Visa-free countries for Cypriot passport holders in 2026
Updated:
On the Henley Passport Index the Cypriot passport ranks 13th in the world for 2026, with visa-free or visa-on-arrival access to 175 destinations. Henley counts territories as destinations and republishes twice a year, so the figure moves.
The table below lists 202 countries and territories. On 153 of them you board without a visa, whether because none is needed or because one is issued at the border or through an online authorisation. On 32 an electronic visa has to be granted before departure, which is a visa. On 17 a consular visa is required.
Reviewed in September 2026 against the immigration departments, foreign ministries and visa portals of the destinations themselves, and against EU law for the Union and EEA states. Rules change without notice, so confirm with the destination's embassy before you book. If you want the passport itself rather than the list, start with how to get Cyprus citizenship.
Please note that a Cyprus residence permit does not allow a third-country national to enter other countries visa-free. More details are provided in our article Travelling from Cyprus with a residence permit.
How to read this list
The second column gives the rule as the destination states it. The third column answers one question: what you have to arrange before you get on the plane.
Nothing means you travel on the passport. Some of those destinations issue a visa at the border, which costs money and time on arrival but stops nobody boarding.
Authorisation means a short online form and a small fee, granted in hours or days. The eTA for Canada, the ETA for the United Kingdom, the eVisitor for Australia, the NZeTA for New Zealand and the ETA-IL for Israel all sit here. An airline will refuse you without one.
An e-Visa is a visa. It is applied for in advance, it can be refused, and it takes days rather than minutes. Counting e-visa destinations as visa-free is the most common error in published lists of this kind.
A consular visa means an appointment at an embassy or a visa centre.
What changed in 2026
Turkey stopped issuing visas at its border gates to holders of Cypriot passports on 2 January 2026. Benin abolished its own border visa by decree on 4 March 2026, and Chad moved every application onto its online platform on 11 May 2026, voiding anything issued elsewhere. Ghana now grants its tourist visa online rather than at a counter, at USD 260. In all four the visa has to be in hand before departure.
Israel has required an approved ETA-IL from every visa-exempt traveller since 1 January 2025. The stay is up to 90 days per visit.
South Korea waived the K-ETA for Cypriot nationals to 31 December 2026, and Kenya dropped its travel authorisation for Commonwealth nationals, which includes Cyprus.
Thailand settled its visa exemption in September. The Cabinet revoked the 60-day exemption on 19 May 2026, and the replacement 30-day scheme takes effect on 15 September. Cyprus is on the new list. Every arriving traveller files the Thailand Digital Arrival Card as well, which is free and opens three days before landing.
China, Mongolia and Belarus each renewed a temporary visa waiver that now runs to the end of 2026. All three lapse on 31 December if they are not renewed again.
The full list
The list of countries that offer visa-free access for Cypriot passport holders:
Country or territory | Entry rule | Before you fly |
|---|---|---|
| Afghanistan | visa required / 1 month (USD 80, visa valid 3 months) | Consular visa |
| Albania | visa-free / 90 days (90 days within any 180) | Nothing |
| Algeria | visa required / up to 90 days per entry (180 days cumulative per year) | Consular visa |
| Andorra | visa-free (entry only through France or Spain) | Nothing |
