Cyprus Golden Visa

The Cyprus Golden Visa is a program that enables foreign investors and their families to obtain permanent residence in Cyprus by purchasing assets worth €300,000 and demonstrating an annual income of at least €50,000. After eight years of legal residence, and once the language and civics conditions are met, investors can apply for citizenship.

The main requirements in 2026:

• An investment of at least €300,000, excluding VAT, through one of four routes.
• 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.

The citizenship by investment program, also known as the "golden passport program," was discontinued in November 2020.

In this guide, you will find information, criteria, process and other requirements for obtaining the Cyprus Golden Visa. You will also read about the benefits you might expect when living in Cyprus.

Key takeaways

• The program grants the applicant, their spouse, and underage children the right to reside permanently in the Republic.
• An investor can apply for citizenship after eight years of legal residence, and must pass a Greek language test at B1 and a state civics examination.
• The family members covered, upon conditions, are only the applicant's spouse and children.
• The applicant must meet specific income and personal criteria to be eligible for permanent residency in Cyprus.
• With limited exceptions, the Golden visa does not give the applicant the right to work.
• The applicant must verify specific criteria annually and every three years, as outlined below.

Cyprus Golden Visa requirements in 2026

In 2026, the requirements are a minimum investment of at least €300,000, an annual income of at least €50,000, and a clear criminal record. The Migration Department must also verify annually that you maintain the investment and that your criminal records are up to date every three years.

This page covers the golden visa in outline. The criteria route by route, with the full document list, are on our page on Cyprus residency by investment, and readers who plan to invest less will find other routes further down.

Minimum investment

To obtain the Cyprus Golden Visa in 2026, the applicant must invest a minimum of €300,000 in property or funds.

This investment can be made in one of four ways:

• A house or apartment bought from a development company. It must be a first sale, worth at least €300,000 before VAT, and it can be up to two housing units counted together. They need not come from the same developer. Our guide on buying a house in Cyprus and getting residency covers the purchase.
• Other real estate, such as offices, shops, hotels or tourist developments, with a total value of €300,000. These purchases may be resales.
• Shares in a company registered and located in Cyprus, employing at least five (5) people.
• Units worth €300,000 in a Cyprus collective investment organisation (AIF, AIFLNP or RAIF), whose investments are held in the Republic.

Our guide to opening a bank account in Cyprus covers the banking side.

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.

On the house or apartment route the income has to come from abroad and is proved by a tax return from the country where you are tax resident. On the other three routes part or all of it may come from sources inside Cyprus.

If the applicant wishes to bring their spouse, the annual income is increased by €15,000; the spouse's income can also be taken into account towards this amount.

The residence permit can also cover underage or dependent children, but the income is increased by €10,000 for each child.

Personal requirements

The applicant and their spouse must have a clear criminal record from their country of origin or residence and must maintain a clear criminal record in Cyprus.

Accommodation

On every route except the house or apartment purchase, the applicant shows evidence of a home in Cyprus that they own or rent. Where the investment home has too few bedrooms for the family, the applicant shows a second home for the others.

A separate permit for the spouse

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.

Need to verify

There are specific verification requirements related to the investor's visa.

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 to annually submit proof of meeting the necessary income level has been abolished.

However, you must not:

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

In either case, you lose the right to permanent residence.

Selling the investment ends the permit too. The one exception is an immediate replacement with another investment of equal or greater value that meets the same conditions.

Visit to Cyprus

The permanent residence holder must personally visit Cyprus at least once every two years.

Cyprus Golden Visa cost

The cost of a Cyprus Golden Visa includes:

• A minimum investment of €300,000 excluding VAT. A first sale from a development company carries VAT at 19%. Commercial property bought as a resale carries no VAT and attracts transfer fees instead.
• The reduced 5% rate covers only the first 130 m² and the first €350,000 of a primary residence, with the balance at 19%, and only where the total buildable area stays under 190 m² and the total value under €475,000. It is available to individuals rather than companies, and it requires the buyer to use the property as a permanent residence for ten years.
• A government fee of €500 for the visa application, which covers the investor, their spouse, and any minor children. For adult children, an additional fee of €500 each is required.
• A registration charge of €70 per person for their Alien Registration Certificate (ARC) card.
• A due diligence and legal support fee of €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.

The right to work

There is a limited right to work in Cyprus under the Cyprus golden visa. The applicant must have an income source from outside the country.

The applicant and their spouse may hold a directorship in the company they invested in. The policy names that as the one exception to the bar on employment in Cyprus and does not require the post to be unpaid.

Moreover, the applicant and their spouse can own shares in companies registered in Cyprus and receive dividend income from them.

Finally, the applicant and their spouse can act as unpaid directors of the companies registered in Cyprus in which they own shares.

The rules about parents and parents-in-law

Under the new policy, the golden visa no longer covers the parents and parents-in-law of the applicant and their spouse.

The rules about children

The permit covers the applicant's spouse and their children under 18 as dependants. Older children and adult children are handled separately, as set out below.

Where an application includes minor children and one parent is not taking part, only a consent declaration signed before a consular officer of the Republic of Cyprus is accepted. It must state that the parent consents to the child living permanently in Cyprus.

Children between the ages of 18 and 25 are not dependants on the parent's permit. Each of them files a separate application and pays the fee.

