Cyprus - pink slip - Company
Hi All,
  I am an Indian citizen interested in obtaining a Cypriot Temporary Resident Permit (TRP or ‘pink slip’) to reside in Cyprus with my family.
I will be able to meet the financial proof required for my family by transferring the money to a Cypriot bank account from abroad.
I read that the pink slip does not give me the right to work in Cyprus.
I have a few questions about the rights if I acquire the temporary resident permit.
Can I start a company in Cyprus and be the sole director, shareholder of the company without being an employee? Can I be involved in active operations of running the company? I don't intend to hire any employees.
Can I receive dividends from the company after paying corporate tax on the annual profits? Does it violate the terms of my residence permit in any manner?
Thanks,
R_Aus_1985
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.
@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.Â
@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 μακÏόν διαμÎνοντες (LT)/ Long-term Residents (LT)
ΑÏχική Σελίδα / ΕνημÎÏωση / Έντυπα / Πολίτες Ï„Ïίτων χωÏών/ Third Country Nationals / Επί μακÏόν διαμÎνοντες (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.
- 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.
- 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.
- EU citizens do not need to take a language exam for permanent residency.
- 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.
- ΑÏχική Σελίδα / ΕνημÎÏωση / Έντυπα / Πολίτες Ï„Ïίτων χωÏών/ Third Country Nationals / Επί μακÏόν διαμÎνοντες (LT)/ Long-term Residents (LT)
      (The migration department website heading is mix and match of English and Greek.)
- 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
People I know got PR this year after being here 3 months as they were here looking for a house in 2021. They did not purchase. They only returned last year. Does the holiday criterior work only if you were here in 2021 or would it work for the prior few years?
@phildraper
As far as I know prior to brexit
Based on solely what I am reading here. My wife and I travelled to Cyprus in September 2018 and again in December 2018 to look at property on the island to retire.
At the time we did not find what we wanted and decided to wait another year or two before we made the move. We finally came across September 2022.
Does the fact that we visited twice in 2018 mean we could apply for permanent residency?
I believe so ..worth a punt for sure
@MacGeorge8035 see your fb messenger
I think I will speak to the lawyer who got my friends PR for their stay in 2021 as I have evidence of boarding passes that I was in Cyprus in 2018. If this means I am able to apply for PR I will be doing that rather than going thru the 5 years of temp residence visa. If this is available for us I will be a bit p**sed off that the company I used to get the temp visa did not ask the question!
Watch this space.
@phildraper. See your msgs - for some reason cannot message on °µÍø½ûÇø app
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