| Angola | visa-free / 30 days per entry (90 days maximum per year) | Nothing |
| Antigua and Barbuda | visa-free / 6 months | Nothing |
| Argentina | visa-free / 90 days | Nothing |
| Armenia | visa-free / 180 days per year | Nothing |
| Australia | eVisitor / 90 days | Authorisation |
| Austria | visa-free | Nothing |
| Azerbaijan | eVisa / 30 days (visa valid 90 days, single entry) | e-Visa |
| Bahamas | visa-free / up to 8 months (period set by the officer at entry) | Nothing |
| Bahrain | visa on arrival / eVisa / 14 days | Nothing |
| Bangladesh | visa on arrival / 30 days (USD 50, return ticket and USD 500 in funds) | Nothing |
| Barbados | visa-free / 3 months in any six-month period | Nothing |
| Belarus | visa-free / 30 days per entry, 90 days per year (road and rail crossings, runs to 31 December 2026) | Nothing |
| Belgium | visa-free | Nothing |
| Belize | visa-free / 30 days | Nothing |
| Benin | eVisa / 30 days (€50 single entry, €75 multiple) or 90 days (€100 multiple) | e-Visa |
| Bhutan | eVisa (USD 40, plus a USD 100 per night Sustainable Development Fee) | e-Visa |
| Bolivia | visa required / 30 or 60 days | Consular visa |
| Bosnia and Herzegovina | visa-free / 90 days (90 days within any 180) | Nothing |
| Botswana | visa-free / 90 days | Nothing |
| Brazil | visa-free / 90 days (maximum 90 days every 180) | Nothing |
| Brunei | visa-free / 90 days | Nothing |
| Bulgaria | visa-free | Nothing |
| Burkina Faso | eVisa / up to 90 days (66,000 FCFA) | e-Visa |
| Burundi | visa on arrival / 1 month (online form and payment required before boarding) | Nothing |
| Cambodia | visa on arrival / eVisa / 30 days (eVisa USD 30, single entry) | Nothing |
| Cameroon | eVisa / short stay, multiple entry (100,000 FCFA, or 150,000 FCFA express) | e-Visa |
| Canada | visa-free / 6 months (eTA required) | Authorisation |
| Cape Verde | visa-free / 30 days (EASE pre-registration required before travel) | Nothing |
| Central African Republic | visa required | Consular visa |
| Chad | eVisa (all applications online since 11 May 2026) | e-Visa |
| Chile | visa-free / 90 days | Nothing |
| China | visa-free / 30 days (policy runs to 31 December 2026) | Nothing |
| Colombia | visa-free / 90 days (extendable to 180 days total per calendar year) | Nothing |
| Comoros | visa on arrival / 45 days | Nothing |
| Congo (Democratic Republic) | eVisa / 7 days, extendable (USD 300 online, then USD 90 at the border) | e-Visa |
| Congo (Republic) | visa required | Consular visa |
| Cook Islands | visa-free / 31 days (permit issued at the border) | Nothing |
| Costa Rica | visa-free / 90 days | Nothing |
| Cote d'Ivoire (Ivory Coast) | eVisa / 3 months, multiple entry (€73, biometrics taken at Abidjan airport) | e-Visa |
| Croatia | visa-free | Nothing |
| Cuba | eVisa / 90 days (extendable by 90 days, single entry) | e-Visa |
| Czech Republic | visa-free | Nothing |
| Denmark | visa-free | Nothing |
| Djibouti | eVisa / up to 90 days (USD 23) | e-Visa |
| Dominica | visa-free / 6 months | Nothing |
| Dominican Republic | visa-free / 30 days (extendable to 120 days for a fee) | Nothing |
| Ecuador | visa-free / 90 days in any 12-month period | Nothing |
| Egypt | visa on arrival or eVisa, from USD 30 | Nothing |
| El Salvador | visa-free (stay set by the first CA-4 country entered) | Nothing |
| Equatorial Guinea | eVisa / single entry (USD 50, plus a USD 25 service fee) | e-Visa |
| Eritrea | visa required | Consular visa |
| Estonia | visa-free | Nothing |
| Eswatini | visa-free / 30 days | Nothing |
| Ethiopia | eVisa / 30 or 90 days (USD 62 or USD 152, single entry) | e-Visa |
| Fiji | visa-free / 4 months | Nothing |
| Finland | visa-free | Nothing |
| France | visa-free | Nothing |