On the date of submission the child must be enrolled in tertiary education abroad. The child must be unmarried and financially dependent on the applicant, and the parent shows an extra €10,000 of annual income for each such child.

A child who wants to study in Cyprus applies through the institution for a student residence permit instead. After finishing those studies the child can apply for an immigration permit, at any age by then, on the same €10,000 income condition.

This investment visa will remain valid even if the child marries or ceases to be financially dependent on their parents. However, the permit will not cover the child's spouse or child(ren).

Adult children

Investors may obtain a permit for adult children who do not depend on them financially. The €300,000 is multiplied by the number of adult children invoking the same investment: one adult child takes it to €600,000, two to €900,000.

Where the investment is real estate, proof of payment of at least 66% of the market value goes in with the application. The investment may be held jointly by the applicant and the adult child, or by the applicant alone.

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).

How to obtain Cyprus citizenship

An investor can apply for citizenship by naturalisation after eight years of legal residence: twelve months of continuous residence immediately before filing, plus at least seven years in the ten years before those twelve months. Absences adding up to no more than 90 days do not break that final year.

Time in the country is not the whole test. Since 19 December 2023 the applicant needs 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 with stable and regular income, and an intention to live in the Republic.

Read more about Cypriot citizenship by years of residence.

A holder who lives in Cyprus can apply for long-term resident status after five years, a separate EU status with its own tests. For how the two statuses compare, see Cyprus residency vs citizenship, and for the travel document itself, the Cyprus passport.

Processing time for an investment visa

The Deputy Minister of Migration and International Protection decides the application, on submission through the Permanent Secretary of the Deputy Ministry. The Migration Department estimates the examination period at about two months from the date a complete application is filed.

In practice it takes about six months from submission to decision, so plan on that figure.

The Migration Department publishes no waiting time for the card and sends a notice when it is ready. On the applications we handle it takes about 30 days from biometrics to collection.

When a different permit fits better

The golden visa 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 need no permit of this kind and register for a yellow slip instead.
• Anyone who wants a job in Cyprus needs a work permit, since the golden visa allows no employment in Cyprus apart from company directorships.
• Readers with a steady income from abroad but no plan to invest €300,000 can look at the Category F visa.
• Readers after a passport need the naturalisation route in how to get Cyprus citizenship. Citizenship by investment closed in 2020.

Golden Visa benefits

Cyprus Golden Visa program offers several advantages for non-EU nationals:

• It grants the principal applicant, their spouse, and dependent children the right to reside permanently in Cyprus.
• It permits investment in a stable EU economy with a secure legal framework for property rights.
• It opens a route to Cypriot citizenship after eight years of legal residence, subject to the Greek language and civics tests.
• Holders need only visit Cyprus once every two years to maintain their status.
• Permit holders may become tax residents by fulfilling the physical presence requirements and potentially benefit from Cyprus's tax environment.
• Cyprus has applied to join the Schengen Area and is not a member yet. A Cyprus residence permit gives no visa-free entry to the Schengen states today. If Cyprus joins, the permit would let holders travel inside the area for up to 90 days in any 180.

Tax benefits of living in Cyprus

The corporate tax rate is 15% from 1 January 2026, up from 12.5%. That is the OECD minimum rather than the bottom of the European table, and for most investors the non-domicile rules matter more than the headline rate.

Anyone who spends more than 183 days in Cyprus in a calendar year is a Cyprus tax resident and is taxed on worldwide income. A second test, the 60-day rule, covers people who are not tax resident anywhere else and who keep a home and a business or employment tie in Cyprus.

A permanent residence permit does not by itself make you a Cyprus tax resident. The benefits of Cyprus tax residency include:

• no Cyprus tax on dividends and interest for tax residents who are not domiciled in Cyprus, a status that runs until you have been a Cyprus tax resident for 17 of the last 20 years and can then be extended for €250,000 per five-year period, twice at most,
• no inheritance tax,
• no gift tax,
• no wealth tax,
• no immovable property tax.

Read more about Taxes in Cyprus.

Is investing in Cyprus a good idea?

Investing falls into two broad categories: real estate and business. In both cases, investing in Cyprus appears to be a sound decision.

Investment options for the investor immigration permit

The data indicate that real estate remains a safe investment option. The RICS Cyprus Property Index for the second quarter of 2026, published on 25 August 2026, shows residential prices still rising: apartments by 5.42% year on year and houses by 4.04%. Rents rose faster, by 7.36% for apartments and 5.30% for houses. Gross yields stood at 5.51% for apartments and 3.01% for houses.

Read more about the Cyprus real estate market trends and property investment in Cyprus.

The Statistical Service put real GDP growth for 2025 at 3.8%, in a first estimate published on 2 March 2026.

In its September 2026 projections the Central Bank of Cyprus put growth at 2.9% for 2026 and 3.1% for both 2027 and 2028, raising its June figures. For 2026 the bank pointed to better tourism figures and strong residential investment. The higher 2027 figure rests on expected defence spending under the EU SAFE programme.

The IMF Executive Board concluded its 2026 Article IV consultation with Cyprus in June 2026. It found the economy resilient, with strong growth and a sound fiscal position, against a background of higher energy prices and lower tourist arrivals.