Residency in Cyprus - Antonescos Estates

GRANTING AN IMMIGRATION PERMIT TO APPLICANTS WHO ARE THIRD COUNTRY NATIONALS AND INVEST IN CYPRUS UNDER REG6(2) OF ALIENS AND IMMIGRATION REGULATIONS

FAST TRACK

REQUIREMENTS:

Fixed Deposit:

§ Fixed deposit €30.000 for a 3 year period in a Cyprus institution.

§ The amount of €30.000 must be transferred to Cyprus from abroad.

Income Requirements:

§ Secure annual income of at least €30.000.

§ This annual income should increase by €5.000 for every dependent person of the applicant’s family (spouse and children) and by €8.000 for every dependent parent or parent-in-law.

§ This income should derive from abroad, and may include salaries from employment, pensions, dividends from shares, fixed deposits, rents etc.

§ The combined annual income of the couple (applicant and spouse) may be also taken into consideration.

Investment:

§ The applicant must purchase a new immovable property of total market value of at least €300.000 (V.A.T. is not included therein) and official payment receipts of at least €200.000 (excluding V.A.T.).

§ The abovementioned amounts must be proven to have been transferred to Cyprus from abroad.

§ The property can be purchased by a legal person, provided that the applicant and/or his/her spouse are the sole shareholders or the ultimate beneficial owners of it, and that this legal person is legally established in the Republic or other member state of the European Union or European Economic Area.

§ It is possible to purchase two units of property instead of one.

§ The applicant may purchase up to two housing units (apartments or houses), which can be independent, but be purchased from the same development company, or one housing unit and a shop of a surface of up to 100 sq.m., or a housing unit and an office of a surface of up to 250 sq.m..

§ The above combinations must have a total price of €300.000 plus VAT.

§ Each couple can only use one combination.

§ The said purchase must be in relation to a property (and the combinations described above) sold for the first time by a development company.

§ If the property is sold the applicant must purchase a new property of the same or higher value so as for the residency not to be revoked.

BASIC DOCUMENTS (ORIGINALS, OFFICIALLY TRANSLATED AND CERTIFIED)

§ Copy of valid passport

§ A copy of a valid temporary residence permit (if the applicant lives in Cyprus)

§ Curriculum Vitae (CV) (including academic qualifications)

§ Status of Bank deposits in Cyprus and abroad

§ Proof of income from abroad

§ Contract of sale or title deed

§ Receipts of payments of the majority of the value of the property

§ Certificate of criminal record

§ Marriage certificate/Birth certificate

EXAMINATION OF THE APPLICATION

§ 2 months

§ Upon approval of the application, the applicant and the dependents must visit Cyprus within 1 year from approval to obtain their permit. At that stage they will be required to give their biometric information.

GRANTING AN IMMIGRATION PERMIT TO APPLICANTS WHO ARE THIRD COUNTRY NATIONALS UNDER CATEGORY F

§ Category F applies to persons who possess and have fully and freely at their disposal a secured annual income, high enough to give them a decent living in Cyprus, without having to engage in any business, trade or profession. They will remain as permanent guests.

§ The annual income required should be at least €9.568,17 for a single applicant and moreover at least €4.613,22 for every dependent person, but the Immigration Control Board may demand additional amounts as necessary.

§ An Immigration Permit will be automatically cancelled if the interested person fails to acquire residence in Cyprus within one year from the approval of the application, in case the applicant is residing outside Cyprus or acquires permanent residence abroad or be absent from Cyprus for a period of two years.

§ The Minister has discretion on whether to approve such applications

LEGAL FEES AND REAL EXPENSES

Legal Fees

§ Each application will cost €2.200, plus VAT and for each additional application of every dependent person of the applicant’s family (spouse and children) and parent or parent-in-law, will cost additionally €500, plus VAT.

§ Our firm provides also legal services in connection with the purchase of the immovable property and the drafting of the contract of sale at a fee that will be discussed.

Real Expenses

§ €500 immigration fee

§ €70 registration fee

§ €50 land registry charges

The applicant will need a medical insurance in Cyprus. Our law firm can assist on this

NATURALISATION OF INVESTORS IN CYPRUS BY INVESTMENT SCHEME

The Council of Ministers by virtue of the Article 111A(2) of the Civil Registry Law of 2002 set out the criteria and conditions for the Naturalisation by exception in Cyprus. The Scheme for Naturalisation of Investors in Cyprus by Exception has been amended with the decision of the Council of Ministers dated 13th of September 2016 and now either personally or through a company/companies in which the applicant participates as a shareholder – in proportion to his holding percentage, or through investments done by the applicant’s spouse or jointly with the spouse or even as a high-ranking senior manager of a company/companies that meets one of the economic criteria and the terms and conditions below, may apply for the acquisition of the Cypriot citizenship through naturalization by exception.