| French Polynesia | visa-free | Nothing |
| Gabon | travel authorisation required before departure / up to 3 months (visa issued at Libreville airport, €70 plus €15, cash only) | Authorisation |
| Gambia | visa-free / 90 days | Nothing |
| Georgia | visa-free / 1 year | Nothing |
| Germany | visa-free | Nothing |
| Ghana | eVisa / 30 days (USD 260, visa valid 90 days from issue) | e-Visa |
| Greece | visa-free | Nothing |
| Grenada | visa-free | Nothing |
| Guatemala | visa-free / 90 days (90 days counts across the whole CA-4 area) | Nothing |
| Guinea | eVisa / 90 days (USD 100) | e-Visa |
| Guinea-Bissau | visa required | Consular visa |
| Guyana | visa required | Consular visa |
| Haiti | visa-free / 90 days (USD 10 fee on arrival) | Nothing |
| Honduras | visa-free / 90 days (90 days counts across the whole CA-4 area) | Nothing |
| Hong Kong | visa-free / 90 days | Nothing |
| Hungary | visa-free | Nothing |
| Iceland | visa-free | Nothing |
| India | eVisa / 30 days, 1 year or 5 years | e-Visa |
| Indonesia | visa on arrival / e-VOA / 30 days | Nothing |
| Iran | eVisa / visa on arrival / 30 days (the online application is mandatory at least two days before travel, and the fee is paid at the airport) | Authorisation |
| Iraq | eVisa / 30 days (no visas at the border since 1 March 2025) | e-Visa |
| Ireland | visa-free | Nothing |
| Israel | ETA-IL required before travel / 90 days | Authorisation |
| Italy | visa-free | Nothing |
| Jamaica | visa-free | Nothing |
| Japan | visa-free / 90 days | Nothing |
| Jordan | visa on arrival, 40 JOD (waived with a Jordan Pass bought before arrival) | Nothing |
| Kazakhstan | visa-free / 30 days | Nothing |
| Kenya | visa-free / 90 days (no eTA for Commonwealth nationals) | Nothing |
| Kiribati | visa-free / 90 days in any 12-month period | Nothing |
| Kosovo | visa-free / 90 days per 6 months | Nothing |
| Kuwait | visa on arrival / 90 days (single entry, passport valid 6 months) | Nothing |
| Kyrgyzstan | visa-free / 60 days | Nothing |
| Laos | eVisa / visa on arrival / 30 days (eVisa USD 50) | Nothing |
| Latvia | visa-free | Nothing |
| Lebanon | visa on arrival / 1 month (free, extendable to 3 months) | Nothing |
| Lesotho | eVisa required (single-entry visa valid 3 months from issue) | e-Visa |
| Liberia | visa on arrival / 30 or 90 days (online pre-approval required, USD 102.50, Roberts International Airport only) | Authorisation |
| Libya | eVisa (a sponsor in Libya must first obtain approval from the Department of Passports, Citizenship and Foreigners) | e-Visa |
| Liechtenstein | visa-free | Nothing |
| Lithuania | visa-free | Nothing |
| Luxembourg | visa-free | Nothing |
| Macao | visa-free / 3 months | Nothing |
| Madagascar | eVisa / visa on arrival / 60 days (90 days only through a consular visa) | Nothing |
| Malawi | visa on arrival (eVisa also available) | Nothing |
| Malaysia | visa-free (digital arrival card required) | Nothing |
| Maldives | visa on arrival / 30 days | Nothing |
| Mali | visa required | Consular visa |
| Malta | visa-free | Nothing |
| Marshall Islands | visa-free / 90 days in any 180-day period (return or onward ticket required) | Nothing |
| Mauritania | eVisa / 30 days (€55, or €95 for 90 days) | e-Visa |
| Mauritius | visa-free / up to 180 days per calendar year (the officer sets the stay at entry) | Nothing |
| Mexico | visa-free / 180 days | Nothing |
| Micronesia | visa-free / 30 days (extendable by up to 60 days) | Nothing |
| Moldova | visa-free / 90 days (within 6 months from first entry) | Nothing |
| Monaco | visa-free / 3 months (entered through France, passport or EU identity card) | Nothing |
| Mongolia | visa-free / 30 days (granted for 2026, renewed each year) | Nothing |
| Montenegro | visa-free / 90 days | Nothing |
