About Cyprus

Strategic location

With its ideal geographical position at the crossroads of three continents – Europe, Africa and Asia, Cyprus plays a key stabilising role in the region of the Eastern Mediterranean.

The island is an ideal investment gateway to the European Union, as well as a portal for investment outside the EU, particularly into the Middle East, India and China.

EU & Eurozone Member State

As a member of the European Union since 2004 and the European Monetary Union since 2008, Cyprus is committed quality, efficiency and transparency in transactions.

Its EU membership ensures safety and stability for investors, also offering them market access to more than 500 million EU citizens.

Tax System

Cyprus offers an attractive and transparent tax regime, fully compliant with EU, OECD and international laws and regulations. Its main features are:

One of the lowest corporate income tax rates in the EU at 12.5%
Dividend participation exemption
Exemption on disposal of securities (e.g. shares, bonds, debentures)
No withholding taxes on dividend, interest and royalty payments abroad
No capital gains tax (except for disposal of real estate in Cyprus or shares of company holding real estate in Cyprus to the extent gains are attributable to the real estate holding)
No succession taxes
Attractive IP regime
Tonnage tax for shipping companies
Notional interest deduction for investments into Cyprus companies
Personal tax exemptions for new residents and non-domiciled individuals
More than 60 double tax treaties

Legal and Regulatory Framework

Based on English Common Law principles, Cyprus’ comprehensive and robust legal and regulatory framework, is widely recognised as a business-friendly and effective system that ensures transparency and reliability in business practices.

Offering foreign businesses a familiar and reliable framework within which to operate, Cyprus’ legal system is also fully compliant with the EU, the Financial Action Task Force on Money Laundering (FATF), OECD, FATCA, the Financial Stability Forum laws and regulations and EU AML directives.

Human Talent & Quality of Professional Services

Human talent constitutes one of Cyprus’ most compelling advantages, complemented by a broad range of high quality professional services.

As a dynamic business centre, Cyprus offers an abundance of highly educated and skilled individuals, multilingual in their majority, ready to serve the needs of any business. Cyprus ranks amongst the top countries in Europe for tertiary education per capita.

Tax Advantage

12,5% corporation tax.
Dividends are usually exempt from taxation.
Gains from trading in titles are exempt from taxation.
Profits of a Permanent Establishment abroad are usually exempt from Cyprus taxation.
No withholding tax imposed in Cyprus on payments of interest, dividends and in most cases of royalties (tax free repatriation).
Accessibility to an extensive network of Double Tax Treaties and the EU Directives.
Advance interpretations of the tax law may be provided by the Cyprus tax authorities (tax rulings).

Cyprus Human Resources

Cyprus has made huge investment in education over the past years, and today the island boasts one of the best-educated workforces in the European Union. The education sector remains a very high priority for the Cypriot government and expenditure on education in Cyprus reached 7.5 per cent of GDP in 2011, one of the highest percentages in Europe. Well-trained and versatile, the Cypriot workforce is one of the island’s most valuable resources, offering high standards of productivity, technical expertise and professional excellence at reasonable costs to businesses. The island’s labour force numbers some 410,000 persons in the Republic of Cyprus, with some 75.8 per cent working in the services sector, 20.4 per cent in industry and only 3.8 per cent in agriculture.

Cyprus Tax Regime

Cyprus offers one of the most attractive tax regimes in Europe. A member of the European Union since 2004, Cyprus’ regulatory regime is in full compliance with the requirements of the EU and OECD. Cyprus has one of the lowest corporate tax rates in the European Union at 12.5%. The island’s advantageous tax rate coupled with an extensive list of double tax treaties places it high on the list of preferred jurisdictions for international tax planners.