Cyprus has one of the lowest tax rates in the EU with only 12.5% Corporation Tax.

The incorporation process is simple and straightforward. There is a favorable tax regime for Cyprus holding companies and over 40 double tax treaties to assist in international tax planning.

In addition to the above, the following are tax exempt:

• Profit from sale of qualifying titles (e.g. shares, bonds, options on titles, and other)
• Dividends
• Passive interest (e.g. bank deposit interest)
• 80% deemed expense of the profit arising from the use or sale of qualifying Intellectual Property
• Profits of a permanent establishment abroad (subject to conditions, which are easily met)
• Capital gains from the disposal of immovable property situated outside of Cyprus.

You first have to pick a company name.  We then check whether the Registrar of Companies has the said name available. You can also choose out from our list of preapproved names (‘Shelf Companies’) which we can provide to you upon request

Next, you have to determine the number of company directors and shareholders and specify the purpose of the CyCo. You have to also define the share capital. Upon completion of the above, we will ask you to submit all necessary due diligence documents.

The timeframe is around 7-10 working days upon confirmation and approval of the name of the new CyCo. Should you however proceed with a Shelf company, this can be arranged within a matter of hours.

The corporate Secretary of the company can be a legal or a natural person and may be a resident of any country. However, it is preferable that the Secretary is located in Cyprus. Totalserve can assist you with appointing a Secretary for your CyCo.

Yes, the Registered Office has to be located in Cyprus where all registers of the CyCo are kept.

No, it is not compulsory. However, it is strongly advised that you do. Totalserve can assist you with opening a bank account in Cyprus through its Banking Dept.

Yes. CyCos need to be audited every year and to submit financial statements to the Registrar and an annual company income tax return to the Inland Revenue. Please visit www.pgeconomides.eu for more information.

Our fees are low enough to be competitive throughout and high enough to provide you with an excellent and professional service of a 45-year experience group

No you don’t but we always strongly advise our clients to visit our offices so we can process their KYC documents.

A CyCo requires a minimum of 1 Directors and anything between 1 - 50 Shareholders. The names of the directors and shareholders are shown in the records of the Registrar of Companies and are open for public inspection.

A company may be wound up either by:

• A voluntary winding-up (either by members’ or creditors’ voluntary winding-up) and
• By the Court and/or subject to the court’s supervision.

This is a more formalised approach and is used only when the need for a liquidator to be formally appointed arises in order to distribute certain assets, mainly for tax reasons.

Yes, the company, any of its members or creditors can file to the Court a petition within 20 years from the publication of the relevant notice in the Official Gazette. Upon acceptance, the Court issues an Order for the restoration of the company. An official copy of the aforementioned Order has to be delivered to the Registrar that will reinstate the Company in the registry.

A letter is required to be sent out by the Registrar to confirm whether the company is operational or not. If the Registrar does not received any reply within a one month period, then within fourteen days, a second letter is sent via registered mail. If no reply is received within one month, then a notice is published in the Official Gazette of the Republic of Cyprus, announcing the strike-off (deregistration) of the CyCo. The notice of dissolution is then sent to the CyCo that has 3 months within which to reply/object.

In principle and simply put, as per the Hague Convention, a Trust is the legal relationship created when a person (the “Settlor”) places assets under the control of a person or persons (the “Trustee(s)”) for the benefit of some other person (the “Beneficiaries”) or for a specific purpose.

Trusts are formed for asset protection purposes and are a flexible way to hold assets.  Trusts can be used for inheritance purposes or as a Will substitution mechanism avoiding disruption on death. Trusts are also used for estate and tax planning purposes while maintaining confidentiality.

Trust property may include any type of asset, such as immovable property, shares in corporate vehicles, cash, securities, real estate or life insurance policies, etc.

• Short limitation period (two years) for challenging a trust. Burden of proof is on the creditor
• Flexibility in adopting a foreign law
• Reasonably low cost of establishment and administration in comparison to other trust jurisdictions
• Availability of highly skilled professionals
• Favourable tax jurisdiction
• Worldwide recognised and highly regulated regime

Yes, Investor’s parents have the benefit to apply for the Cyprus Passport by investing only on a Lifetime Residence of €500.000 plus VAT. This condition apply also for parents of Investor who applied with previous schemes.

No, only the parents of the Investor (main applicant) can apply.

No, the non-dependent child of an Investor cannot apply for citizenship with an additional Lifetime Residential Property of the amount of €500.000 plus VAT.

The Investor irrespective of any investment of the amount of €2 million or even of €1.5 million when certain conditions are met; must purchase a residential property of the amount of €500.000 plus VAT. The Investor is obliged to retain this property for a lifetime. Of course, there is the option to rent it, as well as to sell it in the future. In case the Investor wishes to sell it, the relevant Ministries must be notified and another property of the same or higher value must be purchased.

No, there is no requirement to reside in Cyprus either before, during or after the application.

Yes, there is the option to purchase two Lifetime Residential Properties for the total amount of €500.000 plus VAT.

Yes, the Lifetime Residential Property can be purchased any time before the application. Nevertheless, in terms of €2 million investment in the investment option of real estate, the purchase must not exceed the three years from the day of submission of the application.

The examination process usually takes about 6 months from the filing date to the issuance of the naturalization certificate.

Criteria

Investor is of 18 years of age.

• The investor and his/her family members must submit a clean criminal record.
• Investor should provide proof that the investment amounts have been transferred to Cyprus from abroad.
• The investor is obliged to retain the investment for at least three years from the date of the application approval.

 Conditions

• Please click here to view the conditions