CRITERIA

A. Investment in real estate, land development and infrastructure projects:

§ Two million Euros (€2.000.000) investment in real estate, land development and infrastructure projects: The applicant must make an investment of at least €2m for the purchase or construction of buildings or for the construction of other land development projects· or

B. Purchase or Establishment or Participation in Cypriot Companies or Businesses:

§ The applicant must be the shareholder or the ultimate beneficial owner of a company (or companies) based in Cyprus with investment costs of at least €2,0 million and the management of which must be situated in Cyprus. The company must employ at least 5 Cypriot or European citizens. The minimum number of employees shall increase, if more than one applicant invest simultaneously or almost simultaneously in the same business or company.

In addition, the employees of the companies need to have legally and continuously resided in Cyprus during the five years preceding the application submission date· or

C. 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. 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.

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

D. Combination of the aforementioned investments:

§ The applicant may proceed with a combination of the above investments (+Bonds), provided that the total investment will amount up to at least €2,0 million: The applicant must invest in a combination of the above options and in addition, under the combination option, may invest in government bonds for the amount up to €500,000.

E. Residence in the Republic of Cyprus:

§ In all cases listed above, the applicant must possess a permanent privately-owned residence in the Republic of Cyprus, the purchase price of which must be at least €500.000, plus V.A.T.

TERMS AND CONDITIONS

§ If the applicant invests in real estate under criterion A, then he will not be required to fulfil criterion E, as long as one of the properties purchased is at least €500.000 plus V.A.T. and provided he will maintain that property as his permanent residence house for life.

§ The applicant must have permanent residence permit before his naturalisation. If the applicant does not have the permit already, then he must submit a permanent residence permit application under Reg.6(2) (this can be done simultaneously with his passport application without any further financial requirements for the permanent residence permit, beyond requirements A-E above required for the naturalisation).

§ The applicant must have made the investments in the last 3 years preceding the date of the application and he/she must maintain his/her investment for a further period of 3 years from the date he/she is naturalised.

§ It is noted that members of the same family, who apply separately as investors, can collectively acquire a residence, provided that the total value of this home-property covers the amount of €500.000 per each applicant.

§ If the purchase price of the residence property exceeds the €500,000 required by the requirement E above, then the part of the purchase price exceeding the €500,000 may be used to complete the €2m requirement of investments under requirement A, above.

In case the application for naturalization is rejected for any reason, the immigration permit, obtained in accordance with the provisions of this Decision, will be canceled immediately.

§ The investor’s spouse or partner may acquire the Cypriot citizenship after filing the relevant application. In order to facilitate the procedure of the acquisition of the Cypriot citizenship by the investor’s partner or spouse, the Council of Ministers decided to allow the submission of the spouse’s or partner’s application along with the application of the investor, so that both spouses/partners will be able to acquire the Cypriot citizenship simultaneously.

§ The investor’s minor children (under the age of 18) may acquire the Cypriot citizenship provided that the other parent consents to the grant of the citizenship.

§ The investor’s financially adult children have the right to apply for Citizenship:

(a) students up to the age of 28 that are attending an institution of higher education aiming to obtain a diploma or an undergraduate or a master’s degree. The Decision excludes individuals who are studying for the acquisition of a professional qualification (e.g. chartered accountants or barrister)·

(b) children with severe physical or mental disability that renders them unable to work. The application can be submitted after the investor had acquired the Cypriot citizenship.

§ The investor’s parents are also eligible to apply for the acquisition of the Cyprus citizenship provided they acquire a private residence of at least €500,000. It is noted the investor and his/her parents, may collectively acquire

a residence, provided that the total value of this home-property is at least €1.000.000, plus V.A.T.

APPLICATION FEES

§ Upon the submission of the application at the Ministry of Interior the amount of €2.000 is paid as fees.

§ Once the application is approved, the Civil Registry and Migration Department issues a Certificate of Naturalisation. At this stage the payment of the amount of €5.000 that constitutes the Naturalisation Certificate issuing fee, has to be made.

TIME FRAME

§ Provided that the application is dully submitted and accompanied by all the necessary supporting documents and the investor meets the criteria and conditions of the Decision of the Council of Ministers, the time frame for the completion of the process is approximately 3 (three) months from the date when the submission fee is paid.

LEGAL SERVICES

Our firm provides legal services in connection with applications for immigration permit and naturalization by exception and also, in connection with the required investments. If you require advice, assistance or any further information in relation to the above matters, do not hesitate to contact us. Our contact details appear below