Foreign individuals wishes to obtain a 'second citizenship' can benefit from Cyprus' comprehensive 'Citizenship by Investment' programme.

 

As announced by the Cyprus Council of Ministers on 19th March 2014, foreign individuals can obtain Cyprus citizenship if they invest in Cyprus under one of the below eight categories of investment, directly or indirectly through company(ies), in proportion to their shareholding in such companies.

 

Addionally, a high-ranking senior manager of a company making such an investment could also be eligible, subject to the individual having such remuneration from said company that personal income tax of €100,000 for a total of 3 years would apply and has been paid or will be pre-paid to the Tax authorities.

 

In addition to the below investment criteria, the individual:

 

• Must have a clean criminal record and must not be included in the list of individuals for whom there is a freezing of assets instruction from the EU, and

• Must own a private residence in Cyprus purchased for at least €500,000 (excl. VAT)

 

Members of the same family, which apply separately as investors, can collectively acquire a residence, provided that the total value of the property covers the amount of €500,000 per each applicant.

 

The eligible Categories of Investment:

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A1. Investment in real estate, land development or infrastructure projects:

An investment of a minimum of €2.0 million in the purchase or construction of buildings or for the construction of other land development projects. These could include residential, commercial developments, developments in the tourist sector or other infrastructure projects.

 

A2. Purchase, incorporation or participation in Cyprus businesses or companies:

An investment of a minimum of €2.0 million for the purchase, incorporation or participation in businesses or companies, based and operating in the Republic of Cyprus. These companies or organisations must have proven tangible presence in the territory of the Republic or Cyprus and employ a minimum of 5 Cypriot or citizens of EU member-states in total.

 

A3. Investment in Alternative Investment Funds or financial assets of Cypriot companies or Cypriot organizations that are licensed by CySec:

The applicant should have bought units of at least €2,0 million from alternative investment funds (AIF) established in the Republic of Cyprus, licensed and supervised by the CySec and whose investments are made exclusively in the Republic of Cyprus, in investments that meet the criteria of this Scheme or in areas approved by the Minister of Finance.

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In order to confirm that the investments that meet the criteria of the current Scheme will be kept for at least three years, the manager or the auditor of the Fund shall inform in writing and on an annual basis, the Ministries of Finance and Interior with reference to the value of the initial investment.

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The purchase of financial assets of Cypriot companies or organizations of at least €2,0 million, such as bonds, bills and securities, issued with the approval of the CySec, by companies that have proven physical presence and substantial economic activity in the Republic of Cyprus, and have as a purpose the financing of the investment plans of these companies or organizations exclusively in Cyprus, based on an investment plan, fall under this criterion.

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It is noted that the purchase by an AIF of units of other AIFs is not considered eligible.

 

A4. Combination of the above criteria:

The applicant may proceed with a combination of the above investments, provided that the total investment will amount up to at least €2,0 million.

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Within this criterion (combination of investments) the applicant may purchase special government bonds of the Republic of Cyprus, up to €500.000, which will be issued by the Public Debt Management Office of the Ministry of Finance, on condition that the investor will retain these bonds for a three year period. The characteristics and the terms of these special bonds will be determined by the General and Special Issue Terms of the Government Bonds of the Republic of Cyprus. Investments in government bonds through the secondary market are not considered eligible.

 

Upon review and approval of the application, a Cyprus Identity Card will be issued to the applicant.Immediate family members of the applicant would also be eligible for citizenship, based on the applicant’s application which is subject to the applicant maintaining their citizenship.

 

The timeframe for the examination of a citizenship application is approximately three months.

 

Citizenship could be revoked in case, during regular checks, it is found that any of the conditions on which citizenship was granted have been circumvented.

 

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