| Morocco | visa-free / 90 days | Nothing |
| Mozambique | eVisa / 90 days | e-Visa |
| Myanmar | eVisa / 28 days (USD 50, approval letter valid 90 days) | e-Visa |
| Namibia | visa on arrival / up to 90 days per calendar year (NAD 1,600) | Nothing |
| Nauru | visa required (arranged with Nauru Immigration before travel, AUD 50 for up to 1 month) | Consular visa |
| Nepal | visa on arrival / 15, 30 or 90 days (USD 30, USD 50 or USD 125) | Nothing |
| Netherlands | visa-free | Nothing |
| New Caledonia | visa-free (no cap on the stay for EU citizens, national identity card accepted) | Nothing |
| New Zealand | Electronic Travel Authority / 3 months | Authorisation |
| Nicaragua | visa-free / 90 days (90 days counts across the whole CA-4 area, USD 10 tourist card on arrival) | Nothing |
| Niger | visa required | Consular visa |
| Nigeria | eVisa / 30 days (single entry, visa valid 90 days from issue) | e-Visa |
| Niue | visa-free / 30 days (extendable by up to 60 days) | Nothing |
| North Korea | visa required | Consular visa |
| North Macedonia | visa-free / 90 days | Nothing |
| Norway | visa-free | Nothing |
| Oman | visa-free / 14 days (not extendable, return ticket and insurance required) | Nothing |
| Pakistan | eVisa / up to 3 months (single entry) | e-Visa |
| Palau | visa on arrival / 30 days (extendable twice by 30 days) | Nothing |
| Palestinian Territories | visa-free / 90 days (entry is through Israeli-controlled crossings, so an ETA-IL is required, NIS 25) | Authorisation |
| Panama | visa-free / 90 days (proof of funds of at least USD 500 and an onward ticket) | Nothing |
| Papua New Guinea | eVisa / 60 days (single entry) | e-Visa |
| Paraguay | visa-free / 90 days | Nothing |
| Peru | visa-free / 90 days (within any 180-day period) | Nothing |
| Philippines | visa-free / 30 days | Nothing |
| Poland | visa-free | Nothing |
| Portugal | visa-free | Nothing |
| Qatar | visa-free (confirm the stay on the Hayya platform) | Nothing |
| Romania | visa-free | Nothing |
| Russian Federation | eVisa / 30 days | e-Visa |
| Rwanda | visa-free / 30 days (free entry permit issued at the entry point) | Nothing |
| Saint Kitts and Nevis | visa-free / 90 days (eTA required before boarding, USD 17) | Authorisation |
| Saint Lucia | visa-free / 90 days within any 180-day period (the stay granted at entry is often 6 weeks, extendable) | Nothing |
| Saint Vincent and the Grenadines | visa-free / 90 days within any 180-day period | Nothing |
| Samoa | visa-free / 90 days (visitor permit issued on arrival) | Nothing |
| San Marino | visa-free (no border control of its own, entered through Italy; a stay beyond 30 days needs a permit from the Gendarmeria) | Nothing |
| Sao Tome and Principe | visa-free / 15 days (yellow fever certificate required) | Nothing |
| Saudi Arabia | eVisa, 1 year multiple entry / 90 days total | e-Visa |
| Senegal | visa-free / 90 days | Nothing |
| Serbia | visa-free / 90 days (within 180 days from first entry) | Nothing |
| Seychelles | visa-free / 3 months (Travel Authorisation required before departure, €10.90) | Authorisation |
| Sierra Leone | online approval required before departure / visa issued on arrival | Authorisation |
| Singapore | visa-free / up to 90 days (the pass is set at the checkpoint) | Nothing |
| Slovakia | visa-free | Nothing |
| Slovenia | visa-free | Nothing |
| Solomon Islands | visa-free / 90 days within any 180-day period | Nothing |
| Somalia | eVisa (mandatory since 1 September 2025; Somaliland runs its own visa on arrival at Hargeisa and Berbera) | e-Visa |
| South Africa | visa-free / 30 days | Nothing |
| South Korea | visa-free / 30 days (K-ETA waived to 31 December 2026) | Nothing |
| South Sudan | eVisa | e-Visa |
| Spain | visa-free | Nothing |
