Living in Cyprus as an Expat: Advantages and Disadvantages of Moving to Cyprus (2024)

10 pros ofliving inCyprus

1. Mild climate, beautiful landscapes, and rich culture. InCyprus, there are about 300—340 sunny days per year, and this is theonly European country where thesea is warm and suitable forswimming, even inNovember. Theaverage air temperature inwinter is +13…15°C, and insummer it is +30…36°C.

Theisland has arich history reflected inits ancient sites, fine Byzantine churches, monasteries, and museums. There are three UNESCO World Heritage sites, and 11 more objects are ontheUNESCO Tentative list.

Cyprus also features incredible flora and fauna and is agreat place forhiking.

2. Affordable cost ofliving. While prices can vary depending onthelocation, life inCyprus is relatively cheaper than inother European countries. According toEurostat data, theprice level is 10% lower than theEU average.

Ameal inacafé or asmall restaurant would cost €8 to20, and amobile monthly plan is around €30. Tocompare, inMalta, these are €10—28 and €35, respectively.

3. Affordable real estate prices. Property inCyprus is one ofthemost affordable intheEU. Therental fee foraone-bedroom apartment starts from€400, depending onthecity. Tocompare, inMalta, themonthly minimum price is €550.

Theaverage rental prices foraone-bedroom apartment are as follows:

• Limassol— €1,155;
• Nicosia— €512;
• Larnaca— €604;
• Paphos— €565.

Cypriot property is also very attractive toforeign buyers. Theaverage sale price per square metre is €1,680. Average prices inthemost popular cities ofCyprus are:

• Limassol— €2,319;
• Nicosia— €1,750;
• Larnaca— €1,358;
• Paphos— €1,948.

Examples ofreal estate inCyprus

Cyprus, Limassol

from€253,000

Apartments and villas inquite district ofLimassol

from77 m²

1–3

1–3

Cyprus, Nicosia

from€144,800

Apartments inamodern complex

from62 m²

1

1

Cyprus, Larnaca

from€270,000

Apartments in"green" area ofLarnaca

from175 m²

3

3

Cyprus, Paphos

from€330,000

Elegant apartments inprestigious district ofPaphos

See Also

Cyprus Travel AdvisoryNorth Cyprus Holidays - a comprehensive guideStudy in Cyprus: Language & CulturePetition: Authorise direct flights to North Cyprus

from95 m²

2

2

4. Tax optimisation. Cyprus is acountry that provides various tax benefits toits residents. Forexample, thestandard corporate income tax is 12.5%, thelowest inEurope.

Tax onpersonal income ranges between20 and 35%. But if theannual taxable income is less than €19,500, aperson is exempt fromthis tax.

Property owners who buy primary real estate where they will live themselves can benefit fromVAT deduction: they can decrease their VAT from19 to5%. There is also noannual property tax; theowners pay only ayearly fee as amunicipal tax. This fee depends ontheproperty price and can range approximately from€60 to150 per year.

5. Quick obtaining ofaresidence permit. Foreigners moving toCyprus must obtain residence permits. Thecountry provides avariety ofresidence permits fordifferent goals:

• visitors permit;
• work permit;
• education and research permit;
• family reunification permit;
• international protection permit;
• permanent residence forlong-term residents;
• permanent residency forinvestors.

Getting aresidence permit takes about 4—6 weeks. First, theapplicant receives an Alien’s Registration Certificate confirming their right toreside inCyprus, which takes about two weeks. 3—8 weeks later, they get aresident’s ID card.

Investors who want permanent residence should buy property, stocks, or bonds inCyprus. Theprocess ofobtaining permanent residence byinvestment takes 3—6 months.

Learn thebenefits, conditions, and specifics oftheCyprus Permanent Residence forinvestors in2 minutes

6. High-quality healthcare. TheWHO ranked theCypriot healthcare system 24th globally, making it better than inGermany, Canada, and theUnited States.

Locals and foreigners trust Cyprus's healthcare: thenumber oftourists entering thecountry forhealth reasons is steadily increasing. Theprimary healthcare fields popular withforeigners are plastic surgery, infertility treatment, IVF, dentistry, cardiology, orthopaedics and spine treatment, recovery and rehabilitation.

7. Stable economy. Cyprus's economy proved its ability tobounce back afterthefinancial crises. Arecent example is how quickly it recovered fromthepandemic crisis: in2020, theGDP growth rate was -5%, but in2021, it rebounded to+5.5%. TheGDP per capita in2022 was €26,550, making thecountry the15th intheEU.

Theleading sector oftheCyprus economy is tourism, which accounts formore than 80%. Other sectors include industry, construction, agriculture, forestry, and fishing.

Due toits low taxes forbusinesses, Cyprus has become aplace where many international companies are registered.

8. Safety. Cyprus is considered tobe asafe country forlife and travel. TheGlobal Peace Index ranks Cyprus 64th outof168 globally and 23rd intheEU. It is asafer place than France and theUS, which are 67th and 131st, respectively.

9. Favourable language environment. English is theofficial language inCyprus. This means that you will nothave tolearn anew language when moving totheisland and will unlikely have difficulties communicating withlocals.

