled if the investor's permit is cancelled.

If they wish to study at any university in Cyprus, they must initially apply for a student visa. After finishing their studies they can apply for their own Immigration Permit. The only requirement is that the parents show an extra annual income of €10,000 for every such child.

If the investment property does not have enough bedrooms for the applicant's dependent family members, the applicant must provide proof of another residence (such as a title deed, contract of sale or rental document) for those individuals.

Higher investment for adult children

The "adult children" are the applicant's children who are not financially dependent.

For a non-financially dependent adult child to apply under the same investment, the applicant must meet the higher-value investment criteria. The standard €300,000 investment value must be multiplied by the number of adult children applying.

Example investment calculations:

• Example 1: An applicant with one adult child must invest €600,000.
• Example 2: An applicant with two adult children must invest €900,000.

To include adult children in the application based on real estate investments, a payment certificate showing at least 66% of the property's market value must be submitted with the application documents.

Each adult child must individually demonstrate that they have an annual income of at least €50,000. This amount increases if they have dependents (by €15,000 for a spouse and €10,000 for each child).

Does the permit lead to Cyprus citizenship?

Cyprus has no shorter citizenship route for investors. The reduced qualifying periods introduced in 2023 are open to highly skilled staff of companies named in the Council of Ministers decision of 15 October 2021, and an investment permit does not bring you inside that group.

You can obtain Cypriot residency by purchasing property worth €300,000 or more. Then you can apply for citizenship by naturalisation after 8 years of legal stay in Cyprus: 2555 days of residence during the preceding 10 years, plus 12 months of continuous residence immediately before you apply. Absences of up to 90 days in total do not break that final year.

Time in the country is not the whole test. Since 19 December 2023 you need a Greek language certificate at B1, a pass in the state examination on the basic elements of the political and social reality of Cyprus, good character, suitable accommodation and stable regular income, and an intention to live in the Republic.

For those highly skilled employees the qualifying period is four years of residence with an A2 Greek certificate or three years with B1, on top of the 12 months of continuous residence, giving five and four years in total.

For everyone else, including investors, the 2555 days must fall within the 10 years immediately before that final 12-month period.

Read more about Cyprus citizenship by naturalisation.

A holder who lives in Cyprus can apply for long-term resident status after five years, a separate EU status with its own tests. Cyprus residency vs citizenship sets out what each status gives you.

Benefits of investment PR

Cyprus permanent residency provides the following benefits:

• Unrestricted entry and stay within Cyprus.
• A corporate tax rate of 15% from 1 January 2026, with the non-domicile rules available to shareholders who become Cyprus tax residents. A permanent residence permit does not by itself make you a Cyprus tax resident, so your personal tax position turns on where you actually live and on the 183-day and 60-day rules.
• Inclusion of the applicant's spouse and minor children.
• Access to the General Healthcare System once you are an ordinary resident of the government controlled areas. An investor who keeps a main home abroad stays outside GESY and needs private health cover.
• No need for a continuous stay; just a visit every two years to retain residency status.

Schengen Area or Europe visa-free travel

The Cyprus residence permit does not grant visa-free travel to any EU country or the Schengen Area, because Cyprus is not yet a member of the Schengen zone. Cyprus has applied to join the Schengen Area, and the application is currently under consideration.

Additional information

• The permanent residence holder must personally visit Cyprus at least once every two years.
• The applicants are not allowed to be employed in Cyprus. However, they have the right to be employed as Directors in a company they have chosen to invest in under this policy.
• The applicants can be shareholders in companies registered in Cyprus and receive dividends. They are also entitled to serve as directors of those companies without a salary.
• Investment funds must come from abroad, from your own or your spouse's account, or from a company in which the two of you are the sole shareholders. The money is paid into the seller's account at a Cyprus financial institution, and it cannot be raised by borrowing inside Cyprus. Our guide to opening a bank account in Cyprus covers the banking side.
• The Migration Department estimates the examination period at about two months from the date a complete application is submitted. In practice it takes about six months, so plan on that figure.
• The permit stops being valid if the holder and dependants live outside Cyprus and fail to take up residence there within one year of approval.
• The application fee is €500. A further €70 is charged for each person included in the application who does not already hold an Alien Registration Certificate.
• The Deputy Minister of Migration and International Protection takes the final decision.

When a different permit fits better

This route is for non-EU investors who want permanent residence and do not plan to work in Cyprus. Other routes suit other readers, and Cyprus permanent residency sets them side by side.

• EU citizens do not use this route at all and register for a yellow slip instead.
• Buyers below €300,000 with a steady income from abroad can look at the Category F visa.
• Anyone who wants a job in Cyprus needs a work permit, since this permit bars employment.
• Readers after a passport need the naturalisation route in how to get Cyprus citizenship. Citizenship by investment closed in 2020.

How the application runs

The purchase comes first. Our guide on buying a house in Cyprus and getting residency covers it from reservation to the transfer of funds from abroad. The permit steps follow:

1. Book an appointment with the Migration Department, or file through an authorised representative.
2. Submit form MIP2 with the documents listed below and pay the €500 fee.
3. Allow for the examination: about two months by the department's estimate, about six months in practice. The Deputy Minister of Migration and International Protection decides.
4. Within a year of approval, come to Cyprus to give biometric data, then collect the residence card.

Required documents

To obtain a Cyprus investment visa, the applicant needs to apply with the following required documents:

• Application form MIP2, duly completed, from the Migration Department's forms page.
• Copy of the passport of the applicants.
• CV for the applicants.
• Marriage Certificate (official and certified translation*).
• Children's Birth Certificates (official and certified translation*).
• Criminal Record Certificate for the applicants from the country of origin and, where different, the country of residence (official and certified translation*).
• A statement that the applicant and his/her spouse will not engage in paid work in the Republic.
• Tax statements or confirmation from an auditor from the country where the applicant is a tax resident to prove the income amount. The tax statements must be in the original and be accompanied by a sworn statement (affidavit).
  

  This income may include salaries, pensions, dividends, fixed deposits, and rents. The spouse's income (if any) can be included.

• Documents proving that the amount used for the investment was transferred to Cyprus from abroad (e.g., by bank transfer).
• Health insurance certificate for the applicant and spouse/ underage children.
• Representative's authorisation, signed and certified.
• If children between the ages of 18 and 25 apply, they will need a University confirmation and a list of other documents, which can be accessed at Immigration Permits for Investors - gov.cy.

The documents with (*) must be translated into English and bear the Apostille, or be certified by the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of the country that will issue them, and also by the Cyprus Embassy of that Country.

Investment-related documents

The investment-related documents required for your application depend on the investment route.

• Investment in a house/apartment or commercial properties: Contract of sale and proof of payment for at least €300,000.
• Investment in Cyprus Company's share capital: Share Purchase Agreement, Certificate of Shareholders and Incorporation, Business profile, and Social Insurance documents to show personnel employed by the company.
• Investment in units of a Cyprus Investment Organisation (AIF, AIFLNP, RAIF): Titles or other proof of the purchased units, confirmation from CySec concerning the Fund, and the Memorandum for the Fund or Investment Plan.