Cyprus - pink slip - Company

You can start a company of foreign interests with 200k euro initial capital. You need a physical office and at least one Cypriot local employee. Your salary as director should be 2500 euros or more per month. You can do many business activities like real estate property management etc. After five years you can apply for permanent residency but need to pass Greek language exam at A2 level.

The other category F permanent residency permit and temporary residency permit without permission to work are more like retiree visas where you get income from abroad or in some cases dividends as passive owner from a Cypriot company.

@dvb123

I don't have the funds to invest. In such a scenario, what is the best option?

@dvb123

Residency doesn’t require Greek exam, that is for citizenship.

@R_Aus_1985

You have to find a company to sponsor your work permit . If the salary is less than 2500 euros or something I think there is a labor market test that needs to advertised for local Cypriots before. 

@simoningram

If you are a TCN and not EU you need language test for permanent residence also. Many users on reddit are also discussing it. You can go to government website and search for

Επί μακρόν διαμένοντες (LT)/ Long-term Residents (LT)

Αρχική Σελίδα / Ενημέρωση / Έντυπα / Πολίτες τρίτων χωρών/ Third Country Nationals / Επί μακρόν διαμένοντες (LT)/ Long-term Residents (LT)

LONG TERM RESIDENCE PERMIT

    DOCUMENT

    Copy of Passport or other travel document valid at least for two years and certified copies of the above, including all the pages which show the stamps of arrivals and departures from the Republic.

    Valid Residence Permit in the Republic with residence address within the controlled by the Government of the Republic areas.

    Stamped (by Stamps Commissioner) contract of employment of open duration or for at least 18 months. In case of self-employment, a written statement of self-employment is required with description of the intended job and declaration of the expected.

    Original Criminal record certificate issued by the Republic.

    Health Insurance Policy which covers the applicant in the Republic of Cyprus (in-patient and out-patient treatment).

    Brief Curriculum Vitae of the applicant (including email address and phone number).

    True Copies of Certificates of academic/vocational qualifications, confirmation of previous experience and vocational/professional permits/licenses, officially translated in Greek or English.

  Certificate of knowledge of the Greek language (level A2) for foreigners, from the Ministry of Education. Certificate of basic knowledge of Greek language AND Certificate of Cyprus political and social reality.

    Bank accounts statements for 12 months period.

    Certificates of income and income declaration from sources other than employment which must be accompanied by Affidavit, if necessary.

    Title of ownership (if the title of ownership has not been obtained yet, the applicant must submit the deed of sale duly stamped by the Stamps Commissioner and the Department of Lands & Surveys and proof of payment) or valid rental agreement accompanied by establishment description (payment receipts for 12 months period) accompanied by utility bills (telephone, electricity, water).

    Income tax returns for the last five years and tax clearance certificate.

    V.A.T. returns for the last five years and tax clearance certificate (for employment in self-owned companies or self-employment).

    Statement of social insurance contributions for the last five years.

    Marriage Certificate or Divorce.

Long term residence permit is different to other forms of residency but is still not citizenship

@dvb123

To get permanent residency after 5 years of Temp Res or MUKW1 or Cat F (if it ever reappears) you do not need to do the language test…it’s for citizenship only. Reddit is about as reliable as Facebook.your cut and past makes no reference to gaining the previous visas and what you need at the 5 year point. If after getting permanent residency and you wish to then go for Citizenship then after about 7 years you can apply for citizenship and then you must pass the language test.

@simoningram  I apologize for the confusion. I meant that many users are already taking the Greek exam and sharing their experiences on Reddit.

1. Category F (Fast Track) Permanent Residency, which involves purchasing a newly built residence for €300,000 or a few other specific categories, does not require a language exam.

1. The applications  for Category F (Slow Track ) Permanent Residency which has minimal requirements, are currently not being processed according to many forum users. However, I never found any official confirmation.

1. EU citizens do not need to take a language exam for permanent residency.

1. Someone recently mentioned in this forum that British citizens, post-Brexit, had the right to permanent residency and the right to work after five years. They may not need a language exam either.

Now, regarding the last category long-term residence in Cyprus for third country nationals (Non EU citizens), which grants the right to live and work indefinitely, I have copied and pasted the requirements from the Migration Department’s website. Since the forum does not allow links, you can find the information by searching Google using the following keywords.

1. Αρχική Σελίδα / Ενημέρωση / Έντυπα / Πολίτες τρίτων χωρών/ Third Country Nationals / Επί μακρόν διαμένοντες (LT)/ Long-term Residents (LT)

            (The migration department website heading is mix and match of English and Greek.)

1. You can alternatively search in google with these keywords too.

    Long-Term Residence Permit in Cyprus: New Changes and Requirements C. Hadjivangeli & Partners LLC

Please let us know if there are any other categories for permanent residency in Cyprus. The rules are not as comprehensively updated online in Cyprus as they are in the UK, USA, or Canada.

In some EU countries, permanent residency differs from long-term residency. Therefore, we would definitely be interested in learning more about this.

Nothing to do with the main subject..... but JFI. I know of many Brits who have applied  and got permanent residency without ever living here. They simply proved they had been here (even just on holiday) before Brexit. Something to do with protections offered by way of the withdrawal agreement