10. Extensive expat communities. Cyprus is amultinational country. Thebiggest ethnic group is Greek Cypriots, followed byTurkish Cypriots and others.

Cyprus is one ofthetop 3 EU countries formigration: 22.7% ofcitizens are foreign-born. Theimmigration rate remains quite high: in2021, 27 non-EU citizens per 1000 people arrived inthecountry.

Theisland is very popular among foreigners, so you will find expats fromyour country who moved there earlier. They will share details about living inCyprus, and finding friends inanew country will be easier.

6 cons ofliving inCyprus

Despite many benefits, some disadvantages ofliving inCyprus should be considered when moving totheisland.

1. Political instability. Inthepast, there were political issues betweenthesouthern and northern parts oftheisland. Currently, thenorthern part is occupied byan unrecognised state— theTurkish Republic ofNorthern Cyprus. Although there has been relative stability inrecent years, thesituation could change.

2. Low level ofurban development. Cyprus is mainly arural country withafew cities. Thecentre ofcultural life is Limassol, which usually hosts most events. Thus, expats living inother areas may lack entertainment inplaces they live in.

3. Natural hazards. Cyprus is prone towildfires, flash floods, and earthquakes. TheGeological Survey ofCyprus registers about 500 tremors annually, but nosevere earthquakes have occurred inrecent years.

4. Avery relaxed lifestyle. This is often one ofthemain reasons why foreigners choose Cyprus forliving. However, this lifestyle also has adrawback: things are done quite slowly, and solving issues onthesame day is almost impossible.

5. High electricity prices. Electricity is quite expensive inCyprus, and therates are continuously rising: in2022, theaverage rate increased by75.81%.

Theelectricity consumption is also high: apart fromusual household appliances, it includes air conditioning forcooling insummer and forheating inwinter, and warming water inboilers. Average two-monthly bills forafamily oftwo start from€150.

6. Limited job opportunities. Thelabour market inCyprus is quite small. Although theunemployment rate decreased to4.8% inQ2 2023, inprevious years, theaverage index was about 7% ingeneral and 17.6% among young people. This means expats looking forcareer opportunities inCyprus face certain difficulties.

Best places tolive inCyprus

InCyprus, there are alot ofbeautiful cities and towns that attract expats fromall over theworld. Nomatter what lifestyle you like— an active or arelaxed one— inCyprus, you will be able tofind thebest place foryou.

Expats typically choose four main destinations fortheir relocation: Limassol, Nicosia, Larnaca, and Paphos.

Limassol is themost popular place among immigrants. It is located ontheisland's southern coast and features avery modern and cosmopolitan atmosphere. Limassol offers wide job and business opportunities and has alarge expat community.

Thecity has many sights and provides limitless options forthose who prefer an active lifestyle: you can go horse riding, skiing, and cycling and explore thecity's surroundings thankstovarious nature trails.

Nicosia is thecapital city ofCyprus. It lies inland and, therefore, has nodirect access tothesea. As aresult, it is notas crowded withtourists as seaside cities but has awide expat community.

Thecapital is Cyprus's business, financial, educational, and cultural centre. Thecountry's five leading universities are located there: theUniversity ofCyprus, theUniversity ofNicosia, theEuropean University ofCyprus, theOpen University ofCyprus and Frederick University.

Nicosia hosts more than 45 foreign embassies, 58 consulates, and offices ofmany international companies such as Deloitte, Microsoft, Oracle, and Ernst & Young.

Larnaca is another destination popular withtourists and expats. One oftwo Cyprus international airports is located there. As aplace oftourist attraction, Larnaca is very crowded inthesummer but is quite tranquil inthewinter.

Larnaca offers amore relaxed lifestyle than Limassol and Nicosia and is relatively cheaper as well.

Paphos is acoastal city inthesouthwest ofCyprus. Thesecond international airport ofthecountry is located inPaphos. Thecity offers good infrastructure, picturesque views, resort facilities, and easy access totherest oftheisland.

Summary: is it worth moving toCyprus?

1. Cyprus is ranked the3rd most popular expat destination intheEU. Foreigners are attracted there bythemild climate, beautiful nature, warm sea, and affordable cost ofliving.
2. People moving toCyprus can enjoy high-quality medicine and optimise their taxes. Personal annual income under€19,500 is notlevied, and theincome tax forbusinesses is 12.5%, thelowest intheEU. Ontheother hand, Cyprus has limited job opportunities, one ofthehighest electricity rates intheEU, and arisk oftension betweenNorthern and Southern Cyprus reappearing.
3. Themost popular cities among foreigners are Limassol, Nicosia, Larnaca, and Paphos. Limassol attracts most expats and has amodern and cosmopolitan atmosphere. Nicosia is thecapital city; foreign embassies, offices ofinternational companies, and thecountry’s leading universities are located there. Larnaca and Paphos are resort cities withavery laid-back atmosphere.
4. Cyprus provides different residence permits forexpats, depending ontheir goals. Foreign investors can obtain permanent residence inCyprus. Toqualify, they invest atleast €300,000 inreal estate, shares ofCypriot companies, or units ofinvestment funds registered and operating inCyprus. Permanent residence byinvestment is obtained in3—6 months.

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