| Sri Lanka | eVisa / visa on arrival / 30 days | Nothing |
| Sudan | visa required | Consular visa |
| Suriname | visa-free / 90 days (entry fee €50 plus €8 service fee, per entry) | Nothing |
| Sweden | visa-free | Nothing |
| Switzerland | visa-free | Nothing |
| Syria | eVisa | e-Visa |
| Taiwan | visa-free / 90 days | Nothing |
| Tajikistan | visa-free / 30 days | Nothing |
| Tanzania | visa-free | Nothing |
| Thailand | visa-free / 30 days from 15 September 2026 (60 days until 14 September, digital arrival card required) | Nothing |
| Timor-Leste | visa-free / 90 days within any 180-day period | Nothing |
| Togo | eVisa / up to 15 days (XOF 6,000, apply at least 5 days ahead, no visa at the border) | e-Visa |
| Tonga | visa-free / 30 days (visitor permit issued on arrival, extendable) | Nothing |
| Trinidad and Tobago | visa-free / 90 days within any 180-day period | Nothing |
| Tunisia | visa required | Consular visa |
| Turkey | eVisa required before departure / 1 month (no visas at the border since 2 January 2026) | e-Visa |
| Turkmenistan | visa required (a letter of invitation from the State Migration Service is needed first) | Consular visa |
| Tuvalu | visa on arrival / 30 days (extendable by 30 days, permit fee payable at the border) | Nothing |
| Uganda | visa-free | Nothing |
| Ukraine | visa-free / 90 days (within any 180-day period) | Nothing |
| United Arab Emirates | visa-free / 90 days | Nothing |
| United Kingdom | ETA required, GBP 20 / 6 months | Authorisation |
| United States of America | visa required | Consular visa |
| Uruguay | visa-free / 90 days | Nothing |
| Uzbekistan | visa-free / 30 days | Nothing |
| Vanuatu | visa-free / 120 days (not extendable) | Nothing |
| Vatican City | visa-free (no border control of its own, entered from Italy) | Nothing |
| Venezuela | visa-free / 90 days | Nothing |
| Vietnam | eVisa / 90 days | e-Visa |
| Yemen | visa required | Consular visa |
| Zambia | visa-free / 90 days in any 12-month period | Nothing |
| Zimbabwe | visa-free | Nothing |
Frequently asked questions
How many countries can Cypriots visit without a visa?
The Henley Passport Index puts the Cypriot passport 13th in the world for 2026, with visa-free or visa-on-arrival access to 175 destinations. The table on this page counts 202 countries and territories, of which 153 need no visa in hand at the gate. The two numbers differ because Henley counts territories this list does not carry, and because it excludes e-visas.
Do Cypriots need a visa for the United States?
Yes. Cyprus is not a participant in the Visa Waiver Program, so ESTA is not open to Cypriot passport holders. A visitor travels on a B visa applied for at the United States Embassy in Nicosia.
Do Cypriots need anything to visit the United Kingdom?
Yes, an Electronic Travel Authorisation. It costs GBP 20, covers the United Kingdom, Jersey, Guernsey and the Isle of Man, and allows visits of up to six months. Apply before you travel, because an airline will refuse boarding without one.
Does a Cyprus residence permit give the same travel rights as the passport?
No. This page covers the passport. A residence permit is a different document with far narrower access, and it gives no visa-free entry to the Schengen states. The country-by-country position is set out in our article on travelling from Cyprus with a residence permit.
Is a Cyprus passport a Schengen passport?
Cyprus is a member of the European Union and is outside the Schengen Area, which has 29 members, 25 of them EU states. A Cypriot citizen travels, lives and works anywhere in the Union regardless, because that right comes from EU membership rather than from Schengen. The state of the accession is covered in our article on Cyprus and the Schengen Area.